§ 59 and 60. Mr. Wootton-Daviesasked the Lord President of the Council (1) in view of the fact that the Scientific Advisory Committee and the Engineering Advisory Committee were set up to ensure the fullest employment of scientific methods and discoveries in every field of the war effort and that the individual members of these committees are all persons with other responsibilities, what arrangements have been made to ensure continuous attention to matters with which these bodies have been set up to deal;
(2) what is the present staff employed by the Scientific Advisory Committee and Engineering Advisory Committee?
§ The Lord President of the Council (Sir John Anderson)The members of these committees were selected largely owing to what my hon. Friend describes as their other responsibilities which place the committees in continuing touch with official and unofficial scientific and engineering activities over a wide range. As their names show, these committees are advisory and not executive bodies. It is not intended that they should duplicate the work of the Government Departments or the official or the unofficial organisations responsible in the various fields of science and engineering. Each of the committees has joint secretaries, and they receive clerical assistance from the secretariat of the War Cabinet.
§ Sir H. WilliamsWill my right hon. Friend explain what is the procedure to be followed if somebody has a bright idea? Does he send it to the Department concerned or to one of the Advisory Committees?
§ Sir J. AndersonThat matter was dealt with in answer to a Question a short time ago, and I will see that my hon. Friend gets a copy of the answer.