§ 96. Mr. W. THORNEasked the President of the Board of Trade what percentage of the railwayman's 10s. war bonus is being paid by the Government, and what method is adopted to arrive at a decision as to what number of employ és a railway company will receive Government Grants for to pay the said bonus?
Mr. ROBERTSOn the railways in Great Britain of which possession has been taken by the Government one-sixteenth of the present war bonus to men coming within the railway conciliation scheme is paid by 'he individual companies. The balance is chargeable to the working expenses of the companies as a whole, and therefore affects the net receipts. Under the agreement with the companies any deficiency in-the aggregate net receipts as compared with the net receipts of 1913 is made good by the Government. No special Grants are made to the companies for the purposes of paying war bonus.