I move:—
That a sum not exceeding £8,150 be granted to complete the sum necessary to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1925, to pay the salaries and expenses of the Marine Service.
There are just one or two points in connection with this small Estimate about which I might say a word. The heading A, Salaries, Wages and Allowances, I think explains itself, but some difficulty may be raised by the fact that a certain increase is shown, mainly under the second heading, Survey Services, and that arises mainly because of certain readjustments of staff which are taking place now, or are likely to take place in the near future. The proposal is to make certain substitute arrangements that the combined positions of Nautical Surveyor and Examiner of Masters and Mates, with one post of Ship Surveyor, should be the future arrangement; instead of the post of Senior Ship Surveyor and Ship Surveyor that there should be a half and half arrangement whereby this examinership of Masters and Mates would be shared between Dublin and Belfast.
There is to be an addition also of a Senior Engineer Surveyor, under that arrangement, to undertake certain duties for the Irish Lights, getting for that an allowance payable out of the Vote of the Irish Lights. These alterations will entail certain appointments and training of new staff to replace the present staff, officers who would be recalled to England or who will possibly or probably retire. The increase is mainly due to the fact that there will be overlapping between the outgoing men and the incoming, and also by the special allowance to this Senior Engineer Surveyor, which will be repayable. There is an additional sum to the Medical Inspector, fees receivable by him, and these fees will be recoverable from the shipping company concerned, so that the matter is really a book-keeping transaction. With reference to Item B, I do not propose to go into the detailed sums for the separate items. The separate items would be the travelling of the staffs of the Mercantile Marine Office and of the Survey Office. Incidentals would be technical newspapers, legal expenses, uniforms, medals for gallantry at sea, certain scientific apparatus, and certain expenditure in connection with the School for Navigation. I could give the allowance under each of these heads, but I hope it will not be proposed that I should, because certain negotiations are likely to take place soon with regard to the School for Navigation, and when one is bargaining it is not well to show the sum that is in one's mind. The separate amounts for each item are based on the minimum requirements of the year before. The legal expenses item is, however, a very small sum, set aside provisionally, and owing to a wreck which occurred recently, and as a result of which an inquiry has been ordered, it is quite likely that some supplementary sum may have to be looked for later, because the provision by way of legal expenses is undoubtedly too small.
The small provision that is made for these medals for gallantry at sea is, of course, a thing that may not be called upon, but some estimate must be provided for it. The question of the Navigation School is more or less sub-judice and at the moment I would prefer not to say anything about it, but I can give details if they are required Other items, telephones and telegrams are the best estimates that we can get of these things from figures supplied by the Post Office. Services in connection with wrecks and salvage is a figure that has to be set down. There may be no expenditure under this head at all, and whatever expenditure there is in all cases is recovered. Similarly with regard to the next Item, Relief of Distressed Seamen, some small item has to be set down, but whatever the expenses may be they are also recoverable. Item F, cost of Life-Saving Service, is an important one. This estimate shows a reduction, but that reduction would be off-set by the sum set aside in the Office of Public Works Account. The reduction is due to the fact that the Board of Works have taken over the maintenance and repair of rocket services, and the provision of explosives, etc. The salaries under this sub-head speak for themselves. The item, Travelling Expenses, refers mainly to the Inspector and the Superintendent, who have to cover very large districts. The payments to 758 members of voluntary crews reveals the present system with regard to the Coast Life Saving Service. There are about 50 stations, and the payments made are to two head men, number one and number two in each station, who get sums respectively of £15 and £6 where there are head stations, and in certain instances £12 and £4. The volunteer crews are drilled quarterly, and receive a payment amounting to, I think, £1 per head per annum.