§ 23. Mr. Langford-Holtasked the Minister of Supply what percentage of the 19 tons of screws offered for sale by his Department on Friday, 13th April, were unused.
§ The Minister of Supply (Mr. Reginald Maudling)All the screws were unused, but they were rusty and mixed in sizes.
§ Mr. Langford-HoltIn view of the fact that my right hon. Friend gave me precisely the same answer about 1I8 tons of nails, can he say whether these screws were rendered rusty by his Department or were badly stored and, therefore, were rusty when they were delivered to him by another Department?
§ Mr. MaudlingAny question on the storage of the screws should be addressed to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for War.
§ Mr. Langford-HoltWill my right hon. Friend go a little further? He has admitted that he sold screws in a rusty condition. I have asked whether he made them rusty or, if not, who did?
§ Mr. MaudlingMy responsibility is to dispose of stores declared surplus by the War Office. We naturally considered whether it was worth while de-rusting them, but the cost of doing so would not have been worth while.