§ 35. Mr. Bellengerasked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware of the wastage amongst enlisted men in the Regular Army; and whether he will move to appoint a Select Committee of this House to inquire into the state of the Regular Army and cognate matters.
§ Mr. HeadI am aware of the position. The right hon. Gentleman had better await the Service Estimates.
§ Mr. BellengerThe Question only came to the notice of the right hon. Gentleman because it was transferred from the Prime Minister. I well know that the right hon. Gentleman is aware of this, but does he not agree that the figures for the last year which he gave to the House last week are lamentable, and that we should—or he should—deal with this matter as soon as possible, and not even wait until five months hence, when he presents his Estimates?
§ Mr. HeadI think the right hon. Gentleman will agree that this is probably due to a variety of causes. We are fully 1254 aware of the causes and have plans for trying to deal with the position to the maximum possible extent within the limitations of money and materials available.