§ 33. Mr. YEOasked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that the absence of Regulations in connection with the application of the Asylums Officers' Superannuation Act, 1909, to officers of certified institutions for the mentally defective, which he is empowered by Section 45 of the Mental Deficiency Act, 1913, to make, is causing inconvenience in the administration of the latter Act by local authorities, inasmuch as the staffing of certified institutions which local authorities desire to establish is hindered by doubt as to the position of the officers of such institutions as regards their pension rights; whether such Regulations will shortly be issued; and whether in preparing them he will have regard to the necessity for uniformity in all the terms and conditions of pensionable service for employés alike in county and borough asylums for the insane and in certified institutions for the mentally defective provided by local authorities, so as to secure the fullest possible freedom of interchange of service between these two allied branches of public employment, which would be hindered by any inability on the part of employés in one branch to aggregate fully for pension purposes their services in the other branch should they be transferred from the one to the other?
§ Mr. BRACEThis matter has been under consideration, and an Order will be issued in due course applying the provisions of the Asylum Officers' Superannuation Act to the officers of certified 1977 institutions provided by local authorities under the Mental Deficiency Act. Some difficulties, however, have arisen—in particular, there is no power, as the Acts stand at present, to aggregate service in such institutions with service in asylums. These difficulties could only be removed by fresh legislation. The matter is not being loss sight of, but it would be impossible, I am afraid, to take it up this Session.