asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what steps have been taken to associate the representatives of the French Resistance Movement with the administration of liberated French territory.

As I stated in my speech on 25th May, His Majesty's Government are dealing with the French Committee of National Liberation as the French authority which will exercise leadership in France as her liberation proceeds. There is, of course, no question of dealing with the resistance movement in this connection as something separate from the Committee. The Central Council of the Movement accepts the Committee's authority and the Movement is strongly represented in the Consultative Assembly at Algiers and on the Committee itself.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if, in view of the harm being done to Anglo-French relations by the non-recognition of the French National Committee as the Provisional Government of France, he will take steps to grant them recognition without delay.

I would refer the hon. Member to the very full statement I made on this subject on 25th May.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport, why the delivery of material by the Ministry's vehicle from E.Y.A.M. to the Nutfield Manufacturing Company, Limited, costs 35s. per ton, whereas when the Company collect themselves it costs them 20s. per ton.

I am advised that the rate of 35s. per ton for this traffic is fair and reasonable I have no information about the basis on which the Nuffield Company compute their costs, and I cannot, therefore, comment on them.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport whether he will consider the running of special trains for holiday makers in the Lancashire towns during their their wakes.

I regret that in present circumstances it is not possible to provide additional trains for holiday travel and this general rule must also apply to Lancashire towns during their wakes.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport what steps he has taken to ensure that confusion, in respect of wakes holidays, does not interfere with war traffic and the movement of war equipment and entail the unnecessary use of rolling stock.

No additional trains will be provided for wakes weeks or town holidays, and there will, therefore, be no unnecessary use of rolling stock and no interference with the movement of essential traffic.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport what staff he has appointed specifically to consider the post-war problems of shipping and rail and road transport; and what is the rank of the senior official so engaged.

Under the general direction of the most senior officers of the Department, the duty of considering and co-ordinating questions affecting shipping and inland transport after the war has been specially allocated to two Assistant Secretaries.

asked the Minister of Food what is the fixed price for the quartern loaf; and at what price is its equivalent in fancy breads being sold to the public.

The maximum price of bread is 9d. per 4 1bs., although there is a somewhat higher figure in certain remote areas and in sparsely populated districts. Fancy loaves are commonly sold at the rate of between is. 6d. and 2s. per 4 1bs.

asked the Minister of Food if he can state by counties how many British Restaurants have opened and how many have closed since the start of the year.

The particulars asked for of British Restaurants set up under the Ministry of Food scheme which have been opened from January to May, 1944, and of the Restaurants closed in the same period are as follows:

County.		Opened.	Closed.
Buckinghamshire	…	—	1
Cheshire	…	—	1
Cumberland	…	1	—
Derbyshire	…	2	—
Devonshire	…	1	1
Durham	…	4	4
Essex	…	1	1
Gloucestershire	…	1	2
Hertfordshire	…	—	1
Kent	…	2	3
Lancashire	…	12	3
Leicestershire	…	1	1
Lincolnshire	…	1	—
Middlesex	…	5	1
Norfolk	…	1	—
Northamptonshire	…	1	1
Northumberland	…	2	13
Nottinghamshire	…	—	2
Staffordshire	…	1	—
Surrey	…	1	2
Warwickshire	…	1	—
Yorkshire N.R.	…	—	1
Yorkshire W.R.	…	4	14
Denbighshire	…	—	3
Glamorgan	…	2	—
Monmouthshire	…	—	2
Ayrshire	…	1	—
Dunbartonshire	…	1	—
Fifeshire	…	1	—
Lanarkshire	…	1	—
Midlothian	…	2	1
Morayshire	…	1	—
Renfrewshire	…	2	—

asked the Minister of Food what are the factors deemed to justify the much higher prices charged for fancy breads as against the ordinary quartern loaf.

The price of fancy breads is influenced by the higher costs of ingredients and manufacture as compared with ordinary bread.

asked the Minister of Food if he will take steps to remove the discontent that exists amongst bakers in regard to the high prices charged for fancy breads and the undue exploitation alike of the working bakers and the consuming public.

I am not aware of the discontent to which my hon. Friend refers. If, however, he will supply me with particulars, I will make inquiries.

asked the Minister of Food whether he will take steps to change the misleading quality descriptions of home-produced jams and adopt, instead, the practice applied to other commodities of designating quality by grade numbers.

No, Sir. I cannot agree that these descriptions, which are related to the standards laid down in the First Schedule of the Jam and Marmalade (Maximum Prices) Order, 1942, S.R. and O. 1942, No. 2482, are misleading. They are similar to those which were in use before the war for similar types of jam and no useful purpose would be served by altering them.

asked the Minister of Food what are the prescribed percentages of the the ingredients of jams described as conforming to the special, full and fresh fruits standards; and which of these descriptions represents the highest and lowest quality, respectively.

"Special standard" is a description applied to certain marmalade only. Among other requirements it must be made with not less than 30 per cent. of fruit. The minimum fruit contents prescribed for the different varieties of jam are the same whether it is described as "full fruit standard" or "fresh fruit standard." The difference is that "fresh fruit standard" jam must be made from fresh fruit, while "full fruit standard" jam may be made with fruit that has been preserved. The percentages required range from 20 to 40 according to variety. They are set out in detail in the First Schedule to the current Price Order, No. 2482 of 1942. As I recently announced, the minimum requirement of fruit in strawberry and gooseberry jams will be increased under a new Price Order shortly to be published.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power if he will explain more fully than is set out in the official notice of his Ministry the reasons why the allocation of domestic coal for the next period is to be only 25 cwt. for Scottish householders, compared with 4o cwt. for the North of England and Wales.

The quantities of 25 cwt. and 40 cwt. are not comparable, the former being for the four months' period July-October and the latter for the six months May-October. The reason for having a different restriction in Scotland is, however, that the deficiency in supplies, intensified by industrial disputes, has been more serious than in the North of England and, after a careful examination of both the supply and stock position, a separate restriction, which includes a lower limit for consumers' stocks, was considered advisable to secure the equitable distribution of the coal available.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power if he is aware that the effective utilisation of waste heat will at least double the thermal efficiency of electricity generating stations; and, in view of the importance to the national economy of this improvement, if he will give an assurance that no new plans will be drawn up for the erection of additional generating stations without taking full account of this possibility.

I presume my hon. Friend is referring to the possibility that waste heat from generating stations should be used for district heating schemes. This subject is being at present considered by a sub-committee of the Heating and Ventilating (Reconstruction) Committee appointed by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. The Government will wish to see the Report of that Committee before they can formulate any policy on this matter.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the estimated cost of workmen's compensation payments per ton of coal for the years 1925, 1930 and 1935 to 1943.

No figures are available showing the total cost of workmen's compensation payments per ton of coal for any year later than 1938. The figures for the individual years up to that time are as follow:

				Pence.
1925	…	…	…	3¼
1930	…	…	…	3¼
1935	…	…	…	3¼
1936	…	…	…	3¼
1937	…	…	…	3
1938	…	…	…	3

Figures are, however, available by courtesy of the Mining Association, showing total payments from collieries including pay- meets to Mutual Indemnity Associations and Insurance Companies for each year since 1938, and these show that, with the development of workmen's compensation, the total payments have increased from about 4d. per ton in 1938 to about Ad. per ton in 1943.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what was the rate of wages paid to the workers engaged on the construction of the American bases; and what is the rate of wages these workers, now unemployed, would receive on going into the sugar industry.

The rate of wages paid to workers engaged on the construction of the U.S. Bases in the West Indies are in general those paid for comparable occupations in the Colony. I regret that it would not be possible without extensive inquiry to give a list of wage rates for all occupations in all the bases, nor to state the wages which the workers now discharged from the bases will receive where they go into the b sugar industry. If, however, the hon. Member will let me know which particular Colony and types of work he has in mind I should be glad to obtain the information for him.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if compensation is paid by his Department for damage done to persons and property by aeroplanes when engaged in practice exercises.

Compensation is paid by the Air Ministry for damage to property which may be caused during practice exercises. Claims for personal injuries fall to be dealt with by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Pensions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider shortening the air-raid siren and the all clear to one-third of the present time or, as an alternative, cutting them out altogether.

The period of sounding the sirens has already been reduced from two minutes to one minute, and I do not think that a reduction to the extent suggested would allow the difference between the "Alert" and "Raiders passed" to be sufficiently noticeable, especially inside buildings. There are also technical difficulties where sirens are automatically controlled, as in large towns. The advantages of the alternative of not using the sirens, and therefore giving no public warning, are very debatable, but, as I have already said, we will be guided by experience.

asked the Minister of Health how many local authorities are involved in the 6o groups which have been selected for the advance preparation of post-war housing sites.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave him on this subject on z9th June, to which I am unable to add at present.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has freed, or will free, any local authorities now desiring to prepare their post-war housing sites from any former commitments into which they may have voluntarily entered under Circular 14/44.

No, Sir. Local authorities have not been required under this scheme to enter into commitments to my Department, and I am not in a position to free them from commitments into which they may voluntarily have entered.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will temporarily release, for periods not exceeding three months, skilled members of the building trade now employed on other work to effect quick first-aid repairs of houses damaged by flying bombs.

Arrangements have been made to provide such labour as may be required for repairs to bomb-damaged houses.

asked the Minister of Health if, in view of the number of waiting cases, he will give the utmost publicity, by a series of broadcasts and by Press notices, as to the means which can be adopted in the home to combat tuberculosis.

General advice on preventive measures against tuberculosis is continuously given through newspapers, magazines and by broadcasting as part of general health education, and two films, "Defeat Tuberculosis" and "Mass Radiography," are now being shown. For individuals suffering from tuberculosis or who have been exposed to infection personal advice is available from their medical attendant or the local tuberculosis officer.

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning what steps are taken in remodelling much of the country for war-time industry and agricultural purposes to ensure that the delimitation of temporarily eliminated public footpaths is carefully noted with a view to their ultimate restoration.

I am sending my hon. and gallant Friend a copy of the reply given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Mr. Keeling) on 4th November last.