§ 42. Mr. Emrys Hughesasked the Minister of Defence how many soldiers sentenced by court martial for desertion last year were discharged from His Majesty's Forces.
§ The Minister of Defence (Mr. Shinwell)I regret that the information for which my hon. Friend asks is not readily available. I can say, however, that during 1949, 71 deserters were sentenced by courts martial to dishonourable discharge from His Majesty's Forces.
§ Mr. HughesHas the Minister considered the desirability of discharging deserters who are not likely to be of any further use to His Majesty's Forces?
§ Mr. ShinwellAs I pointed out, some have been discharged.
§ 43. Mr. Emrys Hughesasked the Minister of Defence how many of the 19,500 deserters are Regular soldiers; and how many National Service men.
§ Mr. ShinwellAbout 4,300 are Regulars and about 15,200 are National Service men called up under the 1939 and subsequent National Service Acts.
§ Mr. HughesCan the Minister tell us whether any conclusions can be drawn from these figures?
§ Mr. ShinwellNone that I can think of.