A.—l.

ENCLOSURE. Minister of Pensions Office, Wellington, 16th March, 1927. Memorandum for the Right- Hon. the Prime Minister. Imperial Pensions.—Travelling-expenses and Compensation. Referring to your memorandum of 28th February in the above matter, I append a comparative statement setting out the position of Imperial and New Zealand pensioners respectively in regard to travelling-allowances, &c. Travelling Facilities. In the case of persons reporting for medical examination travelling facilities are provided as follows — First Class : — New Zealand and Great Britain — Officers ; nurses ; persons whose degree of invalidity warrants extra comfort; all ranks travelling on smaller coastal steamers where second-class accommodation nonexistent or unsuitable for Europeans. New Zealand only— Non-commissioned ranks from staff sergeant upwards. Second Class : — All others not enumerated above. Travelling and Subsistence Allowances. Travelling and subsistence allowances to meet out-of-pocket expenses are made as follows : — New Zealand— Actual expenses not exceeding a rate of 10s. a day for period required to be absent (all ranks). Great Britain — Officers and nurses, 15s. if absent full period of twenty-four hours ; ss. for absence of ten hours or ten hours in excess of twenty-four (no payment if absence less than ten hours or for period in excess of twenty-four hours if less than ten hours ; other ranks, 6s. for full twenty-four hours and 2s. for eight hours on same lines as above. Compensation for Loss of Time when reporting for Medical Examination. New Zealand — All ranks : Compensation at a rate not exceeding 10s. a day for wages lost or necessarily paid to an employee. Great Britain— Officers and nurses, nil; other ranks, actual loss, or Is. 6d. an hour, whichever is less, with a maximum of 10s. a day. Until the end of last year there was no authority to allow first-class travelling facilities on account of invalidity where the rank of an Imperial pensioner entitled him to second-class only, but this disability has been removed. G. Jas. Anderson, Minister of Pensions.

No. 6. New Zealand, No. 78. Sir, — Government House, Wellington, 27th April, 1927. With reference to your despatches, Dominions Nos. 494 and 532, of the 3rd November and 24th November respectively, enclosing copies of a new edition of the Board of Trade " Instructions as to the Survey of Life-saving Appliances," I have the honour to inform you, at the instance of my Ministers, that action is being taken at present to bring the life-saving appliances in New Zealand into conformity with those operating in Great Britain. I have, &c., CHARLES FERGUSSON, Governor-General. The Right Hon. L. C. M. S. Amery, M.P., Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs.

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