§ Major GLYNasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury if he can state what, after having taken into account the present and pre-War value of money, are the respective sums paid in salaries, wages, office rent, and other strictly administrative expenses for the Army, Navy, Air Force, Civil Services, Customs, Excise and Inland Revenue Departments, and the Post Office services, respectively, for the financial years ending 31st March, 1914 and 1925; what was the total administrative staff employed in each service for the same years; and what do these figures for each of these services represent as to the proportion of the total number of persons employed in each of the services?
Mr. GUINNESSWith regard to the first part of the question, I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Darwen (Sir F, Sanderson) on the subject of Government Departments (Supply Ser vices, Cost) on the 28th May last. The administrative expenses given in that reply do not include office accommodation, rates and stationery and printing: the expenses of those services attributable to administration are not separately recorded, and could not be ascertained 447W without considerable labour. For a comparison of administration expenses in 1914–15 (pre-War) and 1924–25, taking into account the change in the value of money, the figures for 1914–15 should be increased by 75 per cent. With regard to the second part of the question, I would explain that, except for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Post Office, the whole of the persons employed, with rare exceptions, are engaged on duties of administration. The hon. and gallant Member will, I think, find the information he wants in Table II of the Memorandum on Present and Pre-War Expenditure (Command Paper 2428).