§ Mr. BURGOYNEasked the Postmaster-General why, in view of the terms of the Order in Council of 19th August, 1871, which cancelled the provision in the previous Order of 4th June, 1870, that a Civil Service candidate after, no less than before, the issue of a certificate of qualification by the Civil Service Commissioners should hold his office at the pleasure of the chief of his department, Mr. H. W. Cardew, who was permanently employed in the Post Office in accordance with the Order, was discharged on the 16th of last month?
§ Mr. HERBERT SAMUELMr. Cardew was retired on pension because he was unable to perform efficiently the duties of his office. I am not aware of any obligation on the head of a department to retain indefinitely the services of an officer once appointed, however inefficient he may subsequently become.
§ Mr. BURGOYNEasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether Mr. H. W. Cardew, of the General Post Office, who is being compulsorily retired from the service under Section 2 of the Superannuation Act, 1887, addressed, in March last, a memorial to the Lords of the Treasury, praying their lordships not to assent to his premature retirement, at least without the compensation terms provided by Section 7 of the Superannuation Act, 1859; whether Mr. Cardew pointed out that, at the passing of the Act of 1887, the Government gave a pledge to the Civil Service that existing rights should be respected, and, in earnest of this, inserted Section 10, providing that nothing in the Act should be used to the detriment of any officer then in th6 service, and the second 235W part of Section 2, providing that the Treasury shall consider any representation which a Civil servant dealt with under that Section may make; whether the Lords of the Treasury did, in fact, consider Mr. Cardew's representations, and, if so, in what manner; and will he explain why they have declined to interfere with his discharge and awarded him a pension of only the amount allowed under Section 2 of the Act of 1887, in view of the provisions of the Act and the Government undertaking?
Mr. MASTER MANAs I informed the hon. Member on the 9th ultimo, the right of the head of a department to remove an officer which was in existence prior to 1887 is not affected by the provisions of Section 2 of the Superannauation Act, 1887, which merely confers upon the Treasury the power to grant a pension to a Civil servant who has been removed. Mr. Cardew's representation under Sub-section (2) of the Section has been duly considered by the Board of Treasury which has awarded to him the maximum amount permissible under the Section. The Treasury has no power to interfere with his discharge or to make any further award to him.