§ SIR LEWIS M'IVERTo ask the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that an officer in the post office, Edinburgh, who this month attains the age of sixty-five, and who, according to Treasury rules, should now be retired, has been granted an extension of service; and whether he will say upon what grounds this officer is being retained.
§ (Answered by Mr. Austen Chamberlain.) It is the fact that such an officer has, on my recommendation, been granted an 1340 extension of his service by the Treasury. A new arrangement has to be made this year for dealing with the heavy parcels traffic at Christmas. The work of organising the altered services is one which requires the skill and experience possessed by this officer, and I am satisfied that his retention under the circumstances is in the interests of the public service.