§ 14. Captain Marsdenasked the First Lord of the Admiralty when it is proposed to publish the White Paper showing the strength of the fleets of all countries.
§ Mr. AlexanderI would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Londonderry (Sir R. Ross) on 5th December last, to which I have nothing to add.
§ Captain MarsdenAs it is now a long while since we had any information at all, cannot the First Lord give some indication when this information will be available?
§ Mr. AlexanderI share the feelings of the hon. and gallant Member, but one of the difficulties is that it is so soon after the war. Until redistributions are achieved, it is really impossible to give accurate information. It is not worth going to all the expense of printing information to lay before hon. Members which is not up to date or accurate.
§ Sir R. RossWill not the right hon. Gentleman give as much information as possible which is accurate so that we may get some idea of the figures?
§ 15. Captain Marsdenasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he will now make known the strength of the R.N., naming in detail the numbers and types of ships that are in full commission, with reduced crews, in reserve and on the disposal and sale lists.
§ Mr. AlexanderI would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply given him by the Parliamentary Secretary on 22nd May last, to which I regret that I am unable to add.
§ Captain MarsdenIn view of the fact that the United States Navy Department issued this information about the British Fleet to their own people, cannot we in this country know about our own Fleet?
§ Mr. AlexanderI am not aware that information of that kind has been issued to the American public.
§ Captain MarsdenThe First Lord says that the information has not been made public, but does he not realise that it is known to the United States Navy?
§ Mr. AlexanderFrom time to time, Service information is exchanged between Allies which is valuable to both.