§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGE (Carnarvon) BoroughsI beg to ask the Civil Lord of the Admiralty whether there were any complaints made against Mr. Clement Millard, superintendent civil engineer at Portland, before his dismissal; whether those complaints were inquired into by the Admiralty; arid, if so, when and how; whether notice of the grounds of complaint was ever given to Mr. Millard; and whether he had an opportunity afforded him of answering them.
§ THE CIVIL LORD OF THE ADMIRALTY (Mr. ARTHUR LEE, Hampshire, Fareham)The hon. Member is, I think, under a misapprehension with regard to the reasons which led to the discharge of Mr. Millard from the Admiralty service. He was discharged, not as a result of complaints made against him, but upon a careful consideration of his general record, which had been increasingly unsatisfactory for some time, and which had previously necessitated his removal from Chatham to a less responsible post. The inquiry recently held at Portland was primarily concerned with investigating certain serious charges made by Mr. Millard against an officer who had formerly served under him. 75 Those charges were found to be groundless, and whilst certain countercharges were brought against Mr. Millard by the officer referred to, they were not considered of sufficient importance to call for a more thorough investigation, nor was the decision of the Admiralty in any way influenced by them. The decision to dispense with Mr. Millard's further services was based solely upon his inability to discharge efficiently the duties of his office, and the Admiralty, after the fullest consideration, and acting under the authority vested in them, came to the conclusion that they could no longer retain him in the Government service.