§ MR. WILLOX (Liverpool, Everton)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether the Government have been in communication with the owners of the White Star line of steamers, with the view of constraining the marine engineers of that company to join the Royal Naval Reserve; whether the notice requiring such engineers to join the Royal Naval Reserve within two months is in accordance with the terms under which merchant steamers are engaged as armed cruisers; and whether the Government are prepared to recommend that engineers who join the Royal Naval Reserve shall be allowed the same retaining fee as is given to other officers, marine engineers at present receiving no fee on the ground that they are non-combatants?
THE SECRETARY TO THE ADMIRALTY (Sir U. KAY-SHUTTLE-WORTH,) Lancashire, ClitheroeThe reply to the first two questions is in the negative. The owners probably make their own conditions with their engineers, so as to secure that the required proportion of officers and engineers join the Royal Naval Reserve. In reply to the third question, it is not the case that engineers, Royal Naval Reserve, receive no retaining fee on the ground that they are non-combatants. The retaining fee which other officers receive is on account of their having served 12 months' training in the Royal Navy, for which there is no provision in the regulations for engineer officers.