§ Mr. Kirbyasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether it is the practice of the contracting departments of the Admiralty, War Office, Air Minis-try and the Ministry of Works to insist that their contractors operate the holidays with pay scheme as agreed between the employers and operatives of the building trades, civil engineering; and do the employing sections of the same Ministries operate the same scheme in relation to their own building trade employees?
§ Mr. AsshetonThe various contracting Departments have considered the question of the operation of the holidays with pay scheme in connection with the contracts for which they are responsible. Under the conditions of Registration under Defence Regulation 56AB, the contractor is bound to observe the terms and conditions which have been fixed by joint agreement in the industry, and it is considered that this should ensure the observance of the scheme. In the case of building trade and civil engineering operatives who are directly employed by the Ministries mentioned in the Question, the arrangements already in force compare favourably with those laid down in558W the scheme, and in these circumstances the question of the application of the scheme does not arise.