64 Sir Reginald Garryasked the Minister of Supply (1) whether his attention has been called to a request from the Newport Town Council, made at the 197 instigation of the boot and shoe manufacturers of Great Britain, that, in the interests of public health, there should be no curtailment of leather footwear for the civilian population, in spite of the heavy demands on leather made by his Department for Service use; and whether, in order to meet future civilian requirements, there is active and speedy cooperation between his Department and the boot manufacturers, to investigate and encourage the process of treatment to effect economy in the life of Army boots, reported upon in the Eleventh Report of the Select Committee on National Expenditure;
- (2)whether, in view of the urgent necessity of extending the life of Army boots, both on grounds of economy and to conserve supplies of leather, he is satisfied that adequate interest and activity warranted by the far-reaching possibilities has, and is being demonstrated by his Department in a process to treat Army boots referred to in the Eleventh Report of the Select Committee oh National Expenditure; and what steps he is taking to institute large-scale practical tests under conditions of actual wear with independent or unprejudiced supervision;
- (3)whether, in connection with the Eleventh Report of the Select Committee on National Expenditure on the subject of a special process for the treatment of Army boots to extend their life, he can give any explanation of the unsatisfactory and incomplete records referred to in the Report kept by his Department on an attempt to try out, under actual use conditions, a small number of boots; and why the inventor's proposal to bear the whole cost of a practical test on 1,000 pairs of boots, with an indemnity against possible damage to the boots, was not accepted nearly a year ago?
§ Sir A. DuncanMy right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade has taken steps for the introduction of rationing and for the concentration of the boot and shoe industry, which involve some curtailment of the output of leather footwear for the civilian population. Owing to the necessity of conserving supplies of raw material, the quantity of leather available to the industry has had to be restricted, but every effort will be made to see that sufficient leather is available to make the footwear that will be required 198 in these circumstances. As regards the matter relating to Army boots to which my hon. Friend refers, arrangements are being made for extended tests on the lines endorsed by the Select Committee.
§ Mr. ThorneCan the right hon. Gentleman give us any information with regard to the number of coupons required for boots? Is it necessary to have the same number of coupons for the best leather?