London, Oct. 11 (Reuters): The much-loved British cup of tea has been deemed too costly to give out free to military staff.

The ministry of defence sent a memo asking employees to log every cup of tea or coffee they drink so their department can be charged for the beverages. Free tea and coffee will only be provided if a meeting lasts at least two hours. One staff member told the Mirror newspaper that workers initially wondered if the plan was a joke. But the government defended its decision.

?The days of a tea trolley coming round giving out free tea are long over. It?s essentially ensuring tax payers? money is used in the most efficient way,? a ministry of defence (MoD) spokesman said today. In July, newspapers reported the department bought 3,000 chairs with a retail price tag of ?1,000 each, although the MoD insisted it only paid a fraction of that sum for each seat.