§ 14. Captain NORTHasked the Minister of Labour to what extent it has been found possible to reduce the staffs of the Ministry of Labour in consequence of the amount of work connected with transitional payments which has been taken over by public assistance committees since November last?
§ Sir H. BETTERTONThe administration of the needs test was additional work, which, though undertaken in the main by the public assistance authorities fell also in part on the staffs of the Exchanges. There has, therefore, been no reduction of staff on this account but, owing to the fall in the Live Register, the total of the Exchange staffs at the end of February was lower by 428 than it was at the end of September.