§ 65. Mr. Dayasked the Secretary of State for Air how many complaints he has received from commanding officers of representations made by airmen's messing committees during the last 12 months expressing their dissatisfaction over the food supply; will he give particulars of the present ration allowance supplied to Air Force mechanics; and how this amount is daily expended?
§ The Secretary of State for Air (Sir Kingsley Wood)Complaints of this kind would normally be dealt with by the airmen's messing committees; only those that cannot be settled locally are referred to the Air Ministry. There is no record of any such complaints having been so referred during the last 12 months. The current daily ration entitlement value for airmen in mess varies between approximately 1s. 2½d. and 1s. 5½d. according to the messing strength. Of this, approximately 9d. a day is expended on the purchase, at contract cost, of the principal components of the ration; the balance is expended on miscellaneous foodstuffs chosen by the airmen's messing committee.