34. Mr. Dugdaleasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangements exist for established civil servants to transfer to the Civil Service of another member of the Commonwealth.
§ Mr. PowellUnited Kingdom Departments do all they can to meet Commonwealth requests for the loan of staff with particular experience and qualifications. These loans are usually for short periods. There are also arrangements for the interchange of staff employed on similar work in different countries, for example, between the Ministry of Labour in this country and its counterpart in Australia. In addition to these organised transfers, if an established civil servant obtains a post in the Civil Service of a Commonwealth country, he normally retains his claim to pension entitlement in respect of United Kingdom Civil Service.
Mr. DugdaleIs the hon. Gentleman aware that some time ago the Home Secretary, answering on behalf of the Prime Minister, gave me to understand that some new arrangements were being made for broadening the service, and can he say what those new arrangements are? Is he aware that since then there appears to be considerable confusion between his Department, the Department of Commonwealth Relations and the Colonial Office on this matter, including lost correspondence between the three Departments?
§ Mr. PowellI am not aware of any confusion. I will look at any case the right hon. Gentleman brings to my attention, but the arrangements about which I have informed the House have been increasingly used in recent years.