§ 12. Major Sir BERTRAM FALLEasked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he is aware that disabled men who have under gone the first period of their training in electrical engineering under Scheme 2, Report M5/xvii. of the Ministry of Labour or a technical institute, are entered as unskilled labourers in His Majesty's Dockyard, Portsmouth, and at unskilled rates, whereas disabled men similarly trained and entered in private yards to complete their training at the scheduled rate of payment as set out in Report M 5/xvii., namely, 2s. 6d. a week above labourers' rate in the trade, and if the Admiralty will give immediate facilities in His Majesty's Dockyards for the training of disabled men under Schemes I. and II., M 5/xv. and M 5/xvii., according to the arrangements made by the Shipbuilding and Engineering Trade Advisory Committee which have been approved by His Majesty's Government?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAI have looked into this matter and find that the endeavour to train these men has been carried on independently of the Report of the Ministry of Labour to which my hon. Friend referred. The provision in that Report which provides for the payment of 2s. 6d. 380 a week above the labourers' rate will be at once applied and will be applied retrospectively. As these men progress they will, of course, be put upon the skilled labourers' scale.
As regards the second part of my hon. Friend's question, it has been approved to adopt the schemes of training referred to in the question, but the instructions in the matter have not yet been issued.