§ 72. Mr. Sorensenasked the President of the Board of Education whether, in view of the fact that married women teachers who have been evacuated with their schools are working under the same conditions as other teachers, he is prepared to remove the anomaly under the rules for special payments and allowances for teachers and other transferred staff, under which married women teachers are declared ineligible, generally speaking, to 1464 receive an allowance as a householder, or as a non-householder responsible by private arrangement for continuing commitments in respect of accommodation?
§ Mr. RamsbothamThe differentiation in the treatment of evacuated married women teachers as regards the payment of allowances for commitments for rent and similar expenditure arises from the well-recognised and essential distinction between the relationship of husband and wife, and that of friends or relatives who may temporarily agree to share liability for such charges. Although as a matter of mutual convenience a wife may agree to be responsible for part or the whole of the rent of accommodation which she shares with her husband, in fact the husband has the obligation to provide accommodation for his wife; and to offer to give relief to married women generally under such circumstances at the public expense could not be justified. I recognise, however, that there may be individual cases where to deny a married woman teacher an allowance would cause hardship. The Board are always ready to consider such a case specially if the facts are put before them. In several cases allowances have already been specially approved.