§ Lieut.-Colonel POWNALLasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury (1) whether, seeing that the Lytton Committee in their Third Interim Report, dated June, 1921, recommended that 50 per cent, of the vacancies in the administrative class of the Civil Service during the years 1921 to 1924 should be filled from ex-service candidates, at present temporarily employed in Government Departments, who wore born between January, 1881, and August, 1891, and possess the necessary qualifications to be selected at a competition, and that this recommendation was accepted by 525W His Majesty's Government and officially adopted, he will say whether the competition proposed in this recommendation has in fact been held; how many new appointments have been made to the administrative class from any source since the date of the adoption of the Report; whether an equal number of vacancies has been reserved for the temporary administrative officers in question, in accordance with the terms of the Report as adopted by His Majesty's Treasury; and on what date it is intended to hold an examination to fill these vacancies;
(2) whether an examination was held in October, 1922, for women officers at present temporarily employed in an administrative capacity, with a view to the selection of some of them to fill established posts; whether some ex-service temporary administrative officers (men), between 30 and 40 years of age, are at present under notice of dismissal; whether some of these men have dependants, and are totally without private means or prospects of employment outside the public service; and whether, having regard to the pledge given by His Majesty's Treasury in adopting the recommendations of the Lytton Report (1921), he will now cause to be extended to tins class the opportunities of becoming established by means of an examination, which have already been afforded to every other class of temporary civil servants, namely, to clerical officers, departmental officers, male administrative officers, under 30 years of age, and women administrative officers?
§ Mr. BALDWINThe answer to the first part of the former is in the negative, and to the second part, that, since the adoption in August, 1921, of the Third Report of Lord Lytton's Committee, three fresh appointments only have been made to the Cadet Grade of the Administrative Class. One of the officers so appointed was an ex-service man, successful under the Reconstruction scheme, whose appointment had been delayed, and the remaining two, of whom one was an ex-service man, were appointed out of 61 candidates from the Open Competition of August, 1921, arrangements for the holding of which had been publicly announced a long time prior to the issue526W of the Report of Lord Lytton's Committee. A competition among women for posts in the Administrative Class, under regulations approved by this House, is at present being held to fill not more than three vacancies, which are appropriate to be filled by women, and the position as regards vacancies appropriate to be filled by men is not thereby affected. I can assure my hon. and gallant Friend that, when recruitment to the Administrative Class again becomes necessary, due regard will be had to the recommendations of Lord Lytton s Committee and to the number of fresh appointments made since the date of the adoption of the Committee's Report. I fear, however, that owing to the reductions in Government staffs, it is most unlikely that any vacancies in the class as a whole will arise during 1923, and I cannot therefore forecast for how long it may be necessary to postpone the holding of the further special competition for ex-service men. I might add that, out of 204 appointments made since Midsummer, 1910, to the Administrative Class, no less than 199 were filled by ex-service men.