§ Colonel DAYasked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the 1989W promise that the Corps of Military Accountants should not be disbanded unless the consent of the Committee of Public Accounts was obtained, he has received such consent; and, if not, whether he will cancel the notices terminating the employment of officers and other ranks in the corps?
§ Colonel ENGLANDasked the Secretary of State for War whether he is now in a position to state the circumstances in which the preparation of cost accounts of combatant units was discontinued and notices of dismissal issued to the staff engaged upon them in advance of the approval of the Committee of Public Accounts; and whether, in view of his assurance that the change in question was only to be made subject to their approval, he will arrange to suspend these notices of dismissal pending the Report of the Committee?
§ Sir L. WORTHINGTON-EVANSThe decision of the Public Accounts Committee is now available to hon. Members. It in effect recognises that the full scheme of unit accounting proposed by the Lawrence Committee is not possible. I felt that, in the present circumstances of financial stringency, the Government could not forego the saving of some £17,000 a. month which the postponement of the change would have cost. So I gave directions for certain action to be taken in anticipation of the published decision. The services of about half the officers of the Corps of Military Accountants will be retained as officers of the Royal Army Pay Corps, the majority of whom will be employed on cast accounting, together with a considerable number of other ranks of the Corps of Military Accountants. It-is intended that the recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee regarding cost accounting shall be carried out as fat-as possible.
§ Colonel DAYasked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware of the hardship inflicted upon members of the Corps of Military Accountants who served overseas during the Great War and who are now being disbanded; and whether ha will consider increasing the gratuity now being paid to those being thrown out of employment?
§ Sir L. WORTHINGTON-EVANSThe gratuity provided by Army Order 377 of1990W 1925 for members of the Corps of Military Accountants discharged on reduction of establishment is based on exactly the same principles as the gratuity provided in Army Order 180 of 1922 in connection with the large reductions of establishment which took place in that year. I could not justify giving preferential treatment to men discharged on reduction of the Corps of Military Accountants. In respect of their services during the Great War, they have received the war gratuities to which they were entitled, in common with the rest of the Army.