THE EARL OF LIMERICKMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the question standing on the Paper in my name. I think the last war provides a precedent for counting twofold embodied service for the purpose described in my question.
§ [The question was as follows:
§ To ask His Majesty's Government, whether any decision has yet been reached regarding the counting of embodied service during the present war as twofold, in computing the service required for the award of the Efficiency Decoration and the Efficiency Medal to officers and men of the Territorial Army and to other ranks of the Supplementary Reserve.]
§ THE JOINT PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (LORD CROFT)My Lords, I am glad to be able to inform the noble Earl that two Army Orders have been issued dated February 17, 1942, embodying the decisions on this matter. The first Army Order authorizes embodied service rendered during the present war by warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the Territorial Army and of the Supplementary Reserve who were serving in the Territorial Army (including the Territorial Army Reserve) and Supplementary Reserve Categories A and B on September 2, 1939, and who were embodied or called out for service under Army Order 158 of 1939, to reckon twofold as qualifying service towards the Efficiency Medal and clasps thereto.
The second Army Order authorizes embodied commissioned service rendered during the war by an officer who was serving in the Territorial Army (including the Territorial Army Reseve) on September 2, 1939, and who has been, or may be, embodied under Army Order 159 of 1939 to reckon twofold as qualifying service towards the award of the Efficiency Decoration. In cases where a warrant officer, non-commissioned officer 425 or man who was serving in the Territorial Army (including the Territorial Army Reserve) or in the Supplementary Reserve Categories A or B, and who was embodied or called out for service under Army Order 158 of 1939, is subsequently granted a Commission in the Territorial Army his embodied service in the ranks during the war will reckon as full (but not double) qualifying service for the award of the Efficiency Decoration.