§ Mr. J. McKayasked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware of the dissatisfaction at the suggested rate of release in the Army for Groups 27 and 28, at the rate of 4,529 per day and 4,474, respectively, as compared with Groups 25 and 26 at the respective rates of 8,038 per day and 9,848; and what are the reasons for this drop of 50 per cent. less men per day being released from 7th March to 18th May compared with 8th January to 6th March.
§ Mr. LawsonI would refer my hon. Friend to the answers given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Labour and National Service to the hon. and gallant Member for Uxbridge (Flight-Lieutenant Beswick) and the hon. Member for Drake (Mr. Medland) on Tuesday. My hon. Friend may also like to refer to the answer I gave to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Lichfield on Wednesday last.
§ Captain C. Smithasked the Secretary of State for War whether it is proposed to retain officers of any arm of the service in East Africa Command beyond the announced release dates for their groups.
§ Mr. LawsonSo far as I am aware there is no proposal to retain officers of any arm of the Service in East Africa Command beyond the release dates for their groups, although the Commander-in-Chief may find it necessary to retain individuals for a short period on grounds of military necessity.
§ Mr. Hobsonasked the Secretary of State for War how many men, apart 24W from Regular Servicemen, there will be in each of the three services over the age of 35 at the end of June, 1946.
§ Mr. LawsonI regret that the information asked for is not readily available and could not be obtained without a considerable amount of research and at the expense of other urgent work.