HC Deb 26 June 1899 vol 73 cc599-600
MR. MACALEESE (Monaghan, N.)

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster-General, whether he is aware that, as the result of the last revision of the telegraph department of the Belfast Post Office, two members of the staff, who held the appointment of provincial clerk-in-charge, vacated this position on promotion, and that a third member of the telegraph staff, on being appointed to a postmaster-ship, also forfeited the position of provincial clerk-in-charge; whether, as the result of these promotions, a notice was posted in each of the telegraph and postal departments inviting applications from the members of these departments for the vacancies thus created; what was the date of such notice, and how ninny applications were received; and if, as has been stated, no vacancies exist for provincial clerks-in-charge on the Belfast staff, can he state the date upon which these vacancies were filled, and whether any notice to this effect has been posted for the information of the staff generally in the Belfast office, or has any communica- tion yet been made to those upon whom these vacancies have been conferred; and, if so, will he give the date of such communications; and if he has any objection to lay upon the Table of the House the Report furnished by the postmaster of Belfast to the Secretary, Dublin, on a recent date on the subject of these vacancies.

THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY (Mr. HANBURY,) Preston

There is no fixed number of provincial clerks-in-charge. Three officers at Belfast who were on the list of clerks in charge have been promoted since November last, and their names have, therefore, been removed from the list; but there is no obligation upon the Post Office to add further names to the list either from the Belfast or any other office. Applications were invited on the 1st February and twenty names were sent in from Belfast, but no names have yet been added to the list. If the services of any candidate should be required he will, of course, be informed. The Report referred to by the hon. Member cannot be laid upon the Table of the House.