§ Mr. HAYDAYasked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware of the discontent which exists among the troops in Egypt because of the delay in demobilisation; whether he is aware that much duplication of work occurs; whether there are three general headquarters in the neighbourhood of Cairo, namely, at Heliopolis, the headquarters for Egypt, at Abbassis, the headquarters for the Cairo district, and at Cairo, the headquarters for the Egyptian Expeditionary Force; whether Heliopolis is four miles from Cairo and Abbassis midway between those places: and whether, having regard to the necessity for economy, he will take steps to rectify the situation?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLAs regards the first part of the question, demobilisation in Egypt has been delayed by the unsettled state of affairs existing there. It has now recommenced, and large numbers of men are expected to return home for demobilisation during each of the next three months. It is hoped that all men who enlisted prior to the 1st January, 1916, will have arrived home by the end of August. With regard to the rest of the question, my hon. Friend is, I think, under a misapprehension. There are not three general headquarters in the neighbourhood of Cairo. General Allenby's general headquarters, recently transferred to Cairo, is general headquarters of the whole British force in Egypt and Palestine, and it is not desirable to charge this with all the minor administrative work of districts. The headquarters force in Egypt is responsible for the military administration of all Lower Egypt and the very wide extent of the Western desert, while the headquarters, Cairo district, is a small administrative headquarters for local needs. I may add that it is understood that General Allenby1046W has just forwarded proposals for a revision of headquarter establishments, and these will receive the closest scrutiny when received.