§ 11. Major Sir B. FALLEasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty if he can give the reason why engineer officers appointed as overseers are not to be given servant's allowance, seeing that they comply with paragraph 1 of A. W. O. 607, they do not form part of the authorised complement of any recognised civil establishment, they are borne for fleet duties-living on shore without the service of a naval servant and are in receipt of the full pay of their rank, lodging, and provision allowances at the ordinary rates; and whether he is aware that, with the exception of engineer-overseers, all naval officers employed on shore billets, whether Royal Naval, Royal Naval Reserve, or Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, receive this allowance, and that this is also granted to a few engineer overseers employed on repair duties, and the engineer overseer and his assistant at Messrs. Whitehead's works, Weymouth, receive it as do all officers on the staff of the captain superintendent of leaders and destroyers building?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAThe reason for the differentiation in the case of engineer officers appointed as overseers is that these officers, equally with those who form part of the authorised complement of a civil establishment, live practically under civilian conditions. The allowance had, however, been granted in a few cases before this decision was reached. These are no doubt the cases referred to in the latter part of the question. So far as is known, there are only two cases in which engineer overseers have been granted the allowance.