§ 60. Mr. Footasked the Secretary of State for War what was the most recent date upon which he received representations from the Plymouth City Council upon the queston of building a war memorial on Plymouth Hoe.
Mr. HutchisonMy right hon. Friend has received no representations on this matter from the Plymouth City Council.
§ 61. Mr. Footasked the Secretary of State for War how far the 47 acres of Plymouth Hoe, acquired by the Crown in 1671, still serve any serious military purpose; and whether the Government will consider presenting the land to the 19W Plymouth City Council as a tribute to the special part played by the City of Plymouth during the late war and as part compensation for the failure of the War Office to restore other properties within the city boundaries now owned by the War Office.
Mr. HutchisonSome 19 acres are occupied by the Army and are currently in use. The remaining 28 acres were leased to the Plymouth Corporation in 1886 for 99 years, subject to the right of the War Department to resume occupation for military purposes.
The present arrangement seems the most suitable way of making the area available to the public and at the same time safeguarding military needs. Moreover, as my right hon. Friend stated in his reply to a Question on 24th June, this land is vested in the Commissioners of Crown Lands, to whom it would revert if the War Department interest were to be terminated.