§ SIR A. HAYTER (Walsall)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Foreign Office has taken any steps to carry out the recommendations of the Ridley Commission made in their Report of 1890 to amalgamate the Foreign Office and Diplomatic Services, the members of which should be interchangeable, and the entrance examination the same?
§ THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Sir E. GREY,) Northumberland, BerwickSince April, 1891, the entrance examination has been the same for both Services. It is intended that a Committee composed of members of the Treasury and Foreign Office should report on questions arising out of the recommendations of the Royal Commission; but the matter requires careful consideration, as the amalgamation of the two Services on the terms recommended by the Commission will necessitate either some material changes or a considerable increase of expenditure.