§ Major LLEWELLINasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether in view of the fact that the Board of Customs and Excise took executive action in offering to senior members of their general clerical officers transfer to their departmental clerical class with a view to promotion, he will give an undertaking that the promotion prospects of existing members of the departmental clerical class shall in no way be prejudiced thereby; and will he give a further undertaking that in all present and future promotions from the departmental clerical class the promotions panel will take into consideration all recommended candidates of that class?
§ Major ELLIOTI am unable to give the undertaking asked for in the first part of the question, but I would point out that the additional work created by the general tariff has resulted in an expansion of the departmental clerical class of the Customs and Excise, and in consequence the existing members of the class, in common with those recently transferred from the general clerical class, have open to them an increased number of higher posts. As regards the further undertaking asked for in the second part of the question, all recommended candidates in a class are taken into consideration, when promotions are made in that class, under the normal procedure of the promotion board.