65. Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTasked the Under-Secretary of State for War whether the policy of amalgamation of service units of the Territorial Force having now been definitely abandoned, it is intended also to abandon it in regard to the composite battalions, now in course of formation throughout the country, to 'which the Home-service officers, non-commissioned officers, and men from different units have been and are being constantly transferred without their consent, in contravention of 995 the express provision of the Territorial Forces Act, 1907, Section 7, Sub-section (4) (b), and to the injury of the esprit de corps of the battalions from which they have been transferred against their will?
§ Mr. TENNANTI would refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for the Middleton Division on the 21st June. He will see that there has been no contravention of the Section of the Act referred to.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTDoes the right lion. Gentleman appreciate the fact that the formation of these composite battalions, which are not for foreign service, but for Home defence, completely destroys the Territorial idea on which the force is based?
§ Mr. TENNANTAs I have already informed the House, these amalgamations of several units are purely temporary, and it has been made manifest to these Territorial soldiers that they will not thereby be merged for any indefinite period of time and so as to lose their identity.
§ Mr. TENNANTOf course, it is proposed by recruiting to do away with the necessity of forming them.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTThe question I asked was: Is it proposed to increase those composite battalions, to add to them, by new recruiting?
§ Mr. TENNANTI do not know that I can quite follow what my hon. Friend means. If we had sufficient numbers of drafts it would not be necessary to group these battalions at all. Therefore if recruiting should improve, or go on in such a way as to render it possible, we shall certainly do away with the whole of these mergings or amalgamations.