§ Lord C. BERESFORDasked the President of the Board of Trade if he can state the number of alien masters and officers who possess the Board of Trade certificate as masters or officers of British ships; how many of these are alien enemies; and whether the Board of Trade propose taking any steps to secure that the issue of these certificates is limited to British seamen, in view of the network of communications scattered widespread over the ocean, and seeing that merchant ships are more or less the eyes of the Fleet?
Mr. RUNCIMANI am unable to state the number of alien masters and officers who at present possess Board of Trade certificates as master, mate or engineer in the British mercantile marine, as deaths of holders of certificates are not necessarily reported to the Board. The average number of certificates of competency issued during the twenty years 1894 to 1913 was 4,682 per annum, of which eighty-nine or 1.9 per cent. were issued to aliens and fifteen or 0.3 per cent. to subjects of the three Governments with which we are at present at war. I may add that steps have been taken to prevent the issue of certificates of competency to subjects of enemy States, and to remove all such subjects from British ships, whether officers or crew.