§ Sir P. RICHARDSONasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury how many competent ex-service men in various Government Departments are under notice to leave during this month; and 1620W whether such notices can be withdrawn pending the Report of the Southborough Committee?
§ Captain BERKELEYasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of competent ex-service men under notice to leave the Civil Service during March; and whether, seeing that a number of these men have been in public employment first in the Army and afterwards in the Civil Service for nearly 10 years, he will suspend for the time being normal recruitment for the Civil Service and retain the services of these men to whom a new start in life is impossible?
Mr. GRAHAMThe Joint Substitution Board has been notified of the probable discharge in March of approximately 325 ex-service men of those temporarily employed in Government Departments in London and the South-Eastern area. Every effort is being made to find suitable employment for these men. These discharges are not caused by normal recruitment of corresponding ranks in the Civil Service, which has been almost entirely suspended for a number of years; but are due to the completion of various activities. I regret to be unable to direct or sanction the retention of staff in excess of the needs of the work. These men, with those similarly discharged previously, are of Course regarded as having a preferential claim to re-employment on the same basis in all vacancies which they are competent to fill.