asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he will, at short intervals, notify all Departments and Service units to be more sparing in the use of the telegraph and the telephone in respect of office or routine communications?

There are standing instructions to Departments in time of war that the telegraph and telephone services should be used for communications only where it is clear that the postal service would not be speedy enough. I do not think that the re-issue of such instructions at short intervals would produce the best results, but I will keep the matter under review.

Would the right hon. and gallant Gentleman say, with regard to his answer dealing with telephones, whether unlimited use of automatic telephones is not in the public interest at the present time?

The point is that whether automatic telephones or any other kind are used it is not always necessary to use them for communications when the post is speedy enough.