§ 36. Mr. Toucheasked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that misunderstandings have arisen regarding the position of Civil Defence workers who are eligible for enrolment in List 2 of the Home Guard; and whether he can make a statement defining the obligations undertaken by such persons on signing the enrolment form?
§ Sir J. GriggA Civil Defence worker who is eligible for voluntary enrolment in the Home Guard must obtain the consent of the head of the Civil Defence service to which he belongs before enrolment. By signing the enrolment form he undertakes the same general obligations as other members of the Home Guard. But in practice he is placed in list (ii), which means that he will not be called out for Home Guard duty immediately the Home Guard is mustered, but will be released from Civil Defence to Home Guard duty when that course becomes operationally necessary. He is unlikely to be called out unless fighting breaks out in the vicinity. Until so called out he retains as a Civil Defence worker his obligations to his own service and the allocation of time between Civil Defence and Home Guard is a matter for local agreement. It is provided that, except in an emergency, no such individual should be required to carry out more than 48 hours' training and duty in all (whether Civil Defence including Fire Guard duty or Home Guard) in any period of four weeks.