§ Mr. FORRESTasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture the names of those counties in which satisfactory progress has been made with the settlement on the land of ex-service men and also those in which the progress is not satisfactory; and whether he will inform the House what steps he proposes to take in all the latter cases to carry out the pledges of the Government?
Sir A. BOSCAWENThe difficulties with which county councils are confronted in the acquisition and equipment of land for the settlement of ex-service men vary considerably from county to county, and I do not think it would serve any useful purpose to attempt to classify the councils as satisfactory or unsatis-1044W factory. Speaking generally, the results obtained up to date have been very satisfactory, and my hon. Friend may rest assured that the Ministry is taking every opportunity of assisting and advising those counties in which least progress has been made. If, however, the Minister is satisfied that in any county the council are not providing holdings for ex-service men to such extent as is considered desirable, he will not hesitate to make use of his concurrent powers contained in Section 3 of the Land Settlement (Facilities) Act, 1919.