§ Mr. Hargreavesasked the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to ensure cost efficiency in the education budget for the education of the children of service personnel serving in Germany.
§ Mr. LeeWe will continue to ensure cost efficiency in the education of service children in Germany through regular audit and specific rationalisation studies which seek to match provision to demand and take account of the resources available. We have implemented budgetary control of staff numbers and contracting out of support services to assist this effort.
§ Mr. Hargreavesasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many children of service men in Germany were using a boarding school allowance; and what was the total cost of those allowances in 1978, 1981 and 1985, respectively, at 1985 prices;
(2) how much was the average boarding school allowance for the children of those serving in Germany in 1978, 1981 and 1985, respectively, at 1985 prices.
§ Mr. LeeBoarding school allowance records are not maintained centrally in the form requested and cannot be obtained without disproportionate effort. Current payments cover some 21,500 children in all and the average annual payment in 1984–85 was some £3,600 per child, of which it is estimated that about 30 per cent. would have been received by the Inland Revenue in tax.