§ Captain Pluggeasked the Prime Minister whether any final decision has yet been reached to clear away certain houses in Abingdon Street in connection with the scheme for the erection of King George V memorial; what is the total cost of clearing this site; and whether he will instead consider using the money in question to assist in the clearing and improvement of Parliament Square on the lines proposed in the memorandum recently circulated by the Middlesex County Council?
§ The Prime MinisterI understand that no final decision has yet been taken by the committee responsible for the National Memorial to King George V as to the precise extent of the area to be cleared 749W and to be laid out as open space, and it is not possible, therefore, to state the total cost of clearing the site required. The promise which, subject to the approval of Parliament, was made to the Lord Mayor's Fund, was that the Government would make a contribution in the shape of a free gift of all State property within the area selected by the committee: but this contribution is, in its essence, inseparable from the site on which the property stands.