Mr. CHAMBERLAIN:

Because the disturbances which necessitated the additional troops had not taken place, and were not contemplated, and could not have been foreseen when the Estimates were framed. There are £2,000,000 for services retransferred from the Ministry of Munitions to the War Office, which must be revoted, but are no additional charge to the taxpayer, and £2,000,000 or more due to the condition of Ireland. Altogether, therefore, to the original Budget provision you must add £58,000,000. On the other hand, there are reductions which come as a set-off. Reductions have already been made to the extent of £8,500,000, and further reductions are anticipated within the year in the Estimates as presented of £52,000,000, altogether £60,500,000, as against the £58,000,000 of additional expense. Practically, you may say that the savings made or in sight afford a set-off to the additional expenditure which we have had to incur. The general result, as the House will see, is that the Budget total is practically unaffected up to the present time, but there may be, and I think there must be, some additional charge as the result of unemployment and of the steps which we may be called upon to take to deal with it, and there may be additional charges as a result of the coal strike and the loss of railway revenue which that involved. So much for the expenditure.