HC Deb 31 May 1949 vol 465 cc1933-5

(1) Where a person to whom this section applies had, before he became a civil servant, served in whole-time service in the armed forces of the Crown, the merchant navy or the mercantile marine at any time between the fourth day of August, nineteen hundred and fourteen and the thirty-first day of August, nineteen hundred and twenty-one, then if and so far as that service took place after the date on which he was declared successful in a competitive examination for persons desiring to become civil servants or, as the case may be, the date on which he was nominated by the head officer of a Government department for appointment to the civil service, it shall be reckoned for the purposes of the Superannuation Acts as if it had been service as a civil servant.

(2) For the purposes of this section a person who became a civil servant more than three months after the date on which he was declared or nominated as mentioned in the preceding subsection shall be deemed to have served in whole-time service in the armed forces of the Crown, the merchant navy or the mercantile marine during the whole of the period between that date and the date on which he became a civil servant, unless the contrary appears.

(3) This section shall apply and shall be deemed always to have applied to persons who are civil servants at the date of the passing of this Act and to persons who retired from the civil service before that date and are living at the passing of this Act, and superannuation allowances and additional allowances granted before the passing of this Act may be increased accordingly; but nothing in this subsection shall authorise the payment, in respect of any period before the date of the passing of this Act, of any increase in the superannuation allowance of a person who retired from the civil service before that date.—[Mr. Glenvil Hall.]

Brought up, and read the First time.

Mr. Glenvil Hall

I beg to move, "That the Clause be read a Second time."

The Committee is familiar with what we seek to do in this Clause; in fact, I have just referred to it in moving an Amendment to Clause 56. We desire here to count for superannuation purposes certain war service given by men during the 1914–18 war who entered the Civil Service but physically did not take up their appointments because they went straight into the Forces. It has long been felt by a number of people that this was unfair, that they should be allowed to count that period, and we are putting the matter right now by giving them the right so to count that service. The number involved is not great, being between 80 and 90, and I am delighted that we are at last doing justice to these men.

Major Legge-Bourke

All of us on this side of the Committee will join with my right hon. Friend the Member for North Leeds (Mr. Peake) in welcoming what the right hon. Gentleman has done. For purposes of clarification, however, before we part with the Clause, would he explain why he has had to put in subsection (2), and why the wording of the Clause is considerably different from that put forward by my hon. Friend the Member for Banbury (Mr. Dodds-Parker). Subsection (2) mentions a period of three months and I should be grateful if the right hon. Gentleman would clarify that.

Mr. Glenvil Hall

It is normal for a person entering the Civil Service to take up the appointment within a month or so. Here we are dealing with a group of men particulars of whose war service may be unknown to us. Therefore it is essential that we should assume certain things, and this gives us legal power to credit these men with a period of war service which cannot officially be verified.

Clause read a Second time, and added to the Bill.

Bill, as amended (in the Standing Committee and on recommittal), considered.

Mr. Deputy-Speaker (Mr. Bowles)

Mr Glenvil Hall.

Mr. W. R. Williams

On a point of Order, Mr. Deputy-Speaker. Is it to be understood that you are not calling the new Clause standing in the name of my two hon. Friends and myself—(Counting of certain service in the regular forces of the Crown for superannuation purposes)?

Mr. Deputy-Speaker

No. Mr. Speaker has not selected it. It is out of Order because it increases the charge.