asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will give the amounts of the grants in aid for the past five years receivable by boards of guardians in England and Wales in respect of fixed grants under The Local Government Act, 1888, fixed grants under The Agricultural Rates Act, 1896, the per capita grants in respect of lunatics in asylums, and payments in respect of teachers in Poor Law schools, and in repayment of school fees for children sent from workhouses to public elementary schools?

My right hon. Friend has asked me to reply to this question. It is assumed that the Grants-in-Aid referred to are those made to boards of guardians under Sections 24, 26, and 43 (1) (a) of the Local Government Act, 1888, and under the Agricultural Rates Act, 1896. The amounts of those grants for the last five years for which the figures are available were as follows:—1904–5, £2,366,201; 1905–6, £2,410,256; 1906–7, £2,391,554; 1907–8, £2,416,524; 1908–9, £2,470,476.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Scotland Yard authorities enforce any periodical inspection of the steering-gear of motor omnibuses after they have been licensed; and, if not, whether he will institute some such form of inspection?

The steering-gear of motor omnibuses is the subject of constant inspection by the licensing authority.

asked the President of the Board of Trade, if he will issue a Return showing the total number of males and females in the United King- dom, the total number of males, and the total number of females, according to the Census Returns of 1911?

The figures required are shown in Table XI., page 116, of the preliminary report of the Census recently issued. The total population of the United Kingdom was there given as 45,216,665, of whom 21,942,883 were males and 23,273,782 females.

asked the Postmaster-General whether his declared intention of taking over the whole of the staff of the National Telephone Company includes the senior officers of the company; and, if not, whether, in view of the admitted experience and ability of such officers and the importance in the public interest of continuing a satisfactory management of the telephone system, he is prepared to reconsider the matter?

When I said that I would extend the promise which Lord Stanley read in the House of Commons, on 9th August, 1905, by agreeing to take over members of the National Telephone Company's staff, even although they had had less than two years' service with the company, it was not my intention to extend it also by promising to take over officers in receipt of £700 per annum and upwards who were specifically excluded from Lord Stanley's undertaking. No doubt among those officers there will be some not near the age of retirement whose services would be of value to the department, and I shall carefully consider any proposals they may make to me to enter the Post Office at salaries bearing proper relations to those drawn by senior officers already serving in the Department.