Mr. Whiteasked the Home Secretary whether he is in a position to make a statement with regard to the working of the Fire Watchers Order, in particular whether any estimate has been made of the number of persons employed and the cost of the Order; and whether consideration is being given to any modifications of the Order which, without interfering with its efficiency, would decrease the cost and the demands upon man-power?
§ Mr. MabaneThe new dispositions for fire prevention, the outlines of which as 43W my hon. Friend will now be aware were made known at the week-end, supersede the provisions of the Fire Watchers Order.
§ Rear-Admiral Beamishasked the Home Secretary whether he will now give particulars of the recently-formed Fire Prevention Division, stating its scope, duties, intentions and powers; and in what way preventive measures will be recruited and enforced so as to obviate and to mitigate war damage to property?
§ Mr. MabaneThe staff of my Department has been strengthened in order to give all possible guidance and assistance to local authorities in the discharge of their functions, relating to the prevention and extinction of fires, conferred or imposed upon them by or under the recent Orders made under the Defence Regulations. The Department will act in close liaison with the Fire Prevention Executive whose appointment under the chairmanship of my right hon. Friend the Postmaster-General has recently been announced. As regards the second part of the Question, I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the Orders in question.