§ Mr. SHINWELLasked the President of the Board of Trade what is the total number of claims presented by officers and seamen in the Mercantile Marine to the Reparations Commission; how many 1393W claims have been settled; the total amount paid in settlement; the latest date for sending in claims; and how many applications have been received since that date?
§ Viscount WOLMERThe number of officers and seamen of the Mercantile Marine (including fishermen) and of their dependants or relatives who have lodged claims with the Reparation Claims Department is 22,589. The cases of 20,845 of these claimants have been settled; 1,675 have been informed that their claims are rejected, and the remaining 19,170 have received in all the sum of £1,204,305. The latest date for sending in claims to the Reparation Claims Department was 15th February, 1922, except in cases where a claim had already been lodged with some other Government Department prior to that date; in these latter cases, the limiting period was extended to 30th December, 1922. The number of applicants who have communicated with the Department for the first time since 30th December, 1922, is about 15,000, and the majority of these applicants are members of the Mercantile Marine.