asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many firemen are now serving with the N.F.S. in North Staffordshire; how this number compares with the number serving in 1938; and how many fires have been dealt with in this area in 1944 as compared with 1938.

I cannot give precise figures for 1938, but it is estimated that the number of whole-time firemen was 38 and the number of part-time firemen was 86, and there were about 220 fires to which the fire brigades were called. There are at present 229 whole-time and 196 part-time firemen, but these numbers will be reduced in the near future. The number of fires to which the Fire Service were called in 1944 was 341.