§ Mr. FIELDasked the Secretary to the Treasury, whether he will state what are the disciplinary duties performed by minor staff officers in the Customs Statistical 2093W Office which did not devolve upon allowanced assistant clerks before the minor staff officer class was created; what disciplinary duties are performed by Messrs. Carter, Conibeer, Smith, Stimpson, and Walkington which were not previously performed by allowanced assistant clerks; how many clerks are under the disciplinary control of each of these five officers during the discharge of their daily duties; whether he can state the additional annual cost incurred by the creation of the minor staff officer class in the Customs Statistical Office; and, in view of the fact that eight out of nine minor staff officers in the Customs Statistical Office are engaged on duties which were previously performed by allowanced assistant clerks, can he state why such a class was created, having regard to the number of classes already in the office?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEThe answer to the first and second parts of the question is none. The answer to the third part is that the numbers vary according to circumstances. The answer to the fourth part is that the additional annual cost is, at maximum salaries, £360. The answer to the last part of the question is that the duties are superior to those falling to the class of allowanced assistant clerks, out not sufficiently good to be allocated to the class of junior clerks.
§ Mr. FIELDasked the Secretary to the Treasury whether, in view of the fact that assistant clerks in the Customs Statistical Office who have refused promotion to the general service have been informed that the qualifications for promotion in the Statistical Office cannot properly be compared with the qualifications for promotion to the general service, he will state why assistant clerks who have accepted promotion from the Statistical Office to the general service are eligible, by Treasury letter embodied in Board of Customs Minute 5698/1906, to revert to the Statistical Office as junior clerks, having regard to the statement that the qualifications for promotion and the whole character of the work are different?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEThe promotion of a Statistical Office assistant clerk to the general service does not imply that he is not qualified for promotion within that office.