§ 37. Major Sir Jocelyn Lucasasked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he is aware that a married member of the A.T.S. on foreign service is allowed to return to the United Kingdom if her husband is serving at home; and if he will amend the regulations for the W.R.N.S. in order to bring them into line with the other Services.
Mr. AlexanderI am aware that, in certain circumstances, some married members of the A.T.S. are posted to home establishments when their husbands are repatriated at the end of their tour of service abroad. Sympathetic consideraion is always given to applications for return to England from married members of the W.R.N.S. serving abroad, when there are strong compassionate reasons, whatever the circumstances of the husband.
§ Sir J. LucasIf I give my right hon. Friend an instance where a husband of a member of the W.R.N.S. is now serving at home, while his wife is at Gibraltar, and in which the husband will be sent abroad when the wife comes back, will he give sympathetic consideration to this case, in which there is a strong medical reason for granting the application?
Mr. AlexanderMost certainly, if there are strong compassionate grounds, it will be considered. Of course, I cannot undertake to shift every married member of the W.R.N.S. about, irrespective of the requirements of the Services.