Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Air Force – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 20 July 1960.
Mr Patrick Wall
, Haltemprice
12:00,
20 July 1960
asked the Secretary of State for Air what has been the cost to his Department of maintaining Royal Air Force establishments and personnel in Malta during each of the past five years.
Mr George Ward
, Worcester
We estimate the direct cost to Air Votes in the last five financial years at £4·4 million, £5 million, £5·1 million, £4·9 million, and £5·2 million.
Mr Patrick Wall
, Haltemprice
Is my right hon. Friend aware that the figure he has just quoted, together with the figures given by his right hon. Friends in charge of the other Service Departments, show that about £20 million a year is going to Malta from the defence forces? Will he see that this figure is given wide publicity in the island?
Mr George Ward
, Worcester
Yes, but I should make it clear to my hon. Friend that the figures of cost for which the Question asked, and which I have given, are not quite the same as local expenditure, but we have spent about £18 million in Malta in this period.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
