§ Sir OWEN PHILIPPSasked the Secretary to the Admiralty whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that in American papers recently arrived is published a full list of the merchant ships built in America in the month of April, 1918, prepared by the Statistical Department, executive and administrative division, together with exact particulars concerning the name and situation of the shipbuilding company, the size, the date of laying keel, the date of launching, and the date of completion of each vessel; and whether he is now prepared to publish corresponding particulars, with respect to all vessels built in the United Kingdom, at least monthly?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAI have not yet been able to obtain copies of the papers referred to by my hon. Friend, and therefore have no knowledge, except that conveyed in his question, as to the amount of information given to the public in America. The Controller-General of Merchant Shipbuilding has, of course, the most detailed particulars respecting the progress of ship construction in the United Kingdom, but he is not prepared, as at present advised, to meet the suggestion of my hon. Friend. Of course, each month's total of completed new tonnage is published on the first Thursday after the 3rd of the succeeding month. The Controller-General concurs with the naval view that to give particulars such as are indicated in the question would be valuable to the enemy.