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REPORT

TO THE

LORDS COMMISSIONERS OF HER MAJESTY'S TREASURY.

AS TO

RESTRICTIONS ON RECEIPT OF NAVAL OR MILITARY NON-EFFECTIVE PAY WITH CIVIL SALARY.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

PEPELTIC 0.885/

سيا سياسيا

5 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

MAY IT PLEASE YOUR LORDSHIPS,

20197

84

In obedience to the instructions contained in your Lordships' Minute of the 19th December, 1884, we beg to submit the following Report of the result of our inquiries into the rules under which half, retired, or other non- effective pay should be issued to naval or military officers who accept civil employment under the Crown, or are employed by Colonial Governments. We have found it convenient to divide the Report into-1. A Retrospect 'p. 2, 9, 10, of past Regulations. 2. Reasons for new Regulations. 3. Regulations that 11. have been suggested. 4. Present Recommendations.

I.

RETROSPECT OF PAST REGULATIONS.

Until 1819 the receipt of naval or army half pay with civil salary was Original forbidden, either by Statute or by Order in Council.

prohibition

Army and

In the case of army half pay, the prohibition was statutory from 1716 for both until 1819, inclusive. The following is an extract from the Appropriation Nary Act of that year, 59 Geo. III. c. 133. s. 24, which may be taken as an example:-

"No person having any other place or employment, civil or military, under Ilis Majesty, shall have or receive any part of the said half pay, except such officers as have been or shall be appointed to any military commission or employment on the staff, in the garrisons, or in any of His Majesty's colonies; which officers, with His Majesty's approbation, to be signified by the Secretary-at-War to the Paymaster General of the Land Forces, and not otherwise, may and shall receive their half pay, together with the pay of their military commissions."

*

Certain other military exceptions are also made in the Act.

In the case of naval half pay the prohibition was contained in the several Orders in Council granting half pay, e.g., the Order of 16th August 1802 allowed half pay to naval officers while not employed at sea, or otherwise provided for on shore," and the Order of the 6th June 1814, which raised the rates of half pay, directs" that no officer be entitled to this allowance

during the time he shall enjoy the benefit of any public employment." A like prohibition applied to officers of Marines.

In 1819 for the Navy, and 1820 for the Army, this prohibition was partially removed, and its removal is attributed by the Select Committee on Public Income and Expenditure, 1828, to “the strong and just sense which the Legislature entertained of the eminent services rendered to the country by the Army and Navy, throughout the war then recently so triumphantly

terminated."

Besides the motive of gratitude, however, there seems room for believing that the Legislature considered that both economy and efficiency would be promoted if half-pay officers were encouraged to accept re-employment in civil offices.

The following are the terms of the relaxation in the Naval Order in Council Relaxation of 30th July 1819:-

for Navy

"Any officer in His Majesty's naval service shall be allowed to hold and to enjoy the salary and in 1819. emoluments of any public office under His Majesty's Government, either at home or abroad, such public office not being in any civil or military department of the Navy, provided the said salary or emoluments do not exceed three times the amount of the highest rate of half pay of that rank of officers to which he may belong, or provided the said salary or emoluments, together with the whole or any part of the said half pay, shall not in the aggregate exceed four times the amount of A 2