§ Sir A. HOLBROOKasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the total cost per annum of the Civil Service Commission, 1511W the number of staff employed, and the approximate annual cost involved by holding examinations for Civil Service appointments; and whether he has considered the desirability of closing or curtailing this channel of entry until the claims of ex-service men have been fully met?
Mr. YOUNGThe cost of the Civil Service Commission for the current year is estimated at £71,086 gross and £58,586 net. These figures include the cost of Army, Navy, Air Force, Police and other examinations as well as of examinations for Civil Service appointments; I regret that it is not possible, without undue labour, to estimate what proportion of the cost is attributable to the latter class of examination alone. The present staff of the Department is 141. The answer to the last part of the question is in the affirmative; radical changes have been made in the schemes of competitive examinations for Civil Service appointments to meet the circumstances of ex-service men, and wherever possible a preference, or even monopoly, of permanent appointments has been accorded to ex-service men.