§ 48. Miss Baconasked the Undersecretary of State for Air the duties of a cook assistant in the Royal Air Force; and what special training is needed for this work.
Mr. WardA cook assistant helps qualified cooks in kitchens and messes, normally on work directly concerned with the preparation of food, such as the cleaning of vegetables. No special training is required.
§ Miss BaconIs the hon. Gentleman aware that on 17th February I asked why an airman, a constituent of mine, had not been granted compassionate leave or compassionate posting and had, in fact, been sent abroad as one of only four out of 165 of his unit being sent abroad? Is the hon. Gentleman further aware that in his reply he said:
A.C.2 Senior was one of the only four cook assistants in his entry and all of them were needed overseas."—[OFFICIAL REPORT, 17th February, 1954; Vol. 523, c, 217.Could he say why somebody else could not have been sent to peel the potatoes?
Mr. WardThis airman was, as I said, selected for cook assistant. [HON. MEMBERS: "Why?"] The reason why somebody else could not have been sent overseas instead was that his compassionate grounds were not sufficiently strong. The whole system of compassionate posting and discharge only works and is only possible so long as we stick rigidly to the rules.