§ MR. FURNESS (Hartlepool)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether his attention has been called to the grievances of the pensioner boatmen of the Outdoor Department of Her Majesty's Customs; whether it is the case that they complain that they are not provided with uniform, that their pay is stopped for every day (including Sundays) during which they are absent from duty through illness, and that they are not allowed either Bank Holidays or annual leave of absence; and whether he will undertake to inquire into these, grievances, with a view to get them remedied?
§ THE SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY (Mr. JACKSON, Leeds, N.)Pensioner boatmen employed in the Customs Department are paid as wages-such a sum as for the time being makes up, when added to their pensions, the fixed sum of £75 per annum. Their status being that of hired men, they are not entitled to be provided with uniform. clothing, and they are liable to duty on every day of the year, including Sunday and holidays, except Christmas Day, Good Friday, the Queen's birthday, and the first Monday in August, or days in lieu thereof if the exigencies of the service demand it.