§ 24. Mr. SPOORasked the Chief Secretary when it is intended to apply the allowances as obtaining in England to the trades instructors, hospital warders, etc., in the Irish prison service; whether he will take immediate steps to have the assimilation scheme completed and announced to the service without further delay; whether his attention has been drawn to a circular of the English Prison Commissioners, dated 8th September, 1920, re subsistence allowance; and, if so, will he take steps to have the same allowance applied to the Irish prison ser vice in accordance with the sanctioned principles of the assimilation scheme?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODI would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to questions on this subject yesterday.
§ 49. Mr. G. BARKERasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether the position of Irish prison officers still continues to be onerous and dangerous; whether the Government is prepared to give just recognition to those officers on account of the unprecedented circumstances prevailing in Ireland; and, if so, will he say when it is intended to give the officers the special recognition grant promised them in June last?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODI am aware that the position of the Irish prison officers continues to be onerous and in some cases dangerous, but not more so than that of many other servants of the Crown in Ireland at the present juncture. I am accordingly unable to recommend any special gratuity in their case. I am not aware of any promise been given in June last to make any such special payment.
§ 50. Mr. BARKERasked the Chief Secretary whether a representative of the Government visited Ireland in June of last year for the purpose of inquiring into the working of the Irish prison service; whether he held prolonged interviews with the elected representatives of the staffs of Mountjoy and Belfast prisons; whether, as a result of those interviews, he made any suggestions or recommendations on behalf of the warder class; and, if so, will he now say what has been done to carry them into effect?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODAn inspector of the English prison service visited Ireland Last year at the request of the General 1118 Prisons Board in order to make suggestions to the Board in the light of English experience. Though he visited several prisons and freely exchanged views with the prison staffs his visit had no reference to pay or classification.
§ 51. Mr. LUNNasked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that officers, who have recently retired from the Irish prison service after a long number of years in the one rank, have not been given 75 per cent, of their bonus to count for pensions as authorised in the Whitley Council Report of March last; and if he will take immediate steps to have those pensions readjusted to their proper figure?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODUntil recently the bonus of Irish prison officers were calculated on a different principle from that in force in the Civil Service generally, but their rates of pay and bonus have now been brought into conformity with those of other civil servants, with effect from the 1st March last. The pensions of officers who have retired since that date will be recalculated as soon as possible on the basis applicable to other civil servants.