Brigadier Clarkeasked the First Lord of the Admiralty what representations have been made to him by the Portsmouth City Council regarding the two weeks enforced holiday by Her Majesty's Dockyard, Portsmouth, at the height of the Portsmouth holiday season.
§ Mr. J. P. L. ThomasThe council have written supporting a protest passed by the Portsmouth Trades Council. The grounds given by the city council were that the release of so many dockyard employees in the height of the season might be prejudicial to the popularity of Southsea as a holiday resort. Though regretting any inconvenience to other local interests that may be caused by the decision to return to the pre-war practice of closing the dockyard, I must point out that the choice of the date for the holiday period, which does not begin until 16th August, was at the wish of the men's representatives, and I could not agree to change this date.