"The revised rates, as far as medical officers are concerned, apply only to new entrants and new promotions."
That in itself is encouraging. The revised rates apply to existing officers if they are promoted to higher rank, and if they take the new rate of that rank.
"The figures given do not represent the total emoluments paid to officers. Take, for instance, a new entrant to the medical service. On entry, he will be commissioned as a second lieutenant and will be entitled to £296 a year in addition to the following allowances in cash or in kind: lodging, fuel and light allowance, £64; uniform allowance, £20; and ration allowance, £32, making a total of £116. His total emoluments, therefore, during the first year of service will be £412. It is intended that all new entrants will be promoted first lieutenant on the completion of one year's satisfactory service so that in his second year he will receive £429. If he marries after three years' satisfactory service, he will be entitled to £340 a year plus the following allowances: lodging, fuel and light allowance, £127; uniform allowance, £20 and ration allowance, £32. Hence, after three years' satisfactory service, a medical officer, even under the revised rates, will be entitled to emoluments, in cash or in kind, to the extent of approximately £519 a year."
We get the rates of pay for engineers; we get the rates of pay for regimental officers, and we get the rates of pay for British medical officers, but we are only given the rate of pay and allowances for Irish medical officers. If the case was a good case, being fairly presented, would we not have got the rates of pay and allowances for all? It is merely evidence that a bad case has to be bolstered up by doubtful debating tactics. The tactics adopted by the Minister from the first day on which this matter was debated here up to 10 o'clock last night are being very mildly described when I describe them as doubtful.
There was another matter, and again it shows the manner in which we are being treated. When this matter was under discussion last night and when my case was mainly based on the figures before me and on the knowledge inside my head, that the highest rank in the Army Medical Service is, and was for ten years back, that of major, and when, in making my case, I pointed out that the highest pay a medical officer could aspire to was that of major, the Minister, in order to answer that, last night tells us that the medical officer can be colonel and implies that it is his intention that the highest rank of medical officer will be colonel. Any Deputy, and certainly any Deputy sitting on this side, has no way of touting intelligent information from the Minister or his Department and it is a very undesirable way of getting information at any time. The only information a Deputy can get is information officially published, and we have in the Book of Estimates, for the year 1939-40, on page 325, the establishment of the Army Medical Service for the year ending 31st March, 1940. Will the Minister refer me to the colonel's rank and pay on that page? Is it there?
