Army (Ordnance Factories) (Excess), 1920–21.

Part of Orders of the Day — REPORT [20th March.] – in the House of Commons at on 23 March 1922.

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Photo of Mr Worthington Evans Mr Worthington Evans , Colchester

If the right hon. Gentleman was attacking the system and not the Department which I represent, I will leave it at that. He asked, however, why it was necessary to have an excess Vote at all. He seemed to be extremely surprised, and already to have forgotten that there was such a thing as a war, because every single item in the particular Vote he was referring to was a remnant of the War which only came to light after the year in which the expenditure had been incurred. I would remind the Committee that a Committee of this House—the Public Accounts Committee—has examined this Vote in detail, that it has had the Accounting Officer of the Department in front of it, and has cross-examined the Accounting Officer on each one of the items in this account. I agree that that does not prevent this Committee asking the Minister for further particulars. It is right that they should do so, and I am here for the purpose of answering them, but I want the Committee to remember that the detailed examination of this Vote has been made already by one of its own Committees, which has reported to the House advising it to grant this Vote.