Mr. WEST RUSSELLasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the numbers of the staff on the Foreign 702W Office list in April, 1913, and April, 1932, respectively?
§ Mr. EDENThe numbers, which include the Passport Office, are as follow:
1913 … … … … 183 1932 … … … … 766 The two principal increases are in the registry, clerical and typing staff, and the staff of the Passport Office. In the case of the former, the increase is due mainly to the introduction of a new system of registration necessitated by the largely increased volume of correspondence which required a more elaborate system than that formerly employed, apart from the question of the actual number of papers to be dealt with. The number of inward despatches and letters rose from 68,119 in 1913 to 149,212 in 1931. The Passport Office, which employed only two persons in 1913, now has an average staff of 170. This is due to the elaborate system of passport and visas which has been universally enforced since the War, and which had no pre-War equivalent. It may be added that the total staff of the Foreign Office has been reduced by 100 during the last 10 years.