Oral Answers to Questions — British Army – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 27 November 1956.
Mr Frank Hayman
, Falmouth and Camborne
12:00,
27 November 1956
asked the Secretary of State for War how many officers have been permitted to retire voluntarily before completing their full period on the active list in each of the last five years, to the latest convenient date.
Mr John Hare
, Sudbury and Woodbridge
The figures for each of the years 1952 to 1955 are 646, 531, 594 and 746. That for the first ten months of 1956 was 505.
Mr Frank Hayman
, Falmouth and Camborne
Why must men below the rank of officer purchase their discharges while officers are given them voluntarily?
Mr John Hare
, Sudbury and Woodbridge
The quick answer is that officers are not permitted to resign in the early years of their service and, as long as there is no emergency, other ranks are permitted to do so.
Mr Paul Williams
, Sunderland South
Will my right hon. Friend place no barriers in the way of the right hon. Member for Easington (Mr. Shinwell) and the hon. Member for Wednesbury (Mr. S. N. Evans) completing their national service?
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
