asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether, in view of the undertaking by his predecessor that they hoped to be able to place as many as 10,000 ex-Service men in the Civil Service during the two years 1937–39, he can now state the numbers of such men who have actually been absorbed?

Although complete statistics are not available, the figures in my possession show that more than 10,000 ex-Service men have been placed in Civil Service employment since March, 1937, when the undertaking referred to was given.