§ Mr. Saltasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works and Buildings whether his attention has been called to the Eighth Report of the Select Committee on National Expenditure recommending that in many cases teams of professional men who had previously worked together as firms would be likely to be more effective than a technical section of a Government Department built up primarily to perform certain functions; and to what extent this advice has been followed by his own Department in connection with building and survey work?
§ Mr. HicksI am aware of the recommendation of the Select Committee on National Expenditure to which the hon. Member refers. It has been the policy of the Ministry from the outbreak of war to use the services of architects, civil engineers and surveyors in private practice where this has been considered desirable and in fact about 400 firms of these professions have been so employed. It is the intention of the Minister to continue this policy.