§ 52. Mr. Dickensasked the Secretary of State for Defence how many British Service men are engaged on the construction of airfields in Siam; what is the cost of 103W maintaining them; and by what authority they are engaged on this work.
§ Mr. HealeyAbout 450 British servicemen, out of a total of about 500 in Thailand, are engaged on the construction of one airfield in Thailand. The cost of maintaining them is about £225,000 a year more than it would cost to maintain them in their normal Far East station. They are building the airfield on the authority of Her Majesty's Government.