§ 76. Sir B. FALLEasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty 634 whether he is aware that in H.M.S. "Vernon" shore establishment the chief petty officers are not messed in accordance with the principles laid down in Article 852., paragraphs 2 and 5, of the King s Regulations and Admiralty Instructions, inasmuch as they are not entirely messed by themselves; that they have definitely expressed the desire to be self-contained and to have a chief petty officers' mess and bar; and whether, in view of the fact that the Admiralty admit the principle of separate messing accommodation on shore establishments for chief petty officers, they will accede to the request of the chief petty officers of H.M.S. "Vernon," in accordance with the desire expressed in the reply to Item No. 57 of the 1919 welfare requests?
§ Mr. AMMONWith regard to the first part of the question, the chief petty officers in H.M.S. "Vernon" are messed separately. With regard to the second part, the existing arrangements under which chief petty officers and petty officers have recreation, etc., rooms in common are in harmony with the views expressed by the representatives of the lower deck to the Welfare Committee, 1919–20. The chief petty officers of the "Vernon" did not express a wish for separate accommodation until the structural arrangements had proceeded too far to admit of alteration. With regard to the third part of the question, the Admiralty does not admit this principle, and Article 852, quoted by the hon. Member, distinctly states that, with certain exceptions, "chief petty officers are to be messed together or with the petty officers, as may be convenient."