§ LORD DAVIESMy Lords, I beg to ask the question standing in my name.
§ [The question was as follows:
§ To ask His Majesty's Government how many acres of cultivated land have been requisitioned for the purpose of providing training facilities for units of the Royal Armoured Corps and whether they are in a position to estimate the loss of foodstuffs that has resulted therefrom.]
1132§ LORD CROFTMy Lords, approximately 6,000 acres of land have been requisitioned or will be requisitioned after the completion of the 1941 harvest under Regulation 51 of the Emergency Powers Defence Act, 1939, to provide training facilities for the Royal Armoured Corps. Of this total about 2,000 acres can be classified as good agricultural land and the balance is agricultural land of low quality, much of it downland. Wherever practicable arrangements have been made to permit such continuance of agricultural operations as may be possible. In addition to the land requisitioned under Defence Regulation 51, and where user is required to the exclusion of agricultural interest, full use is made of land already the property of the War Department. In addition to that, training rights have of course been arranged over a much greater area of other land under Defence Regulation 52, but this does not involve requisition, and the areas have been carefully reconnoitred, bearing in mind their food productivity value. Consequently, these have not been sterilised from a food production point of view.
The whole matter of training areas, both in respect of the requirements of the Royal Armoured Corps and other arms of the Service, are dealt with in the closest cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, and through them the local Land Commissioners and the county war agricultural executive committees. It is not possible to form any estimate of the loss of foodstuffs that has resulted from the necessity of providing an area essential for the efficient training of the Royal Armoured Corps.
§ House adjourned