66. Miss Rathboneasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that certain of the successful candidates in the Civil Service examination for the administrative grade of which the results were announced in September who had, previous to the war, undertaken military 247 service obligations have been told that they should report for duty on demobilisation after the war, but will not in the meantime receive Civil Service pay, although they have been allocated to Departments and have reason to believe that other candidates who had undertaken no such obligations will receive Civil Service pay whether they remain in the Civil Service or are conscripted; and whether he will say why this distinction has been made?
§ The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Captain Crookshank)As was the case in the last war, it is a condition of the arrangements in regard to the grant of balance of civil pay that persons should be at the time of joining the armed Forces employed in a civilian capacity and I should not feel justified in extending these arrangements to persons who have never rendered service in a Government Department.
Miss RathboneDoes not the right hon. and gallant Gentleman consider it undesirable that a man who joined up voluntarily before the war should be put in a worse position than a man who waits to be called up under the Act?
§ Captain CrookshankI think the hon. Lady overlooks the fact that those who may have volunteered, very patriotically, before the war, are guaranteed their jobs at the end of the war and will also get other benefits.
Miss RathboneIs not that also the case with the men who are conscripted? Why should a man who is conscripted be in a more favourable position than a man who has volunteered?