§ MR. WINTERBOTHAMsaid, he would beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether he is able to state what steps have been taken for "the establishment of a system of open competition on an extended scale" in the Civil Service, in accordance with the expectation held out to the House on the 10th of April 1869, and renewed on the 25th of February 1870?
MR. GLADSTONESir, in redemption of the pledge we gave at earlier periods of the Session, we have steadily prosecuted the measures which were contemplated in the discussions that occurred in this House. The arrangements connected with open competition, and connected with other elements of change in the offices that attach themselves to the subject of open competition, are now in a very forward state, and we hope in the course of a very short time—probably, in two or three weeks—to be able to lay on the Table of the House conclusive documents relating to the matter.