HC Deb 18 April 1967 vol 745 cc274-5
7. Mr. Gwilym Roberts

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what figures are available for public expenditure in 1966 on military defence, research, housing and environmental services, and social services; what were the corresponding figures for 1960 and 1963; and what estimates he will give of the Government's intended expenditure in these fields in 1967, 1968, 1970, and 1972.

Mr. Callaghan

Public expenditure on military defence in 1966 was £2,219 million; outturn figures for 1966 for the other services will be pubished in the National Income Blue Book later in the year. I will circulate figures for 1960, 1963 and 1965 in the OFFICIAL REPORT and on future years I would refer my hon. Friend to the exercise on public expenditure programmes which I mentioned in my Budget Speech. [Vol. 744, Col. 990.]

Mr. Roberts

Would not the Chancellor agree that our great national problem is not a shortage of resources but the task of redeploying them from useless military production to help education, housing and social welfare; service to the community generally?

Mr. Callaghan

If my hon. Friend had asked me for details for various financial years, I could have given him the percentages. They would have shown that, taking the financial year 1962–63 as against 1965–66, military defence expenditure increased by 17 per cent., housing and environmental services by 41 per cent. and social services by 37 per cent. It therefore looks as though the redeployment we want is taking place.

Mr. Iain Macleod

Concerning future expenditure, would the right hon. Gentleman agree that it is one of the duties, perhaps the first duty, of the Treasury to keep a continuing review of these matters? Would the right hon. Gentleman say in what respect the review he forecast in his Budget differs from what goes on anyway?

Mr. Callaghan

Yes, Sir. This special review is taking place in order to prepare for the Estimates for next year in the light of my attempts—and I hope that they will be successful—to try to regulate the economy and to make room for growth in private investment.

Mr. Emrys Hughes

Is my right hon. Friend aware that His Holiness the Pope has recently described the arms race as an "intolerable scandal" and has urged all Governments to reduce expediture so that some of it might be diverted to curing world poverty? How far does the Chancellor agree with that?

Mr. Callaghan

Not only do I respectfully agree with it, but I am glad to say that we are one of the nations carrying it out.

Mr. Stratton Mills

Would the right hon. Gentleman stop the practice of giving figures of Government expenditure in terms of constant prices on a 1964 base, which tends to disguise the fact that Government expediture is rocketing out of control?

Mr. Callaghan

Although that is a different question, the answer is "No, certainly not".

Following are the figures:

PUBLIC EXPENDITURE*
£ million
1960 1963 1965
Military Defence 1,630 1,892 2,095
Research 97 130 154
Housing and Environmental Services 827 1,056 1,490
Social Services 3,409 4,491 5,479
* Source: National Income and Expenditure Blue Book: 1966 Table 53.