§ MR. KELLY (Camberwell, N.)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether he is aware that, with respect, to annual leave, the second division clerks of ten years' service and upwards in the Customs Department stand at a considerable disadvantage as compared with others of the same class in other public departments, with the exception of those in the Treasury and the Charity Commission; and whether there is any reason why a uniformity of prac- 877 tice in this matter should not prevail throughout the whole Civil Service.
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURNo, Sir; I am not aware of the alleged disadvantage. The second division clerks of the Customs Department who have more than ten years' service enjoy the maximum annual leave allowed by the Order in Council of the 21st March, 1890. Departments have no power to vary the terms of that Order.