§ 9. Captain HACKINGasked whether, in view of the fact that it was not in the general interests of the service nor on account of age that Sir William Wilkinson was called upon to retire from the position of His Majesty's Consul-General at Hankow, China, he will state the reasons why such compulsory retirement was insisted upon and carried into effect?
Mr. HARMSWORTHAs I informed the hon. and gallant Member in reply to his question on the 20th November, Sir-William Wilkinson was called upon to retire, in company with other Consular officers, in connection with the reorganisation of the Consular Service. As I stated on the same occasion, Sir William Wilkinson had, at the time of his retirement, completed the requisite number of years' service qualifying him for full pension, and that pension was actually awarded to him.