§ 37. Mr. DOUGLAS HALLasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the existing law, under which service with the Colours cannot count for Civil superannuation, relates to concurrent military and public office service, such as that of Royal Engineer telegraphists employed on Civil duties in the Post Office; whether military pensions, earned in respect of such concurrent service, are withheld until the pensioners reach the age of sixty or are earlier retired; whether, in other cases where Army pensioners enter established positions in the Post Office, the pensions are paid in addition to wages and carried 587 beyond the maxima; whether he is aware that the recent Select Committee on Post Office Servants investigated these dissimilar conditions of service and recommended that the whole period of service in K company (Royal Engineers) where it is followed by established service in the Post Office be treated as Post Office service and not military service for the purpose of computing Civil pension; whether he is aware that such service is already treated as Post Office service and not military service for all other purposes, including the suppression of military pensions during active Civil service; and, if so, whether he will now consider the expediency of introducing legislation to give effect to the recommendation in this case?
§ Mr. MONTAGUThe facts as stated in the question are generally correct. Arrangements are now under consideration under which Civil servants becoming Royal Engineer telegraphists would in future be allowed to retain their status as Civil servants, and so count their whole service for purposes of Civil superannuation. My right hon. Friend is therefore not prepared to introduce legislation as proposed.