§ Mr. ROSEasked the Secretary to the Admiralty whether he is aware that before the Armistice was signed the policy of the Admiralty was to replace as many Service 1163W writers as possible by members of the Women's Royal Naval Service in all shore establishments, an Order being circulated that no writer who could be replaced by a member of the Women's Royal Naval Service should be retained in a shore establishment; whether, since the signing of the Armistice when there has been a reduction in the staff of shore establishments, it has invariably been the policy of commanding officers to reduce the number of members of the Women's Royal Naval Service employed while retaining the naval writers; and whether, in view of the number of women already unemployed and the number of naval writers who are anxious to return to their civil employment, he will give instructions that members of the Women's Royal Naval Service shall be employed in larger numbers upon this work in order to allow of the demobilisation of naval writers?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAThe facts are as described by my hon. Friend in the first part of his question. As regards the second part of the question, the clerical ratings of the Women's Royal Naval Service employed at shore establishments are not being reduced. And as regards the last part of the question, the services both of clerical ratings of the Women's Royal Naval Service and of naval writers, are still required. It is, therefore, impossible to use the former in place of the latter, but wherever possible the former assist the latter. It is not practicable to substitute non-clerical ratings of the Women's Royal Naval Service for naval writers. These naval writers have to compute pay, which is pretty complex; to make out closing up certificates, of which there are many types; and to make out protection certificates and dispersal returns for each man. On the writers depend to a great extent the speed with which men are demobilised, and the accuracy of various documents upon which men's gratuities, and so on, depend. My hon. Friend will therefore see that writers of experience are essential to the work of demobilisation.