§ Q1. Mr. Wingfield Digbyasked the Prime Minister whether he will retransfer the works department for the Armed Services from the Ministry of Works to the Ministry of Defence.
§ The Prime Minister (Mr. Harold Wilson)No, Sir.
§ Mr. DigbyWill the Prime Minister bear in mind that, although the arguments about the new arrangements may be finely balanced, as they have now been working for only two years with the Ministry of Defence under one roof, it is worth watching the position? Will he undertake to do so?
§ The Prime MinisterI am not sure that I would agree that the arguments are finely balanced. The former Government made this decision. I think that they were right and I think that the arrangement is working pretty well.
Mr. SharpiesI welcome the right hon. Gentleman's reply. Will he confirm that work for the Services will continue to be done as an allied service, as opposed to an agency service, and will he also confirm that the Ministry of Public Building and Works will continue to be the co-ordinating Ministry in research and development in the construction industries?
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir. The answer to the first question is that that is still our intention. The hon. Gentleman from his own experience will confirm that it is extremely valuable that the Ministry of Public Building and Works should be in a position of having its services loaded to co-ordinate with the rest of its civilian work, which means that it is freer to experiment on a major basis with industrialised building and with new provisions of various kinds.