§ Bill considered in Committee.
§ (In the Committee.)
§ Clauses 1 to 7, inclusive, agreed to, with Amendments.
§ Clause 8 (Treasury to appoint to offices in Register of Sasines, &c).
§ THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON)moved, in page 2, at the end of the clause, to insert as a new paragraph—
The Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury shall have power to fix the salaries and emoluments attached to any of the offices aforesaid, and, with the consent of one of Her Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, to regulate any of the said offices, and to change the designations thereof and the duties of officers employed therein, and the terms on which appointments shall be made thereto."'
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Clause, as amended, agreed to.
§ THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON)moved, in page 2, after Clause 8, to insert the following clause:—
(Superannuation of officers.)All appointments hereafter made to any of the offices aforesaid shall entitle the holders thereof to superannuation upon such conditions as the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, having regard to 'The Superannuation Act, 1859, shall prescribe: Provided, That it shall be lawful to the said Commissioners, if, and so 1026 far as they see fit, to grant superannuations to the holders of such offices before the passing of this Act, although they may not have obtained certificates from the Civil Service Commissioners.
§ MR. J. W. BARCLAYasked, what was the intention of the clause?
§ THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON)stated, that it was one of the leading purposes of the Bill that these officers should receive their appointments from and be removable by the Treasury; and the object of the last clause, which had been very carefully adjusted, was to make them Civil servants. There were men in the Office who had served for a long period, but who were not originally appointed as Civil servants, and one main object of the proposed clause was to enable the Treasury to retire them on Civil Service allowances.
§ MR. M'LARENcould assure the hon. Member for Forfarshire that this clause had been very carefully considered in Edinburgh, and that it had received the sanction of everybody concerned in it.
§ MR. J. W. BARCLAYsaid, he was only surprised that so important a clause should have been originally left out of the Bill.
§ THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON), said the clause had been inserted in substitution for another one which secured the same object, but less efficiently.
§ Clause agreed to, and added to the Bill.
§ MR. M'LARENsaid, that in the absence of the noble Earl the Member for the County of Edinburgh (the Earl of Dalkeith), he wished to move the insertion of a new clause, of which the noble Earl had given Notice, with respect to the regulating the office of sheriffs' clerks, and placing it under the control of the deputy clerk-register.
THE CHAIRMANpointed out that the moving of this clause would necessitate the adjournment of the Committee.
§ MR. M'LARENsaid, in that case he would not press it.
§ House resumed.
§ Bill reported; as amended, to be considered upon Thursday.
§ The House suspended its Sitting at Seven of the clock.
§ The House resumed its Sitting at Nine of the clock.