Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division), as representing the National Insurance Audit Department, whether he will furnish the names of the original appointees to the post of inspector of audit (scale of salary £550 to £700 per annum) who, failing appointment to that post, applied also for the post of auditor (scale of salary £350 to £500 per annum)?
§ Mr. BALDWINNone.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division), as representing the National Insurance Audit Department, whether he will 585W state the amount of war bonus granted to audit clerks now serving in the Department and now serving in the forces, respectively; whether the full increments recommended for these audit clerks by their immediate superiors have in any instances been withheld in connection with the granting of this war bonus or otherwise; and, if so, why this has been done?
§ Mr. BALDWINThe answer to the first part of the question is 4s., to the second part married men 4s., single men nil, to the third part in the negative; the fourth part does not arise.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division), as representing the National Insurance Audit Department, whether he will furnish a statement showing the amounts paid in respect of travelling and subsistence to each of the inspectors of audit during each of the four years ended 31st August, 1916, for attending at the headquarters of the Department in London, away from each of their official stations, special conferences and ordinary periodical conferences; whether he will state the number of such special conferences and such periodical conferences held during each of the four years in question; and, having regard to the calibre of these inspectors, their responsibility for the mass of instructions issued to the staff of the Department, and the rates of salary (£550 to £700 per annum) and subsistence allowance paid to them, whether he will consider the advisability of saving public money by the abolition of the grade of inspector of audit?
§ Mr. BALDWINThere have been no special conferences of inspectors of audit in London or elsewhere. The particulars asked for with regard to the ordinary conferences are as follow:
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— Year ended 31st August, 1913. 31st August, 1914. 31st August, 1915. 31 at August, 1916. Inspector— £ s. d. £ s d. £ s. d. £ s. d. Northern Division … 27 15 0 62 12 0 44 8 0 41 3 0 Midland Division … 18 17 6 45 6 0 27 16 8 27 0 8 Scottish Division … 37 9 2 89 18 0 59 18 8 55 13 6 Irish Division … 35 2 6 84 3 0 56 4 0 35 18 0 Welsh Division … 20 5 0 49 15 6 29 18 6 29 5 6 No. of Conferences … 5 12 8 8 The answer to the last part of the question is in the negative.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division), as representing the National Insurance Audit Department, whether, seeing that two special increments of salary have been granted, on the grounds of personal merit and specially onerous duties, to each of three of the inspectors of audit, that these three inspectors are and have been almost entirely engaged in initialling diaries, travelling claims, and auditor's reports, and on other duties which connote duplication of work, and that the inspectors of audit who did not receive any special increment of salary are and have been similarly employed, he will give some outline of the main features of these duties which have been regarded as specially onerous and some indication as to how special merit could have been displayed in the performance of them by the three inspectors of audit referred to?
§ Mr. BALDWINThe nature of the duties performed by the inspectors of Audit in the National Insurance Audit Department is incorrectly described. The hon. Member is referred to the answer given to the Member for North Kerry on the 26th April, 1916.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division) whether, seeing that second division clerks employed in the various divisions of the National Insurance Audit Department were not allowed overtime payments in their own Department, and were not permitted to undertake evening work in other Government Departments which required the services of borrowed second division clerks at the usual overtime rates, and that second division clerks generally were permitted to undertake such evening work when not required to do overtime in their own Departments, he will explain the reason why the National Insurance Audit 587W Department did not permit its second division clerks to earn overtime in the other Departments which employed borrowed second division clerks on evening work?
§ Mr. BALDWINThe National Insurance Audit Department has not withheld permission to second division clerks to undertake evening work in other Government Departments during the War.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division) whether he will furnish a statement showing the scale of pay to male audit clerks, temporary male clerks, and temporary female clerks, respectively, in each of the divisions of the National Insurance Audit Department?
§ Mr. BALDWINThe maximum and minimum weekly pay of audit clerks and temporary clerks employed by the National Insurance Audit Department throughout the United Kingdom is as follows:
— Minimum. Maximum. Audit Clerks … 27s. … … 40s. for 75 per cent. of the number engaged. 45s. for 25 per cent. of the number engaged. Temporary Men Clerks … None fixed … … 37s. 6d. (a) Temporary Women Clerks … None fixed … … 25s. (b) Temporary Women clerks … 26s. … … 30s. (c) Temporary Women Clerks … 40s. … … 50s. The war bonuses applicable to the whole Civil Service are paid in addition.
Mr. NUGENTasked the hon. Member for Worcestershire (Bewdley Division), as representing the National Insurance Audit Department whether attempts have been made to compel second division clerks employed in the various divisions of the Department to work longer than the number of hours prescribed by Order in Council without receiving any extra remuneration for overtime; whether in one division at least they were actually compelled to do so; and, if so, seeing that the rates and other conditions governing overtime payment for second division clerks have been specifically laid down by the Treasury and adopted by Government Departments generally, will he explain why the inspectors of audit were permitted to treat their second division subordinates in this manner?
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§ Mr. BALDWINThe Order in Council does not prescribe the number of hours to be worked by a Government servant, but requires the attendance given not to be less than seven hours a day. To meet the exceptional circumstances of the Department, the second division clerks in the National Insurance Audit Department work more than seven hours a day from Monday to Friday, and a compensating concession is made in respect of Saturdays. Practically no overtime is worked.