§ 6. Mr. Wallasked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty if he will give the latest figures for recruiting and re-engagement for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, respectively; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. C. Ian On-EwingOne thousand three hundred and fifty-nine Royal Navy ratings were recruited in April-June, 1961, as compared with 1,124 for the same period in 1960. The corresponding Royal Marine figures were 233 and 201 respectively. The rate of re-engagement for pension in 1960 was 64 per cent. for Royal Navy ratings and 52 per cent. for Royal Marine other ranks. The information so far available for 1961 does not indicate any significant change in re-engagement.
§ Mr. WallHow far does my hon. Friend attribute these satisfactory figures to advertising in the Press? Will he say, in comparison with the equivalent Army figures, whether these figures give a good basis for increasing the Vote A strength of the Royal Marines?
§ Mr. Orr-EwingIt is true that we have increased our Press advertising and the response from advertising coupons has noticeably improved. There were 5,000 1215 in the first six months of last year, and 12,000 have sent them in during the first six months of this year. The second question is rather wider. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for War no doubt heard what my hon. Friend said.