§ (1) All existing County Court Judges, and all existing Irish officers serving in an established capacity in the Civil Service of the Crown and receiving salaries charged on the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom, shall, if at the date of the passing of this Act they are removable only on Address from both Houses of Parliament of the United Kingdom, continue to be removable only upon such an Address, and if removable in any other manner shall continue to be removable only in the same manner as before that date; and shall continue to receive the same salaries, gratuities, and pensions, and to enjoy the same rights and privileges and to be liable to perform the same duties as before that date or such duties as His Majesty may declare to be analogous, and their salaries and pensions shall be charged on and paid out of the Consolidated Fund of 74 the United Kingdom or the growing produce thereof, and all sums so paid shall be made good by means of deductions from the Irish residuary share of reserved taxes under this Act in accordance with Regulations made by the Treasury.
§ (2) If any of the said Judges or officers retire from office with His Majesty's approbation before completion of the period of service entitling him to a pension, His Majesty may, if he thinks fit, after considering any representation that may be made by the Government of Southern Ireland or Northern Ireland, grant to him such pension, not exceeding the pension to which he would on that completion have been entitled, as His Majesty thinks proper.
§ (3) Sub-section (1) of this Section shall apply to existing Irish officers in the Civil Service of the Crown, who, although receiving salaries not charged on the Consolidated Fund, are removable only for misconduct or incapacity, including (after the date of Irish Union) officers removable under Section seventy-three of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Ireland), 1877: Provided that, in the case of any such officer whose salary is payable otherwise than out of money provided by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the provisions of that Sub-section with respect to the payment of salaries and pensions out of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom shall not have effect, and in the case of any such officer whose salary is payable out of money provided by the Parliament of the United Kingdom those provisions shall have effect with the substitution of payment out of money so provided for charge on and payment out of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom.
§ The following Amendment stood first on the Order Paper in the name of Major Hills: In Sub-section (1) leave out the word "reserved" and insert the words "British-collected."
§ The CHAIRMANThe first Amendment on the Paper standing in the name of the hon. and gallant Member for Durham (Major Hills), is a consequential one. The two following Amendments standing in the name of the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds (Lieut.-Colonel Guinness), appear to me to be alternatives with the same purpose, and I will allow him to move whichever he may prefer.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSI beg to move, in Sub-section (3), after the word "including," to insert the words "clerks of the Crown and Peace."
As the Bill is now drawn, their case, if they retire during the transition period, is not covered. Clerks of the Crown and Peace are deemed to be in the permanent Civil Service of the Crown, but the 75 Schedule has been held to rule them out from compensation because the fifth Schedule gives compensation to officers serving only in an established capacity. But it lays down no definition of what established capacity includes. The provision for compensation apparently was prepared only to meet the case of the ordinary civil servant who retires at the age of 60, and there is a good deal of doubt as to whether it covers the clerks of the Crown and Peace appointed for life. The second Amendment is hardly an alternative, and I think they ought to have compensation under Sub-section (2). It is, however, necessary to define what is the period, because, being appointed for life, they do not get the benefit of the 40 years period in the Civil Service, and it seems necessary to lay down some fresh rule. I raise this matter chiefly for the purpose of obtaining information, because if they are already provided for, I shall not press my Amendment.
§ The ATTORNEY-GENERAL for IRELAND (Mr. Denis Henry)This Amendment is not really wanted, because the words include clerks of the Crown and Peace. On the next Amendment I propose to deal with the question of the period.
§ Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSI beg to move, at the end of Sub-section (3), to add a new Sub-section—
(4) Sub-section (2) of this section shall apply to clerks of the Crown and Peace with the substitution of a period of forty years' service for the period entitling him to a pension.I will formally move this Amendment, as the learned Attorney-General has promised to deal with the point on this Amendment.
§ Mr. HENRYWe propose to extend this provision to other offices and to put them all on the same footing. They are referred to in Sub-section (3) as Irish officers in the Civil Service of the Crown who do not receive salaries which are charged on the Consolidated Fund. We propose to put them all on the same footing, and we will bring up the necessary Amendment on the Report stage.
§ Mr. T. W. BROWNWill the right hon. Gentleman include in his Amendment the assistants employed by the Clerks of the Crown and Peace?
§ Mr. HENRYI think my hon. and learned Friend will see that that is quite impossible, because they cannot be put on the same footing as Clerks of the Crown and Peace. We only propose to extend this provision to people mentioned in Subsection (3).
§ Mr. BROWNDoes the right hon. Gentleman not intend to give any protection to those assistants in the office of the Clerks of the Crown and Peace?
§ Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
§ Clause ordered to stand part of the Bill.