HC Deb 28 March 1944 vol 398 cc1243-4
46. Major Keatinge

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the proportion of Service personnel who are having their Service pay made up to their pre-war rates by the Government, from local government sources or from other sources, respectively.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Sir John Anderson)

The number of civil servants serving with the Forces who were in receipt of, or eligible for, balance of civil pay on the 1st January, 1944, was 123,083. This number includes some who receive no balance because their Service pay exceeds their civil pay. I regret that no information is available regarding the numbers of Service personnel who are receiving balance of civil pay from local authorities or from private employers; and it would not be in the public interest to state what proportion of the total strength of the Armed Forces is represented by the Civil Service figure.

Major Keatinge

In view of the important bearings which this whole question has on the subject of pay and allowances in the Army, will the Chancellor consider taking figures of certain sample units with a view to arriving at the total?

Sir J. Anderson

I do not think it has any real relevance to the question of pay in the Army.

Lieut.-Commander Gurney Braithwaite

Would this procedure on the part of the Government be necessary at all, if the Services were adequately paid?