§ Sir K. WOODasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he has given consideration to the position of certain examiners of naval ammunition in Hong Kong and the method of payment of their remuneration; and, seeing that the whole of their wages and allowances are in dollars, and that owing to the continued fall of the dollar they and their families, many of whom are resident in this country, are suffering considerable hardship, particularly in those cases where the dollar has to be converted into sterling for allotment, that in certain cases when their appointment was made it was officially stated that the Hong Kong dollar was to be accepted as 2s., and that it was on this basis that such appointments were accepted, whether he is prepared to consider a different method of payment, or grant some substantial increase in the colonial allowance (such as was made in respect of the cost of living in the Colony in relation to certain grades there)?
Mr. ALEXANDERThere are only two such employés at Hong Kong, and it is not considered that their cases are 1197W so different from those of other employés who have volunteered for service at Hong Kong on a dollar basis as to justify special treatment. No undertaking has been given by the Admiralty to convert the Hong Kong dollar at 2s., but the temporary allowances which are paid at Hong Kong are reviewed periodically with due regard to all relevant considerations. The answer to the last part of the question is in the negative.