§ Mr. McLeavyasked the Minister of Education what are the professional qualifications of the head of his Department's school meals service department; what is the general training of the staff under him; and how many of these have been drawn from the catering trade.
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§ Mr. TomlinsonThe school meals service is administered in the special services branch of my Department. The officers concerned have the help, on technical and dietetic questions, of His Majesty's inspectors with experience of large-scale catering.
§ Mr. McLeavyasked the Minister of Education what is the present cost of his Department's school meals service; and what is the estimated cost when such meals become a full financial charge upon his Department.
§ Mr. TomlinsonThe net cost of the school dinner service in 1947–48, after allowing for payments by parents and staff, was about £16,600,000. It is estimated that, when provision is available for four million children to have dinner without payment, the cost to public funds would be of the order of £40 million.