§ Mr. John Carlisleasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his policy towards applications for leave of absence by civil servants to play representative sport in South Africa.
§ Mr. HayhoeIf a civil servant applies for leave of absence in order to take part in a representative sporting event, Government Departments may, at their discretion under the special leave rules, allow special leave with pay. However, it is not intended that this discretion should extend to allowing such leave where the sporting event takes place in South Africa. To do so would be inconsistent with the Commonwealth statement on apartheid in sport—the Gleneagles agreement—which calls on the Government and other Commonwealth Governments to take every practical step to discourage contact or competition by their nationals with sporting organisations, teams or sportsmen from South Africa.