§ Mr. CLUSEasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware of the dissatisfaction prevailing amongst writing assistants and established typing grades in the Civil Service, who have educational qualifications equal to those of the average woman clerical officer recruited by means of open competition, and who have been classified as suitable for early promotion, at the number of women clerical officers who have been called up as the result of the recent open competition, thus prejudicing the promotion prospects of the grades concerned; and whether he will consider the provision of satisfactory promotion outlets for the girls in question before proceeding to recruit further considerable numbers of girls straight from school for clerical class appointments?
§ Mr. McNEILLThe answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. Promotion outlets, on a substantial scale, are provided for writing assistants and members of the typing grades, and I should not feel justified in making arrangements for the abandonment of recruitment to the clerical class by the normal method of open competition.