§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether he is aware that the West German Government have decided to reduce their defence budget by £190 million, cutting their forces by 61,000 men, and making no provision for off-setting the foreign exchange costs for British troops in Germany; and whether, in view of these new circumstances, he will review Great Britain's contribution in men, materials and money to the British Army of the Rhine;
(2) to what extent the Bonn Government consulted him before deciding to reduce their forces by 61,000 men and reducing defence expenditure by £190 million, in view of Great Britain's arrangements for military forces being stationed in Germany; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HealeyAs far as I am aware, the only firm proposal made by the Federal German Government is to cut planned military and civil defence expenditure in 1968 by two thousand million 107W deutschmarks; that is, about £180 million. The Federal German Government have made it clear that the consequences of this proposed cut on matters such as the size of Federal German forces have yet to be worked out, and that they will consult with their allies before decision; are taken.