§ Major HORE-BELISHAasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty, with regard to the Military Families Hospital, Devonport, if he is aware that, prior to the Royal Marines coming entirely under his Department, the families 1948W of all soldiers and marines had treatment at this hospital at a small fee; what is the explanation of the increase in the fee payable by Royal Marines in respect of their families receiving treatment at the hospital since the Royal Marines came entirely under his Department; whether he is aware that the War Department has expressed its willingness to come to an arrangement with the Admiralty whereby the families of those who come under his Department may receive treatment at the same rate as before, and that the failure to come to an arrangement with the War Office has resulted in prohibitive fees being charged to the marines entitled to have members of their families in the hospital as compared with those payable by soldiers similarly situated; whether he can see his way to give any relief to marines whose dependants may at present be in hospital, in order that they may be on a par with soldiers who may have dependants in the hospital; and whether he will take action to prevents any inequalities arising in future?
§ Mr. AMMONThe change in the scale of charges payable by the wives and families of Royal Marines admitted to the Military Families Hospital at Devonport is not due to any alteration in the status of the Royal Marines; there has been no such change as is suggested in the terms of the question. For many years the dependants of Royal Marines were admitted to military families hospitals by the War Office at the norminal fees changed to dependants of soldiers of the garrison, but that Department recently intimated that as the wives and families of Royal Marines are not entitled to medical treatment at the expense of army funds, it would be necessary in future to make a charge of 10s. a day for each case. Under the King's Regulations the wives and families of Royal Marines, in common with the dependants of naval ratings, are not entitled to medical treatment at the public expense, and the Admiralty could not see their way to refund the cost of treatment in these hospitals or to make a grant from naval funds towards the charges incurred.