§ Major ANSTRUTHER-GRAYasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he can 307W state how many of the 94 officers of Customs and Excise who have been compulsorily retired, in consequence of the amalgamation of the two services, before completing 40 years' pensionable service, belong to the Customs and how many to the Excise, and to what grades do they belong; on what principle have the Board made the selection of officers to be thus compulsorily retired; how many of these officers would, under ordinary circumstances, have been allowed to complete their full period of pensionable service; and, in view of the fact that compulsory retirement deprives these officers of. the difference between their pay and pension and also of the full pension, whether, in harmony with the undertakings given to the House on the amalgamation of the Departments of Customs and Excise, he will take the necessary steps to redress the hardship entailed?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEOf the 94 officers in question, 19 belong to the Customs and 75 to the Excise, the numbers in the respective grades being as follows:—
Customs No. Excise. No. 1st class Clerks 3 1st class Principal Clerks 3 1st class Surveyors 1 2nd class do. 6 1st class Examining Officers 10 1st class Supervisors 7 2nd class Examining Officers 5 1st class Officers 58 2nd class do. 1 19 75 The retirement order of 10th October, 1908, has been applied to all officers of 61 years of age and upwards, except in the case of a few of the higher officials, who have been retained in the interests of the Service. It is not possible to say how many of these 94 officers would, if the Order of 10th October, 1903, had not been issued, have been allowed to complete 40 years' service before retirement.