§ Mr. ClayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many applications for the dispatch of Army medals awarded in connection with the 1939–45 war are waiting to be processed; and what is the average waiting time.
§ Mr. NeubertThere were 6,839 outstanding claims for medals at 31 December 1988. Of these 2,661 were awaiting more information from the applicants or other governmental Departments, 2,608 were awaiting documents from archives and 1,570 were awaiting assessment at the Army medal office. All applicants are told that they may expect to wait about eight months for their claims to be processed.