§ Mr. Sharpasked the Minister of Fuel and Power what were the circumstances under which it was possible for a 22-yearsold clerk at the Leeds regional petroleum office to have access to petrol coupons and steal 6,000; what length of time elapsed between the first theft and its discovery; what instructions he has issued about the daily or weekly balancing of petrol coupon accounts; and whether these were carried out on this occasion.
§ Mr. GaitskellThis clerk was in the section of the regional petroleum office which deals with motorists who, because they are changing their cars, have to return the balance of their supplementary coupons issued for the old car and apply for new coupons. By a complicated and carefully-planned device, the clerk, instead of cancelling all the returned coupons, was able to steal a proportion of them. The first theft took place in June, 1948, and was not discovered until April, 1949. Steps have now been taken to prevent this type of theft occurring again, but my hon. Friend will appreciate that it is extremely difficult to devise a system which will be complete proof against the ingenuity of a dishonest employee.
As regards the last two parts of the Question, regional petroleum officers are instructed to balance stocks of coupons against authorised coupon issues each day, and this instruction is observed meticulously in all regional petroleum offices. But as I have explained, this clerk was not in the issuing section and the coupons stolen were those which had already been issued once, and if not reissued should have been destroyed.