§ 23. Sir W. de FRECEasked the Secretary of State for War the number of appli- 1113 cations made since the beginning of the year for the release of men serving in the Army; how many such applications have been granted; what is the loss to the State in respect to the partial training of such men; whether the releases have been made in all cases on the understanding that these men have work to go to; and why, in view of the large measure of existing unemployment, such work cannot be undertaken by ex-service men, who are often dependent on Poor Law assistance?
§ Major ATTLEEExcluding cases of purchase of discharge, the number of free discharges granted from 1st January to 31st May, 1924, is 420. I am not in a position to state the number of rejected applications. Practically all these men were discharged on compassionate grounds, that is to say, because the soldier was required at home as a family wage-earner. A guarantee of employment is necessary in all cases. As the Army is open to take an extra recruit in place of each man discharged, the effect of these releases on the labour market should not be appreciable, and, in any case, the retention of the man in the Army in order to enable an ex-service man to do his work in civil life would not benefit his family. The loss to the State in respect of the partial training of these men would depend on the length of their service and other considerations, but I have no data on which to frame an estimate.