§ 4. Colonel Beamishasked the Secretary of State for War how many Regular recruits have enlisted in the Army in each of the last four months; how these figures compare with the same months one year and two years earlier; and how many of these recruits are on a six-year, or longer, engagement.
§ Mr. SoamesI will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table giving the latest figures available of men's engagements, which are for the months of October to January.
§ Following is the table:
§ that a whole lot of Army pillowslips were sold the other day as surplus to requirement at a considerable loss. In addition, is not considerable harm caused to the normal trading of private traders when these vast quantities of stores are dumped on the local market? Can my right hon. Friend take steps to ensure as far as possible that the incidence of these sales is reduced and that immediately after the sales fresh stocks are not bought to replace what has just been sold?
§ Mr. SoamesWhen we have stocks to sell, we get in touch with the Ministry of Supply, which decides upon the timing of the actual sales. I am not cognisant of the question of the pillowslips, but if my hon. Friend would like to let me have details I will gladly look into it.
§ Mr. SpeakerI hope that supplementary questions will be worded more concisely than those we have had hitherto.
399 otherwise we shall never get on. This is unfair to hon. Members who have later Questions on the Paper.