HC Deb 30 July 1935 vol 304 cc2559-61

Lords Amendment: In page 144, line 32, at the end, insert: (3) In framing the rules for the regulation of recruitments to posts in the postal and telegraph services, the Governor-General or person authorised by him in that behalf shall have due regard to the past association of the Anglo-Indian community with the said services, and particularly to the specific class, character and numerical percentages of the posts previously held in the said services by members of the said community and to the remuneration attaching to such posts.

7.9 p.m.

Sir R. CRADDOCK

I beg to move, as an Amendment to the Lords Amendment, in line 2, after "the," to insert "Customs."

After all the discussion that has taken place on the former Clause, I will move this Amendment in a few words. The posts to be given to Anglo-Indians are referred to as posts in the central services, railways, posts and telegraphs. But among these services one of the most important is the Customs. In another place a question was asked on that subject, and it appeared that there was no desire to make a distinction between Customs and railways and posts and telegraphs, and the Amendment I propose to the Lords Amendment, which I hope the Government will accept, is simply to insert the word "Customs."

7.10 p.m.

Viscount WOLMER

I hope very much that the Government will be able to accept my hon. Friend's Amendment. He will correct me if I am wrong, but I have always understood that the Anglo-Indian community had the same tradition and record in regard to Customs as they had with regard to posts and telegraphs and railways, and that if it is right for this Parliament to enjoin on the Governor-General to have special regard to their association with the railways, posts and telegraphs, it is equally right to enjoin on him to have the same regard for their association with the Customs. If we leave out the Customs from this category, we shall be doing the Anglo-Indian community a positive disservice, because it is a very well-known maxim in drafting that if you mention one subject in a certain connection and omit to mention another subject in that same connection, what you have omitted has been deliberately omitted. That is a very familiar point to all of us who have had any experience of drafting Bills or Amendments.

If Parliament had not touched this subject, it could have been argued in the future that the Anglo-Indians would have had exactly the same claim to consideration in regard to their position in the railways, the posts, the telegraphs, and the Customs, but after what has happened it seems to me that unless we put in Customs into this Amendment, it will be clear that Parliament drew a distinction between the claims that the Anglo-Indians have in regard to the railways, posts and telegraphs, and the claims they have in regard to the Customs. I therefore hope very much that the Government would be able to accept my hon. Friend's Amendment.

7.12 p.m.

Mr. BUTLER

I am very glad to accept this Amendment on behalf of the Government. Originally I think it fell out through some drafting or typing error, because we never intended that this concession should not also be made to the Customs.

Amendment to Lords Amendment agreed to.

Subsequent Lords Amendments page 147, line 42, agreed to.