§ MR. HENNIKER HEATONI beg to ask the Postmaster General whether he will endeavour to cause provision to be made whereby insurers in the Post Office Life Insurance Department may take out policies with shorter payments in advance than the annual premiums in advance now required; whether he will endeavour to cause provision to be made, by legislation or otherwise, to enable the funds of the Post Office Insurance Department to be invested in securities in which trustees are by law allowed to invest; whether he will arrange that the quinquennial valuations required by Section 3 of the Act 27 & 28 Vic, c. 46, to be prepared by the Commissioners for the reduction of the National Debt shall be laid before Parliament; and whether he will endeavour to cause arrangements to be made whereby any profits arising from the Post Office Insurance Department may be divided amongst insurants, as appears to have been intended by Subsection 9 of Section 5 of the Act, 45 Vic, c. 51? At the same time, I will ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he will cause a Return to be made of the expenditure of the Post Office Insurance Vote, especially of the Salaries and Allowances (if any) paid to officers in the 17 Public Service in receipt of other Salaries or Allowances; and whether he will cause the annual Returns made of Post Office Insurance business to distinguish between the two different classes of insurance—namely, from £5 to £25, and from exceeding £25 to £100? Further, I will ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he will try the experiment of opening offices in the evening in some of the large towns at which persons may obtain from officers thoroughly acquainted with special information about insurances and annuities, filling up the necessary the business taking out and aid in forms?
§ MR. A. MORLEYI am hardly in a position to answer Question 1, which concerns important matters coming within the province of the Treasury and of the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt. As regards the second question, the details of the expenditure for Post Office Insurance are shewn on Page 87 of the Post Office Estimates. No specific salary or allowance is paid to any officer of the Department for insurance work, but commissions are paid to Sub-Postmasters and others for securing contracts according to authorised rates varying from 1s. to 4s. per contract. The number of contracts issued yearly for the last 10 years in respect of the two classes of insurance mentioned is given in a table, a copy of which I shall be glad to send to the hon. Member. In answer to the last question, I have to say that at all large towns Post Offices are open up to 8 and in some cases so late as 11 in the evening, and all necessary information respecting Post Office insurance and annuities can be obtained and aid given in filling up the necessary forms.