77. Mr. F. HALLasked the Secretary to the Treasury the additional annual cost, if any, involved in the appointment of a Second Secretary to the Board of Trade; whether such expenditure is specifically provided for in the Estimates for the present year; if the approval of the Treasury was required to the appointment; if so, whether the Treasury is satisfied that the work of the Board justified the addition to the establishment; whether the Treasury recently vetoed an appointment of the Welsh Insurance Commission, after open competition, because the person appointed could not speak an almost dead language; and, if so, why in this case the Treasury did not veto the appointment on the much stronger ground of the relationship between the head of the Department and Mr. Barnes, which might be likely to prejudice the question of merit?
§ Mr. MASTERMANThe approval of the Treasury was required to the creation of the post of Second Secretary at the Board of Trade. The Treasury was satisfied that the work of the Board justified the appointment. No specific provision for the post is made in the Estimates for the current year. The salary of the post is, however, the same as that of which the officer appointed was already in receipt in his previous post, which is not being filled up. There is thus no actual increase of cost, except about £500 a year in connection with certain other Board of Trade appointments made simultaneously. The Treasury have never vetoed an appointment on the ground that the candidate could not speak an almost dead language.
Mr. F. HALLDoes the right hon. Gentleman remember the case of the applicant who was passed as responsible but who was told, because he could not speak the Welsh language, he could not be appointed, although subsequently another applicant who did not speak Welsh was appointed?
§ Mr. MASTERMANIf the hon. Gentleman defines Welsh as an almost dead language he had better go down to Wales.