§ Mr. SNOWDENasked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is the practice to fill all staff posts in the Board by promoted second division clerks; if it is not the practice, what proportion of these posts are filled by promotion from amongst second division clerks; and whether he will give an assurance that this proportion will be increased, in view of the limited avenue of promotion for second division clerks in the Board of Trade?
Mr. BUXTONIt is not the practice to fill all staff posts in the Board of Trade by the promotion of second division clerks. All claims are carefully considered in relation to the qualifications required for the vacant post. Of 134 existing staff posts in the Board of Trade and its subordinate offices, 10 were filled from higher division clerks, 71 from second division clerks, 20 from ranks other than the higher and second divisions, 16 from officers transferred from other public Departments, and 17 from outside the Civil Service. As regards the last part of the question, I cannot say more than that the qualifications of eligible and meritorious second division clerks will always be carefully considered in connection with these appointments. It is not possible to assign any fixed proportion of such posts to any particular class of officers, having regard to the interests of the public service.