§ Major HORE-BELISHAasked the President of the Board of Trade the number of coastguard stations under his Department; the number of such stations at which a station officer is in charge, and the rank and remuneration of such officer; the number of such stations at which there is no station officer in charge, and the rank and remuneration of the person who is in charge; if there is any difference of either work or responsibility or remuneration between the first category and the second, in what the difference consists; and, if there is no difference in work or responsibility but a difference in remuneration, whether he will take steps to see that the pay and allowances of those doing similar work in charge of the stations is equiparated?
§ Mr. A. V. ALEXANDERThere are 296 coastguard stations under the Board of Trade, and at 185 of these there are station officers. At 111 stations there is either a district officer in residence or a senior coastguard; there are 14 stations in the former class and 97 in the latter class, but at the whole 111 a charge allowance is given to the senior coastguard. The present inclusive remuneration of a senior coastguard is 49s. 8d. a week, including 1s. charge allowance; that of a station officer is 59s. 5d. a week; in each case with free residence and uniform. In general, the work and responsibility of the station officers is greater than that of the senior coastguard in charge of a station, but there are cases where the difference is slight, and the Board of Trade are now looking into the matter to see whether the number of station officers should be reduced.