NATIONAL SERVICE (PERSONAL CASE) (Hansard, 23 November 1955)

§ Mr. Martin Lindsay (Solihull)

I make no apology for raising a constituency case at so late an hour as this for, as we all know, it is one of the oldest traditions of the House that one of our most important duties is to endeavour to put right the wrongs of our people. I submit that one of my constituents, whose name and address has been sent to my hon. Friend, has, if not a grievance, at any rate a very strong case—as strong a case as I can think of—for a compassionate exception being made to the regulations on his behalf. It is a young man who seeks to defer his National Service for a further period in order to qualify as a chartered accountant. I should explain 1616 that he already has had his National Service deferred but that owing to two failures in his examinations he is still running behind schedule.

This is not the case of a man who says that he intends to obtain professional qualifications, applies for deferment on those grounds year after year, but, in fact, never takes the examinations at all. For this young man has already shown his determination and his ability by passing the intermediate examination. The fact that he did so after two failures should not, in my opinion, prejudice him, for everyone knows that examinations in accountancy are among the most difficult professional tests in the world. I would go so far as to say that I am not at all sure that it is not a more praiseworthy example of determination to pass a difficult examination at the third attempt than to sail through it at the first.

Nor is this a man who has brought forward specious excuses for his failures, as many might have been tempted to have done. That also ought to commend him to us. He is due to sit for his finals in accountancy in eighteen months' time—in May, 1957—but, having exhausted his deferments, he is due to be called up 1617 fifteen months before his final examinations—in February, 1956, which, I need hardly point out, will make a serious break in his studies, a break which in many cases might well prove fatal.

I have the advantage of a letter from my constituent's tutor. After congratulating him on passing the intermediate examination by hard work, the tutor says: I have no doubt in my mind that you will be successful at your first attempt at the final provided you pursue a concentrated course of study during the intervening period. The letter goes on to say that it will be a matter of serious and perhaps tragic consequence to your career if you are unable to obtain deferment to allow you to take part in the final. I think that that letter speaks for itself.

It is often said that one of the things from which our country is suffering most today is a shortage of specialists, men with professional qualifications. Comparisons to our disadvantage in that respect are made between Great Britain and the United States and Soviet Russia. I suggest that in these marginal cases the Ministry of Labour should stretch a point and make exceptions to see that no young man is prejudiced from adding to our number of specialists merely because he wants a little longer than most do to pass his examinations.

This is not the case of a man who is seeking to get out of his obligations. All he is asking is to be given rather more time than usual to obtain his qualifications. I should say that his contribution to the Royal Air Force, which he has opted for when he joins up, would be much more effective if he were called up as a qualified accountant and posted to one of the many Royal Air Force accounts branches, than if he were called up a little earlier as an unqualified man.

The Parliamentary Secretary is always very approachable, and I am grateful to him for giving me three opportunities for having conversations about this case, and for the time that he has spent in looking into the details of it. I hope very much that when I sit down now he will be able to tell us that he is able to make the concession for which I so earnestly ask.

§ The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour and National Service (Mr. Harold Watkinson)

My hon. Friend the Member for Solihull (Mr. M. Lindsay) was kind enough to tell me about this case, and, therefore, I have had the opportunity to look into it very carefully. No one wants to be more sympathetic than I do or, indeed, my Department does, particularly to young men who are trying to complete their education or part of their education before they join the Armed Forces.

Our difficulty in these cases, of deferment for educational reasons, as I have said before from this Box, is that whatever we do must be fair and must be equally applied. We try to lay down some guidance to those responsible officials who have the very difficult task of trying to decide the problem of how much deferment a man should have, especially when he starts to fall behind in his studies. We did not set up the rules ourselves, but we took very careful note of what the learned and professional societies felt would be fair and proper if they were to maintain the general standards which they have tried to set over the years.

In the case of Mr. Billingham, to which my hon. Friend has referred, the first problem that arose was this, that he was, as has been said, studying to become a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and I understand that the Institute says in its regulations that the intermediate examination could be taken and be passed within two to two-and-a-half years of entry into articles. We carefully went into this to try to decide how long the Ministry would allow for deferment of a young man who wanted to get through that intermediate examination. We doubled the period, and said we would allow, as we do allow today, four years' deferment to cover that initial stage which leads to the successful passing of the intermediate examination.

I am certain that my hon. Friend is right when he says that this man tried hard, and his case is made very attractive by the fact that he made no excuses. However, the unfortunate thing is that it took him longer than four years even to pass the intermediate examination. The rule we have agreed with the Institute is this. This is not some principle which we have thought up for ourselves. It is 1619 indeed an agreed rule which we apply With the agreement of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. It states: An articled clerk who has not passed the intermediate examination on completion of four years of his articles will be permitted to complete his articles but will immediately thereafter be required to undertake his National Service. It is under that rule that my hon. Friend's constituent has been warned that he will have to start his National Service in February next year.

Rules are made sometimes to be broken and, therefore, I have looked at the matter very carefully to see whether we could fairly say that there was something exceptional about this case. One of the things which we always look into is whether there is any history of illness or some compassionate reason which has interfered with the boy's education. This boy was honest enough to tell my hon. Friend that that was not so. Therefore, I am afraid that, much as we have tried, we have not been able to find anything which would enable us to say that this is a special case and, therefore, should not fall to be treated under the rules which we have agreed with the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

The difficulty then is that if we were going to let him go on and have a go at his final examination, and I do not doubt the evidence of his tutor that he might well pass, we should have to treat him better than we have treated a great many people in the past and indeed may treat a great many other cases in the future. Quite frankly, I think that would be wrong. If any Ministry were ever to fall into the error of making special cases for special people merely because they have gone to their Member of Parliament who has pleaded their case, we could not maintain the principle of fairness and equality upon which I am sure the whole of National Service rests.

I do not like to give negative answers. They do not help the people concerned very much. I tried, therefore, to see whether there was any other way in which we could help this young man, who I am sure badly wants to try to complete his qualifications. I am afraid that this will not entirely meet the point made by my hon. Friend, but I hope that it will do something at least to show that we have tried to do what we could to help. I 1620 understand that it is quite normal for a young man, after passing his Intermediate examination, to continue his studies by means of a correspondence course. That course can be followed whether the man is actually doing his articles or not. There is an arrangement in the Royal Air Force, for which this young man has opted, whereby this correspondence course leading to the final examination of the Institute can be taken.

I hope and believe that it will be possible for Mr. Billingham, who, I understand, has been doing a correspondence course, to continue that course in the Royal Air Force. We will try to see that he is posted to a home station where perhaps he can be employed on accountancy work and, therefore, will not lose any practical experience. Consideration will also be given to allowing any further education facilities that he may need. Should he find that he must attend lecture courses arranged by one of the chartered accountant students' societies, if he applies to his education officer that will be arranged as far as is humanly possible and as far as Service needs will allow. The only difficulty that he may find will be in the first eight weeks of his recruit training. After that, I believe that it will be possible to give him a chance to go on with this correspondence course and, if necessary, to attend any lecture courses that may be available.

All I can say further to my hon. Friend is that I very much regret that we cannot give the deferment for which he has asked for his constituent, not because I do not think that he has made the case, not because there is not a case, but, I am afraid, for the sole reason that if we do this we are not honestly being fair to a great many other young men who, quite properly, have been refused under' the kind of rules which I have outlined. However, if it is any help to my hon. Friend, I will undertake that when this man goes into the R.A.F. he will have the chance to continue his studies so that his service there will not unduly delay his passing the examination.