§ MR. CLAUDE HAYI beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether a certificate of punctuality and good conduct has to be given before an increment of salary is granted; whether the form of this certificate is uniform for all classes of civil servants; what are its terms; and when they were settled.
§ MR. CHARLES HOBHOUSEThe Answer to the first part of the Question is in the affirmative. Clause 20 of the Order in Council of the 29th November, 1898, prescribes that "an annual increment of salary shall not be allowed to any person in the established Civil Service of the State without a certificate from the immediate superior of such person, countersigned by the head of the Department or such officer as he may designate for the purpose, to the effect that such person's conduct has during the year immediately preceding the date of such certificate been approved."