99. Mr. J. JONESasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Munitions whether he is aware that a number 2184 of workmen employed in the Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham, during the War sustained injuries and, having been discharged since the cessation of hostilities, are unable to find other employment in consequence of their disability, and have been refused compensation; whether his attention has been drawn to the case of J. H. Philpot, who met with an injury which rendered one hand useless, who was afterwards put on light work, and who has since been discharged and refused compensation; and whether, in view of the fact that capacity of a man to contribute to his own support must be impaired by a useless hand, he will have this and similar cases reconsidered with a view to the granting of compensation?
§ The FINANCIAL SECRETARY to the MINISTRY of MUNITIONS (Mr. James Hope)As far as I am aware, all claims to compensation for injury preferred by workmen recently discharged from the Royal Gunpowder Factory have received full consideration, and have not been rejected without reference to the Treasury, who are the deciding authority under the Government scheme for contracting out of the Workmen's Compensation Act. In the case of J. H. Philpot, the Departmental medical evidence does not support the suggestion that his hand is entirely useless, and Ms post-injury earnings prior to discharge from the factory exceeded his pre-injury earnings. I understand that it was upon those grounds that the Treasury felt unable to authorise any compensation, but, as was recently intimated to the Workers' Union, any evidence to show that this worker's earning capacity is appreciably impaired as a result of the injury will be carefully considered.