§ Sir S. Reedasked the First Commissioner of Works, to what extent timber is being used in place of metal frames for windows in Government buildings; 331W and why arbitrary sizes are being fixed for such windows when there is an ample supply of standard metal frames available?
§ Mr. GrimstonI have been asked to reply. In buildings for which my right hon. Friend is responsible, timber is being used for window frames only to a very limited extent, and that mainly in buildings which were in course of erection at the outbreak of war. In war-time buildings, which constitute by far the largest proportion of his Department's building programme, timber is used only in cases in which metal is unsuitable because of the nature of the process to be carried on in the buildings. In general, metal windows of standard size are being used in his Department's war-time building programme. In a relatively small number of cases of buildings under erection at the outbreak of war, metal windows of special sizes are used to suit particular requirements or architectural considerations.