§ MR. JAMES O'CONNOR (Wicklow, W.)To ask the Postmaster-General what is the system under which the seniority of the postmen for promotion is calculated; whether by date of Civil Service appointment or by other means; whether there is a general system all over the United Kingdom; whether it differs in any respect from the systems employed regarding sorters and sorting clerks; and, if so, what are the reasons for this different treatment.
(Answered by Mr. Sydney Buxton.) Postmen rank as a rule according to date of appointment, though exceptions are made in cases where this practice would discount considerable unestab- 1106 lished service. As regards the other classes mentioned by the hon. Member, which are recruited by competition, in the case of persons entering by the same examination the place taken in the examination normally determines the seniority. The system in each case is uniform throughout the United Kingdom.