Sir CLEMENT KINLOCH COOKEasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he can explain to the House the Admiralty objections to placing the Imperial Service Order medallists in the Royal dockyards on the same footing as seamen and Marines in the Royal Navy, who, having obtained a medal for meritorious service, are also granted a gratuity?
§ The FIRST LORD of the ADMIRALTY (Mr. McKenna)The Statutes governing the award of the Imperial Service Order and Medal apply to the whole of the Civil Service, and not merely to established employés of the Admiralty. I may, however, state that the conditions of employment in the naval and civil services are entirely different, and it would be impossible to establish any effective comparison between them on matters of detail such as that referred to in the hon. Member's question.