§ 12. Mr. J. Griffithsasked the Minister of Labour how many appeals have been made to the Umpire against the decisions of the hardship tribunals under the Military Service Acts; how many of the appeals were made by the persons affected and how many by the Minister; whether he will state the results of the appeals and give particulars; and will he publish those decisions of the Umpire which have laid down general principles for the guidance of hardship tribunals?
§ Mr. E. Brown401 appeals have been made to the Umpire under the Military Training Act and the National Service (Armed Forces) Act. Of these appeals 115 have been made by the applicants and 286 on behalf of the Minister. Up to 15th February, 1940, the Umpire had granted postponement in 127 cases and refused it in 41. Selected decisions of the Umpire laying down general principles will be published in a monthly pamphlet which will be on sale. I should like to make it clear that a large proportion of the appeals by the Minister were made on behalf of the applicant.
§ Mr. GriffithsCan the right hon. Gentleman indicate at what date this publication will be issued in view of its importance?
§ Mr. SorensenCan the right hon. Gentleman say how many applications are still outstanding, and how many appeals have been granted on compassionate grounds due to the applicant being the only son of a widow?
§ Mr. BrownI cannot answer that on a Supplementary Question, but a comparison between the total applications and the figures I have given will give the hon. Member the answer.