§ 21. Mr. Haireasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the number of applicants since the end of the war for the senior branch of the Foreign Service and the number rejected for various reasons; and whether it is proposed to continue the present method of selection.
Mr. McNeilThe number of candidates who applied to compete in the examinations for the senior branch of the Foreign Service between the end of the war and 5th February, 1948, was 3,767. Of these 653 later withdrew and 677 were rejected as ineligible. During the same period, approximately 1,960 candidates have been examined, of whom 166 have so far been declared successful. With regard to the second part of the Question, I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my right hon. Friend in reply to the right hon. Member for Warwick and Leamington (Mr. Eden) on 11th August. 1947.
§ Mr. HaireWhen will entrance under the reconstruction scheme terminate, and when will it begin under the normal scheme? Will the C.S.S.B. test—the country house oral examination—continue under the normal scheme?
Mr. McNeilMy recollection is that there is an overlap between the reconstruction method and the normal method. As my right hon. Friend indicated in the answer he gave to the House, we are continuing meantime with the C.S.S.B. experiment, because the results from it have so far been exceedingly good.
§ Mr. MaclayHow many applicants have come from the Scottish Universities, and how many Scottish applicants have been successful?
Mr. McNeilI could not say without notice, but I did give a full reply on that subject the other day, and I am glad to say that that full reply indicated that Scottish achievements in the examinations were fairly good.