asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make available in the Library a transcript of evidence taken by the Hong Kong Electricity Supply Commission in 1959.

Yes, Sir. I shall inform the hon. Gentleman when the transcript has been received and placed in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will now direct the Government of Hong Kong to implement the main recommendation of the Electricity Supply Commission's Report, dated December, 1959, to take into public ownership the two electricity supply companies in the Colony.

No, Sir.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the electricity companies made it quite clear to the Commission that there was no half-way house between public ownership and unfettered private ownership? Does not the well-known doctrinaire dislike of nationalisation by the present Administration put the private electricity power companies in a very strong bargaining position?

I have full confidence in the way in which the Governor is handing the matter. There is no evidence that the present negotiations have affected the supply of electricity to the consumers. Furthermore, the restriction on the distribution of dividends has created a large reserve which can be put to good use in the necessary development of electricity supplies in the Colony.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what arrangements have been made for a renewed constitutional conference on Kenya's future; and if the restriction upon Mr. Jomo Kenyatta's membership of the Legislature will be withdrawn so that he may attend.

As has been announced by my right hon. Friend, the constitutional conference on Kenya will begin in London on 14th February next. As indicated in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Cornwall, North (Mr. Scott-Hopkins) on 5th December, which may have escaped the hon. Member's notice, the restrictions on persons who have served a prison sentence exceeding two years from standing for election to the Legislative Council have been removed.

I thank the hon. Gentleman, but that had not escaped my attention. This Question has been on the Order Paper a long time. Is the hon. Gentleman aware that all of us want this conference to be a success and to bring the independence of Kenya nearer? Does he agree that meanwhile it is very desirable that a policy should be pursued in Kenya which will create the correct psychology? Did the Colonial Office authorise the reintroduction yesterday of detention without trial in Kenya? If so, does it not hamper us in any criticisms we may make of other countries if the British Government reintroduce detention without trial?

If the hon. Gentleman tables a separate Question on this subject, we can have a further discussion when I have more information on the point to which he refers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether supplies of food to the affected areas of Kenya are now adequate, or whether help is still required from voluntary and international organisations.

Any further donations to Kenya's Famine Relief Fund either in cash or in the form of protein foods and vitamin supplements will be welcome.

Basic food supplies in Kenya are adequate but due to delays in shipment they are short of protein supplementary foods. The position should improve with the arrival of the first shipment of milk powder about 20th December, but the Kenya Government will need money for the purchase and distribution of additional foods in order to combat malnutrition, which will undoubtedly be an aftermath to the famine. Moreover, a further £15,000 will have to be found for anti-malarial drugs, since following the floods a much greater incidence of malaria must now be expected.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many workers were employed, and how many were un-employed, in the cigar-making and tobacco-growing industries in Jamaica, at the latest convenient date and at the corresponding date in 1951; and if he will make a statement.

I have no recent information on this subject. Labour matters are within the competence of the Government of Jamaica which is self-governing in this sphere. I have, however, asked the Governor if he can provide this information and will write to my hon. Friend when I hear from him.

Would it not undoubtedly help the workers in the cigar-making and tobacco-growing industries in Jamaica if the hon. Gentleman had a word with the Chancellor of the Exchequer? There is a very easy way of encouraging greater production, namely, by lowering the duty on Jamaican cigars coming into this country?

We have given various pledges to Jamaica. The import figures in 1960 and for the first nine months of 1961 show a considerable improvement on the corresponding figures for 1959.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that the Government's Commonwealth Immigrants Bill will greatly aggravate the problem of unemployment in Jamaica? Will the Government do something about increasing economic aid to compensate in some measure for the effect of the Bill?

Answer.

Does not my hon. Friend agree that the import of Jamaican cigars has gone down over the period I mention in my Question because of competition from Cuba? Will he make representations to the Board of Trade with a view to trying to reduce the import of Cuban cigars?

We have always said that Jamaica's interests will be very much borne in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what has been the increase in population in Fiji for each of the last five years; and what has been the increase in production in agriculture for each of these years.

The recorded increase in population each year has been just over 13,000. Reliable figures for agriculture show only the products exported from, and not those consumed in, Fiji.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that we can never hope that the economy of Fiji and similar territories will become viable and stable unless and until—I speak without offence—religious scruples are thrown overboard to ensure family planning in this and other under-developed territories?

Quite apart from religious scruples, in fact there are family planning units working there. There is a very large area of land to be developed. The major report—that of the Burns Commission—shows that there is almost as much land in Fiji as in Jamaica, which sustains a far larger population than the 380,000 or 390,000 population of Fiji.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement about the present situation in British Honduras after the recent hurricane.

There is very little to add to the full reply which I gave on 30th November to my hon. Friend the Member for Surbiton (Mr. Fisher).

The civil departments have largely resumed the responsibilities which for a time were exercised by the Service authorities. The new Governor, Sir Peter Stallard, takes over tomorrow in succession to Sir Colin Thornley who was due to leave a month ago but remained to direct the relief operations.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that his recent visit to British Honduras was highly commendable and valuable? Is he further aware that the action of Sir Colin Thornley, the Governor, in throwing himself so completely into the fight against the terribly difficult conditions resulting from the recent disaster is characteristic of the fine colonial servant he is and is in line with our highest colonial traditions?

I thank the hon. Gentleman very much for that expression of view, with which I heartily accord. I am glad to say that the Navy very kindly sent a ship back and Sir Colin departed with full gubernatorial honours on 4th December and Sir Peter Stallard will be taking over tomorrow.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that what I said about Sir Colin Thornley should be seen in the light of the fact that he has been recently very ill indeed?

I agree entirely.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that members of the United Federal Party in Nyasaland have been found guilty of conspiracy to defraud, of arson of their own houses, of fabricating charges of the arson of these houses against members of the Malawi Party and of giving false evidence against the latter; and what action has been taken by the Nyasaland Government following these verdicts.

Yes, Sir. Three members of the Mbobo branch of the United Federal Party, including the chairman Victor Chijalo, were convicted of arson and attempting to defraud by false pretences and have been sentenced to 18 months' hard labour. One further case of conspiracy involving an official of the United Federal Party is still sub judice.

In the light of the fairly widespread charges of arson and intimidation which were made against the Malawi Party prior to the elections in Nyasaland, is it not rather scandalous that the United Federal Party supporters should themselves have committed these crimes and falsified the facts in order to discredit their political opponents? Can my hon. Friend say that these houses are no longer included in the itinerary of the "Voice and Vision" tours of hon. Members?

It is not for me to comment, except to see that the law takes its full and due course in Nyasaland, and this we are ensuring.

In view of the very wide publicity which was given to the falsehoods by the "Voice and Vision" organisation and by the Federal Government, can the hon. Gentleman say what steps Her Majesty's Government are taking through their information officers in the Federation to correct this false propaganda?

It is not for Her Majesty's Government to enter into matters of propaganda. It is far more effective for the facts to speak for themselves, and these facts speak outstandingly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies why Mr. Kenneth Kaunda has been refused permits to hold meetings in the Northern Province of Northern Rhodesia; and why the United National Independence Party has been refused permission to re-register its branches in Abercorn and Kasama.

Mr. Kaunda made a tour of the Northern Provinces in October and again in November. The granting of permits for particular meetings is, however, a matter for the local authority in the district concerned, and I have asked the Governor about any recent refusals of permits to him.

As regards re-registration of U.N.I.P. branches, the Governor's announcement on 1st November of the revocation of the general order declaring these branches unlawful in certain Provinces explained that all such branches were now eligible to reapply for registration and each application would be considered on its merits. I have asked the Governor about the two branches mentioned, and will write to the hon. Member when I have his reply.

I thank the Under-Secretary very warmly for that reply. Is he aware that the facts stated in my Question were based on letters and telegrams I have received from Mr. Kenneth Kaunda's right-hand man in the Northern Province? Does he agree that Mr. Kaunda is an outstanding and moderate African leader who has constantly preached non-violence and that every facility should be given to him in the Northern Province for him to conduct his propaganda and build his organisation?

I have a warm personal regard for Mr. Kaunda, but I must await the official reply from the Governor.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies why there are nine times as many Africans as Europeans employed in clerical occupations by the Nyasaland Government, and more Europeans than Africans employed in similar occupations by the Government of Northern Rhodesia; and whether he is satisfied with this discrepancy.

The racial distribution of those employed in clerical occupations by the Governments of Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland depends on the numbers of suitably qualified applicants from each race and naturally reflects the racial distribution of the population as a whole. In both territories Africans form a considerable majority of those holding permanent posts, and this proportion should increase as qualified Africans become available to fill posts at present occupied by Europeans on temporary terms.

Does this mean that the educational system for Africans in Nyasaland is so much better than the educational system for Africans in Northern Rhodesia, or does it mean that the ideas of partnership in Nyasaland are radically different from those in Northern Rhodesia, because it must mean one or the other?

No. If the right hon. Gentleman will look closely at the figures he will find that in Northern Rhodesia there are 912 Africans but only about 250 Europeans in permanent employment. In Nyasaland there are 950 Africans and only 40 or 50 Europeans. This largely reflects the skills available and the proportions of the races in both countries, which vary.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what has been the cost to the United Kingdom Government of the recent famines in Kenya, and Tanganyika, respectively.

As regards Kenya, Her Majesty's Government have made £295,000 available. The cost of assistance provided by the H.M. forces is not yet known. As regards Tanganyika, I can only say that the request for a grant of £300,000 mentioned in my reply to the hon. Member for Swindon (Mr. F. Noel-Baker) is still under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the frontier between the Aden Protectorates and the Yemen remain quiet; whether the relationships of Aden with the Yemen have improved; what proposals have been made in the Protectorates and Aden Colony for contingent closer associations with the Yemen; and what further progress has been made or is contemplated in constitutional advance, particularly towards the closer association of the Protectorates with the Colony.

The frontier is generally quiet and relations with the Yemen are satisfactory. My right hon. Friend has received no proposals for closer association between Aden territories and the Yemen. The Governor is continuing his discussions with Ministers from the Federation and the Colony about matters of common concern.

Arising out of that reply, and in reference to the latter part of my Question, may I ask the Minister whether in any contemplated advance constitutionally in the Aden Protectorate and the Colony, he will bear in mind the fact that the nature of the Protectorate is very different from that of the Colony, and that considerable apprehension exists among some people in the Colony lest in any kind of union they are overborne by the autocrats of the Protectorate? May I ask him, further, whether any contemplated advance in democracy is in his mind in regard to the Protectorate?

That is a question of which I should like further notification. We must proceed gradually in these plans. There are, as the hon. Gentleman knows, talks going on between the Governor and representatives from the Federation and the Colony at this moment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many Colonies have not yet instituted compulsory education; and if he will list them.

Thirty-one territories. With permission, I will circulate the list in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Is not this entirely unsatisfactory? How many of those thirty-one will have compulsory education within, say, the next five years?

I think that our first task is to provide primary education for all the children who want it, and, secondly, higher education as we can get to it. Of course, it is unsatisfactory against the standards in this country, but if I might point out some of the things done by this Government and the previous Government since 1946, I can say that no less than £54 million has been spent on education in the Colonies through C.D. and W. grants. To make another two or three points, in Africa, in Tanganyika, for instance, the total number of enrolled schoolchildren has gone up from 180,000 in 1950 to over 430,000 today, and in Kenya from 330,000 in 1950 to 730,000 today. That is considerable progress, and to denigrate it, I believe, is in the worst possible interest.

While acknowledging that progress, may I ask whether the Under-Secretary would agree that it is also true that when many of the Colonies do attain a form of self-government, there is always a definite shortage of the necessary Civil Service staff in those Colonies? Does not that prove that our educational effort both at the primary and higher level is still insufficient?

I agree that it is insufficient, but between 1950 and today we have more than doubled the number of schoolchildren in many of our Colonies.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will give the number of Colonies with no teaching training colleges within their boundaries; if he will list them; and what arrangements are made for the training of teachers for these areas.

The following areas have no teacher training colleges: Bermuda, the Windward Islands, the Virgin Islands, Montserrat, St. Kitts, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, New Hebrides and St. Helena.

If I may, I will circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT details—which are lengthy—of the steps taken by these largely island territories to deal with their individual teacher training problem.

While not necessarily denigrating the efforts of the Government in building up compulsory education, may I ask the hon. Gentleman what steps are being taken about increasing the supply of teachers in the thirty-one Territories in which there is no compulsory education?

I should be very pleased to send the hon. Gentleman a long list of the steps being taken and I should be very happy to send him detailed estimates of the type of scheme we are putting forward now.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware that official attempts to encourage industrialisation in Malta in the past three-and-a-half years have provided fewer than 600 workers with employment, but that the run-down in the defence departments continues and there are about 1,000 fewer jobs in the naval base and ship-repairing yards; why the conversion of the docks from naval to commercial purposes has been delayed, and how much public money has now been provided for Messrs. Bailey in this connection; and what practical plans he now has to safeguard the future of the Maltese economy.

New industries take some time to reach their full employment capacity, but those already in operation, or which have been approved, are expected to provide employment for over 4,000 people. Delay in the conversion of the dockyard arose in the main from the need to consider and finance a revised and enlarged plan. The company has so far received loans of approximately £2·4 million from the British Government. As regards the last part of the Question, I would draw the hon. Member's attention to the Review of the Development Plan for the Maltese Islands 1959–64, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.

In view of the inevitable time-lag, which the hon. Gentleman has frankly admitted at the beginning of his Answer, may I ask him if he is satisfied that we shall be able to bridge the gap between the naval and commercial uses of the dockyard? In this connection, has he read the very startling Report by the Public Accounts Committee of this House, which shows that Messrs. Bailey have, to use no stronger word, misapplied over £1 million of £1,200,000 advanced to them for this purpose?

I do not want to go into all the points mentioned in the Report, which has been debated by the House. What we are discussing here is the question of employment. In regard to the dockyard, I am happy to say that con- tracts will be let very shortly, and we hope that the contractors will start work about the end of this year.

Is the Minister aware that it was the intention when the transfer took place four years ago that the men who became redundant in the dockyard should be transferred to the ship-repairing yard, and that the ship-repairing yard should be transferred to the commercial undertaking? Could he tell us if any dry docks in Malta have been completed by the commercial undertaking?

There has been some delay here, but, in regard to the proportion of unemployment, the total has risen from 3,500 in December, 1958, to about 4,100. This is not unsatisfactory, considering that for the transitional stage this is a proportion of unemployment of less than 5 per cent.

Although the hon. Gentleman brushes aside the Report of the Public Accounts Committee on Messrs. Bailey's misapplication of this money, surely the fact that they used over £1 million for other purposes, and not for the purpose of development in Malta for which it was advanced to them, must have some bearing on the delay?

I do not seriously think so. It was a question of giving a grant for enlarging the size and scale of the operation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what indications he has now received of the willingness or unwillingness of the main political parties in Malta to take part in a General Election in February; and if, in order to encourage such participation, he will now affirm that it is the view of Her Majesty's Government that the people of Malta are entitled to exercise the right of self-determination, and that he will negotiate with the Maltese elected majority a date for the implementation of this right.

I would refer the hon. Member to the replies given by my right hon. Friend on the 23rd November to the hon. Members for Eton and Slough (Mr. Brockway) and Bristol, Central (Mr. Awbery), to which I have nothing to add.

As the hon. Gentleman will be aware, those replies were rather negative in character. Why do the Government always say that ultimate self-government is "not excluded", or some phrase of that kind? Cannot they make a positive affirmation of the right of the Maltese people, in this George Cross island, to the self-determination to which the Government are committed in respect of every such territory?

I feel quite certain that it would be only appropriate that I should restate what has been stated before—that the next step, and the essential step, is for us to get a representative Government in Malta. That is the next step, and, following that, I am perfectly prepared to discuss with those who are returned what the next step beyond that should be, but that is a matter for discussion with the elected Government after the forthcoming elections in Malta.

Would not the hon. Gentleman agree that the chance of getting an effective Government which is truly representative of the people of Malta depends very largely on the confidence of those who might participate that it is worth while to participate in the election, and that the functions they will have after the election are those which they wish to have? As both major parties are highly dissatisfied with the Constitution under which the elections are being held, will the Under-Secretary seriously consider at least accepting the principle of self-government for Malta before the election? Furthermore, in view of evidence that there is interference in the free conduct of elections, would he also consider sending out a Commission from this country to observe the elections from this moment on?

In reply to the first point raised by the hon. Gentleman, I repeat that this next stage is not the final stage in Malta's constitutional development. We will discuss the next stage with those who are returned and who make up the new Maltese Government. As to the second part of the hon. Gentleman's sup- plementary question, I do not believe that at this stage, although there is some intimidation on both sides, the point has been reached when we should have a commission of inquiry.

Would it not be putting the cart before the horse to invite the people of Malta to exercise the right of self-determination before the new Constitution has been brought into operation, giving, as it does, internal responsible Government? Is not the first step, and an essential one, to attempt to restore the viability of the Maltese economy so that any Constitution which the island has can be broadly and surely based?

I quite agree with my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will arrange with the Home Office for a Scotland Yard official to proceed to Basutoland to investigate the alleged kidnapping of Mr. Ganyile and two other refugees by police from the Republic of South Africa.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what was the extent and nature of the search carried out by the Basutoland police in the huts in Basutoland from which Mr. Anderson Ganyile and two colleagues were allegedly kidnapped on 26th August.

No report was received by the authorities in Basutoland until 16th September, over three weeks after the reputed date of the alleged abduction.

The immediate police investigation was further hampered by the length of time which had elapsed and by the effects of a prolonged dust storm. The police conducted a full and thorough search and removed for examination a blanket containing bloodstains. Expert investigations show that the blood on the blanket belongs to blood group A, a fairly common group, but it is not possible to deduce whether the blood was shed in late August or at some other date.

An additional point of difficulty is evidence that three persons were seen around the huts in this remote area on 10th September, that is to say after the alleged abduction and before the report was received. So far no further local evidence has come to light.

In these circumstances. I do not consider that assistance from Scotland Yard would be of value.

Nevertheless, I regard it as of paramount importance that incidents or alleged incidents on the border between Basutoland and the Republic of South Africa should be prevented and I am, therefore, taking steps to increase the strength of the Basutoland Mounted Police and notably the C.I.D. of that force.

While welcoming that last acknowledgment, may I ask the hon. Gentleman if it is not a fact that fourteen weeks have now passed since this alleged kidnapping? Whilst that is predominantly due to the extraordinary postponement of any judgment in the court of the Republic on habeas corpus, is not the hon. Gentleman also aware that there is very considerable criticism of the actions of the police in these investigations and in co-ordinating the evidence? If county police in this country can ask for the assistance of Scotland Yard, is it not desirable that less experienced police in Basutoland should also ask for the assistance of Scotland Yard in this case?

I have gone into this and I hope that what I have said today will give some reassurance and that we shall not be deflected by reports which appear to have been tendentious in some newspapers.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that his indication about the prospective strengthening of the frontier police will be warmly welcomed? Will he agree that it is vital that all the obtainable evidence should be collated? Is he aware that on 3rd October, Patrick Duncan, the son of a former Governor-General and a prominent member of the South African Liberal Party, visited this hut at Qacha's Nek and during that visit discovered in the hut bloodstained cardboard which had been used for shutters? Is he further aware that those bloodstains have been analysed by Dr. Francis Camps and that I have the analysis of that investigation here? Does not the hon. Gentleman agree that this indicates that the police may well have overlooked much vital evidence? Does he not agree, therefore, that there is a strong case for reconsidering the question of sending out a Scotland Yard officer?

No, I cannot agree. The police made a thorough investigation on 16th September and, as I said, it is not absolutely certain that some of the evidence may not have been tampered with.

Is my hon. Friend aware that there is uneasiness in more than one quarter of this House? While associating myself with much that has been said, may I at the same time urge upon him not to regard this incident as closed?

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consultations he is holding with the wholesale meat trade concerning prices in the trade.

My Department is in frequent touch with the meat trade, but I am having no special consultations at present.

Does not my right hon. Friend agree, in view of the very unsatisfactory situation which exists when producers' prices fall very heavily and there is no reflection in the retail price to the housewife, that urgent investigations should be made on his part to find a solution to this problem so that the prices can be adjusted quickly, to the housewives' benefit? Would not that be very advantageous?

Wholesale prices have been very low and were very low in the earlier part of this year. They have recovered somewhat in recent months. As my hon. Friend is aware, I have no control over retail prices.

Should not the right hon. Gentleman look into this, because there has been a tremendous fall in wholesale prices of fatstock in the last couple of years, yet there has been no reflection at all in retail prices, not only for prime cuts, but for cuts of coarse meat? Coarse meat is as dear as ever, yet wholesale prices have fallen drastically.

It is not correct to say that there has been a price fall over the last two years, though the price of meat has varied considerably. There was a considerable price fall in the spring and summer of this year. It is not correct to say that there has been no reduction in retail prices. There has been some considerable reduction—particularly of the cheaper cuts of meat—although I would agree that it has not followed directly on the fall in wholesale prices.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will initiate an inquiry into the effect upon agriculture, public health and the ecology of the country of all chemicals used in agriculture.

The Research Study Group on Toxic Chemicals in Agriculture and Food Storage has been conducting an inquiry of this kind over the last eighteen months and its Report was published two days ago. As I said at the time in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Lowestoft (Mr. Prior), the Government accept the Group's conclusions that the protective measures now in force are generally successful, but that more fundamental and applied research is needed into various problems in this field.

Whilst thanking my right hon. Friend for that reply, may I ask if he is aware that on 28th June this year the Sixth Report of the Estimates Committee recommended that such an inquiry ought to be established as soon as possible and that there is a great deal of concern in the country generally about the long-term effects of the build-up of chemicals in our soil?

I shall comment on two points. First, we have gone a long way since June in this matter. Secondly, I shall be sending a reply on the Report of the Estimates Committee in the course of the next week.

Will my right hon. Friend press on with the research which was recommended in the Report of the Study Group? Will he also bear in mind that the Report of the Study Group seems to indicate that on the whole the danger to animal life of chemicals already used in agriculture has tended to be rather exaggerated? Will he be careful not to put any undue brake on the technical advance in agriculture which has accompanied the use of these sprays?

This Report was most valuable. It stressed how important these chemicals were to agriculture and also stated that generally our arrangements were satisfactory, but there were certain fields in which there were gaps both in fundamental and applied research. We intend to press on with this.

Is the Report available in the Vote Office?

Copies of the Report have been placed in the Library.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to revise the notification scheme regarding chemicals used in agriculture.

This was one of the points raised by the Select Committee on Estimates in its Sixth Report. My reply to this will be sent to the Select Committee early next week. I am sure that my hon. Friend will understand that I do not wish to anticipate that reply.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what further action he will take to reduce the number of casualties to wild life due to the use of deleterious chemicals; and what progress has been made in producing chemicals of equal agricultural efficacy which have no lethal effects.

The Research Study Group has reported that very few of the many chemicals introduced into the United Kingdom since the war have been shown to have adverse effects on wild birds and mammals. Cereal seed dressings containing aldrin, dieldrin and heptachlor have caused casualties in serious numbers and I hope that the restrictions on their use, which I announced in the House on 3rd July, will prevent this in the future. My Department will, however, intensify its survey of wild life casualties, as recommended by the Research Study Group, and consider after next season, with the interests concerned, whether any further action is necessary.

The development of new agricultural chemicals is undertaken by the manufacturing industry, who are fully conscious of the need for equally efficient but less toxic chemicals.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that we are beginning to get bird casualties again at this early period? Is he also aware that there is now evidence to show that where certain chemicals were not used there were no casualties?

Yes, Sir. There is no doubt that these chemicals have a serious effect on wild life. Arrangements have been made as from 1st January to ensure that they will not be used in the spring, and only in the autumn in order to combat a particular form of pest which attacks wheat. These arrangements will come into effect this coming spring. Our experience in the past has shown that although there are certain casualties to wild life in the autumn they are not serious in numbers nor anything like what happened when the chemicals were used in the spring. But they will not be used this spring.

My right hon. Friend will be aware that the Select Committee on Estimates took a serious view on this matter. May we assume that his answers indicate that he and his Department intend to assume a greater measure of responsibility for the protection of wild life? May we also assume, while appreciating the great difficulties that face him, that the approach of his Department to this matter, which was somewhat leisurely originally, will now be one of considerable urgency?

We have been very much helped, as my hon. Friend knows, by the Sanders Report which, as I have said, we intend to implement.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has formed of the cost of keeping an index of claims for compensation for fowl pest and for checking future claims with this index.

The annual cost of keeping a central aphabetical index of poultry-keepers who receive compensation for fowl pest would be about £150. An index of previous payments is unnecessary in order to check the validity of current payments, since compensation payments ale normally based on valuations made at the time of slaughter.

Is not that reply extraordinary when compared with the reply the hon. Gentleman gave me on 6th November about the inordinate cost of keeping a check on such claims? May I refer the hon. Gentleman to a statement he made that one claim alone amounted to £⅓ million? Is the hon. Gentleman aware that it has been suggested that that claimant got £250,000 last year and a substantial sum the year before? Does not the hon. Gentleman think that this is something that requires a thorough investigation?

My replies were not inconsistent, because the previous Question referred to making up an index of past claims. The reply today refers to the annual cost of keeping an index of future claims. It is possible to check back on any individual case where it appears to serve a useful purpose, but each claim must be decided on its individual merits.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he proposes to take to control the movement of cattle suffering from brucellosis and the prevent the spread of undulant fever by the milk they produce.

Our line of attack on brucellosis abortus is by way of calf vaccination. More than 94 per cent. of milk sold by retail in England and Wales is heat treated and medical officers of health have power to control the disposal of infected or suspect milk. Movement controls beyond those laid down in the Epizootic Abortion Order, 1922, would not, I think, be practicable or useful at the present time.

Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that this vaccination does not prevent the infected cattle being sold? Will he consider, as an alternative method of dealing with this, the introduction of a simple one-Clause Bill to prohibit the sale of raw milk? If the Leader of the House will not introduce such a Bill will the Parliamentary Secretary support me if I introduce one?

The second part of the hon. Gentleman's supplementary question is for the Leader of the House rather than for me. With regard to the first part, the hon. Gentleman will notice that my right hon. Friend is replying to another Question on this subject later.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will make a further statement concerning the recent Food and Agriculture Organisation Conference in Rome, giving in particular more details of the Freedom from Hunger Campaign and the $100 million fund for the disposal of food surpluses to the developing countries.

The conference reaffirmed its support for the fine work now being done by the Freedom from Hunger Campaign Committees. I will send my hon. Friend a copy of the Conference report on this item as soon as it is available.

The conference also passed a resolution proposing a World Food Programme to be run jointly by F.A.O. and the United Nations. It is designed to help less-developed countries by means of food surpluses, services and cash. This proposal is to be discussed by the United Nations next week. I am arranging for a copy of the resolution to be placed in the Library of the House.

While thanking my right hon. Friend for that reply, may I ask him to bear in mind the utmost importance of safeguarding our existing bilateral channels of trade for these products, so that they are not disturbed by any multilateral arrangements which may be arrived at at this forthcoming conference?

I agree with my hon. Friend that this is a matter which we must keep very much in mind when discussing this subject.

Does the right hon. Gentleman recall that a few weeks ago we were storing up dried milk in the event of radioactivity being harmful to liquid milk? Would it not be possible now to distribute that dried milk to the under-developed countries, since it is a perishable commodity and they will be able to use it whereas it will only go to waste if it is stored here?

No, Sir. We made the arrangements to ensure that, if the need arose, there would be sufficient dried milk. That was all.