HC Deb 27 July 1944 vol 402 cc908-9W
Viscount Suirdale

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he is aware that Regular officers in the Indian Army, who are granted 61 days' leave at home, are asked to pay half their fare, whereas officers holding war emergency commissions do not have to contribute to their fares; and whether, as the amounts granted by His Majesty's Government towards these passage accounts are fixed for the whole of an officer's career and officers are therefore anxious only to use up their credit when comparatively long periods of leave are allowed, he will arrange for no charges of this nature to be made against passage accounts during the war.

Mr. Amery

The suggestion that Regular Indian Army officers are being asked to pay half the cost of their leave passages home requires some further explanation. As my Noble Friend recognises in the second part of his Question, Regular Indian Army officers have a passage account opened for them at the expense of Government to which the cost of leave passages taken during the whole of their service is debited. In the present case the Government of India recommended that, in view of the comparative shortness of the leave, only half the cost of passage instead of the whole cost should be debited to their account. Emergency Commissioned officers of the Indian Army have no such passage account and the Question in their case does not arise.

Viscount Suirdale

asked the Secretary of State for India how many officers in the Indian Army who have served for five years or more in India have been given leave at home; and how many passages per month are now available for such officers.

Mr. Amery

The leave scheme for Indian Army personnel is not yet in opera- tion, though an Army Instruction implementing the scheme is expected to be issued at an early date. The number of passages which will be available under the scheme will vary from time to time according to the shipping available and operational considerations. On the average it will be at least 125 a month, but discussions on this subject are still in progress.