asked if the right hon. Gentleman can state when the Amendments which are being considered and prepared by the Scottish Office with a view to adopting the Insurance Bill to the special conditions of Scotland are to be placed on the Paper; and whether he can arrange as soon as this is done to have them circulated as a separate document to each of the Scottish Members?

As my hon. Friend is aware, some of the Amendments which have already been made to the National Insurance Bill have an important bearing on the special conditions of Scotland. Others of the character referred to are under consideration, but I am not in a position to name a date for their final settlement and the placing of them on the Paper. The suggestion in the last part of the question will receive consideration.

Does the right hon. Gentleman consider it right that in regard to Amendments to be proposed the Scotch people should only have cognisance of them about six weeks before the passing of the Bill? Is it right?

The Government have to consider the Bill as a whole. There will be consideration of the Amendments proposed.

I beg to inform the right hon. Gentleman that I shall do my best to turn the Government out on that point.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the fact that, in three full Parliamentary days devoted to the Second Reading stage of the National Insurance. Bill, only thirty-three Members were able to take part in the Debate, and that the average duration of each speech made on that occasion was as nearly as possible three-quarters of an hour, and that almost 300 Members of the present House have intimated their desire to see the length of individual speech curtailed, he will, before adopting the strict form of Closure as a recognised method for expediting the progress of Government Bills, grant a day before the close of the Session and ascertain the opinion of nonofficial Members of this Parliament.

Personally, I am and have long been in favour of a curtailment of the length of speeches. I do not see my way in the present Sittings to give a day to the subject, but I shall be glad to receive and consider evidence of the general opinion of nonofficial Members.

asked whether an approved society will have to give a surrender value on behalf of every insured person belonging to a non-approved society affiliated to the said approved society?

An insured person who does not belong to an approved society would be a deposit contributor. Clause 25, providing for the payment of transfer values, applies only to members of approved societies.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how the amount is made up of 5s. 1¼d. per head of persons insured which he has recently stated to be the average cost of accident insurance administration in Germany in connection with the woollen industries of that country?

The figure given represents not the cost of accident insurance administration in Germany, but the total expenditure per head of all persons insured incurred by the trade associations in which the woollen industries are insured under the Accident Insurance Law, the cost of administration being included. The figure is taken from the annual Report of the German Insurance Office.

asked whether the weekly payments called disablement benefit will be payable only to those insured persons who are for the time being completely disabled and unable to earn any wages; and whether any disablement benefit will be payable to an insured person who through advancing age, enfeebled health, or other causes is unable to earn wages except such as are insufficient to provide for his maintenance.

Perhaps I may be permitted to refer the hon. and learned Member to the Debate on Clause 8 (1) (c) in Committee, in the course of which my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer explained that the intention was to follow the existing practice of friendly societies, and promised to accept an Amendment on report to make this clear.

Would it not be for the convenience of the House if the right hon. Gentleman gave the original answer to the question.

No.

Would it not be simpler if we were informed that there would not be any invalidity pension under this Bill?

Am I right in supposing that there would be no disablement benefit unless the insured person is unable to earn wages?

I think the hon. and learned Member had better wait and see the Amendment.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that these answers by reference on matters of great public importance are exceedingly unsatisfactory?

asked whether, as regards those persons who at the time when the National Insurance Bill comes into operation are engaged in any of the excepted employments specified in Part II. of the First Schedule to the Bill and therein headed (b), (d), (e), (f), and (g), but at a subsequent date cease to be engaged in such excepted employments and become engaged in any of the employments specified in Part I. of the First Schedule, such persons will be entitled to become and bound to become insured persons under the Act upon payment of the contributions prescribed by Clause 4 and Schedule II. of the Bill; and, if so, whether the reduced rates of sickness benefit and maternity benefit to be fixed for such persons by the Insurance Commissioners under Clause 9 (4) of the Bill will be calculated on the basis of the age at which such persons respectively become employed contributors, or on some other and what basis?

A person in the position described will be compulsorily insured and his age at entry will be taken into account in fixing his reduced rates of benefit.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, on behalf of the Government, he proposes to put on the Notice Paper Amendments to the National Insurance Bill dealing with the position of those employed in Government workshops and factories; and whether, in the event of the answer being in the negative, he will state under what Clause of the Bill their position can be discussed?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. The inclusion or exclusion of the persons referred to can be discussed on Schedule I.

asked when the Amendments to the National Insurance Bill affecting Ireland will be placed on the Notice Paper?

My right hon. Friend hopes to take shortly any Government Amendments affecting Ireland which may be necessary.

Can the right hon. Gentleman give us any indication of when the day allocated for the discussion will arrive?

I am not at present in a position to do so.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury, what arrangements, if any, are to be made for officially reporting verbatim proceedings in Standing Committee on Part II. of the National Insurance Bill?

Perhaps the Noble Lord will repeat his question on Wednesday.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make the necessary financial arrangements to enable an official report of the proceedings of the Standing Committee, which is to deal with Part II. of the National Insurance Bill, to be prepared and circulated daily to Members of the House?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which I have just given to a question on the same subject by the Noble Lord the Member for the Newton Division of Lancashire.

We have heard that the Committee is going to be set up on Thursday next. In that case, will not Wednesday be rather late to know whether there is going to be an official report of it?

I beg to ask the Prime Minister whether he will recommend to the House such alterations or additions to the Standing Orders as will permit an Official Report of the procedings of Standing Committee B to be circulated daily to all Members of the House whilst the Standing Committee is engaged in discussing Part II. of the National Insurance Bill?

As has been stated already, the matter is under consideration. I will give an answer on Wednesday.

Can the right hon. Gentleman inform us when the Committee will sit?

On Thursday, I hope.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is now in a position to lay before the House the conditions governing the subscriptions to be paid and the benefits to be received by sailors and soldiers under the National Insurance Bill; will he state in what way the benefits that soldiers and sailors are to receive under the Bill during their period of service differ from the benefits they receive in present circumstances; what benefits will accrue to them on leaving the Service, and what arrangements will they have to make in order to obtain these benefits; what proportion of the insurance premium will be borne by the soldier or sailor, the Admiralty, the War Office, and the Exchequer respectively; and what will the contributions of each amount to while the soldier or sailor is in the service of the State, and after the soldier or sailor has left the service of the State?

I am not in a position to make a statement on this subject to-day, but my right hon. Friend hopes to table Amendments to Clause 36 shortly.

Will the right hon. Gentleman tell the House what will be the position of the soldier or sailor who is pensioned for disablement, or who is partially disabled, supposing the pension exceeds the amount he would receive under the Insurance Bill, with regard to the money he has paid every week before he was disabled?

I must ask the hon. Member to wait until the Amendment is on the Paper.

asked whether men who have reached the age of seventy will be excluded from the sick and disablement benefits of the societies in which they are now insured and to the funds of which they have contributed for a considerable number of years, on the ground that they will then be eligible for old age pensions; whether he will say if that is the intention of the Bill; and, if so, what is the position of men who have Civil Service pensions amounting to a sum that renders them ineligible for old age pensions, are these men to be deprived of the fruits of their thrift and forethought by the withholding of the benefits for which they have paid, in some cases for half a century, and which were promised them by the societies at the time of joining?

The answer to the first two parts of the question is in the negative, and the third does not arise.

asked whether local authorities who have already borrowed money to erect sanatorium buildings will be entitled to be reimbursed out of the moneys set apart by the National Insurance Bill for the erection of such buildings on the same terms as those local authorities who have not yet taken action?

Grants under Clause 47 can only be made for the purpose of the provision of sanatoria and other institutions, and not for the recoupment of expenses already incurred by local authorities.

asked if a society that becomes approved under the proposed county pool will be allowed to withdraw from the pool when it has obtained 5,000 members if its expenditure has been less than that of other societies in the pool, and, if so, if any conditions will be attached to such withdrawal; will a society be allowed to withdraw from a county pool for the purpose of amalgamation with another society outside the pool; and will a society be allowed to reimburse itself the cost of medical examination in addition to the amount allowed for ordinary cost of management?

Societies will not be included in a county pool if they have more than 5,000 members at the time when the valuation takes place. The answer to the second question is in the affirmative. Under the Bill the reply to the last question is in the negative.

asked if dental attention, including the supply of artificial teeth, will be allowed as medical benefit if a medical attendant under the National Insurance Bill certifies that illness arises from septic teeth and gums, and that he, the medical attendant, cannot do anything further for the insured person unless his teeth are properly attended to; and will a company which has been proved to have been guilty of fraud be allowed to establish an approved society?

With regard to the first part of the question, the matter will be one for the decision of the local health committee, subject to the regulations of the Insurance Commissioners. With regard to the second, the Insurance Commissioners may, on sufficient grounds, withhold or withdraw approval from a society or separate section of a society.

asked what provision there is for deposit contributors in the Highlands and Islands living at great distances from any medical officer receiving adequate consideration?

The local health committees, on which the deposit contributors will be represented, will be responsible for providing the benefits to which the deposit contributors are entitled. The proviso to Sub-clause (2) of Clause 32 was specially inserted to enable the local committees to deal with deposit contributors separately in such cases.

Will the right hon. Gentleman say how the money is to be found?

asked (1) whether any, and what, estimate has been made as to the number of Insurance Commissioners to be appointed by the Treasury in the event of the National Insurance Bill passing into law, and as to the total cost of the salaries or remuneration to be paid to them; and (2) whether any, and what, estimate has been made as to the number of officers, inspectors, referees, and servants to be appointed by the Insurance Commissioners, with the approval of the Treasury, in the event of the National Insurance Bill passing into law, and as to the total cost of the salaries or remuneration to be paid to them?

I do not think I can usefully add anything as yet to my replies to the hon. Member for Plymouth on 5th July last and to the Noble Lord the Member for the Newton Division on the 4th July last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he proposes to include among the Insurance Commissioners persons of special experience in the work of the great permanent friendly societies, of the dividing and Holloway societies, and of the industrial insurance societies; and will he include any person of special experience in matters affecting the interests of women workers?

It is not possible to give any undertaking at the present time as to the qualifications which may be found desirable in the Insurance Commissioners.

asked whether any and what, estimate has been made as to the number of the Advisory Committees to be appointed by the Insurance Commisioners in the event of the National Insurance Bill passing into law; whether the members of such Advisory Committees will be remunerated; and, if so, what the total cost of such remuneration is estimated to be and from what source such remuneration is to be provided?

The number of members of the Advisory Committee cannot be estimated until the Insurance Commissioners have decided the interests to be represented and the extent of the representation to be assigned severally to them. It is not intended that they shall be remunerated.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say how it is possible to arrive at an estimate of the amount of benefit to be administered under the Bill when you cannot give an estimate of the cost of administration?

An approximate estimate has been given.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that a Return as to licensed premises in England, Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, in continuation of Parliamentary Paper, No. 408, of Session 1902, ordered by the House of Commons on 19th October, 1909, on the Motion of the hon. Member for Newry, has not yet been printed; whether he is aware that Parliamentary Paper, No. 408, of Session 1902, was printed nine months from the date on which it was ordered, being ordered on 18th March, 1902, and printed on 19th December, 1902; and if he can explain why the Treasury have allowed an interval of two years to elapse without complying with the Order of this House in reference to the Order of 19th October, 1909?

This Return is now in the press, and will be issued in three weeks or a month from now. I regret the delay which has occurred, but the Return is very bulky, and takes a long time to prepare even in normal times—for instance, the Return of 1902, to which the hon. Member refers, though ordered by the House, and ordered to be printed on the dates mentioned, was not issued till 13th June, 1903, or fifteen months after the original order. As stated in answer to the hon. Member on 20th February last, the ordinary work of the Customs and Excise Department has been particularly severe in the last two years, and it has only been possible to undertake this Return by overtime work.

asked whether the right hon. Gentleman's attention has been called to the condition of the roads on the east side of Regent's Park and to the condition of the wooden palings on the same side of the park, and to the fact that the roads in Regent's Park are kept in a worse condition than in any other park in the Metropolis; and, if so, what action is to be taken to reduce the danger involved to persons using those roads?

The roads round Regent's Park running from Gloucester Gate along the south side to Hanover Gate are maintained by the Crown Estate Paving Commissioners and not by the Commissioners of Woods. The Paving Commissioners are not a public department, but I am given to understand that, after careful experiments, they have now decided to reconstruct the surface of the roads with a special kind of tar macadam and that the work will be put in hand as soon as possible. Any question with regard to the palings should be addressed to the First Commissioner of Works.

Can the right hon. Gentleman state to whom the Crown Estate Paving Commissioners are responsible, and whether there is any method by which their conduct can be brought under the review of the House?

I will inquire into the matter.

asked whether the Commissioners of Woods and Forests receive a surplus over and above the amount which they have to pay to the Treasury; and, if so, whether they will consider the desirability of keeping Regent's Park in a proper state rather than accumulating and investing surplus moneys?

During the continuance of the present Civil List arrangements the Commissioners of Woods pay over to the Exchequer annually the whole of their net income, subject to the retention of a small working balance. Any receipts which are of the nature of capital are carried to a separate account, and subsequently invested in accordance with the provisions of various Acts of Parliament. There is, therefore, no surplus of the kind described by the hon. Member; and in any case the Commissioners, as such, have no responsibility with regard to the general up-keep of Regent's Park.

asked how many Members of the House have received their salaries for the quarters of June and September; whether any junior Member of the Government, not a Minister of the Crown, has been paid a salary as a Member of this House; whether a Charity Commissioner or an Ecclesiastical Commissioner, in receipt of remuneration as such, has been also paid a salary as Member; and what is the position of any honourable Member who is in receipt of a political pension?

Orders for payment of salaries for the quarters ended 30th June and 30th September have been sent to all Members entitled to them, i.e., to all Members not receiving salaries as members of the Government or as Officers of the House. Ecclesiastical Commissioners receive salaries as Members, their official salaries (if any) not being paid out of public moneys. The Charity Commissioner who sits in the House receives no salary as Commissioner. A Member in receipt of a political pension receives salary as Member but the amount is deducted from his pension, as provided under the Official Pensions Act, 1870.

Can the right hon. Gentleman state how many Members have received their salaries in the sense of having sent the receipts into the bank?

That is the subject of a subsequent question.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say why the two Members of the House of Commons who are advocates depute in Scotland do not receive their salaries?

I should like notice of that question.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Members of the House of Commons have returned the warrants to the Treasury for their salaries or expressed a desire that in future they shall not receive salaries as Members of Parliament?

One Member who has vacated his seat and four present Members.

Would it be possible for the House to be supplied with the names of the hon. Members who have decided to retain their amateur status?

asked the hon. Member for Southampton, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether the Government has considered the recommendation in the First Report of the Historical Monuments Commission (Hertfordshire), in which the members call attention to the fact that cases are occurring where it is desirable to deal at once with imperilled monuments of historic importance, and in which they express the opinion that the time has come when such cases should be dealt with by a Government Department acting with the assistance of a permanent advisory board; and, in that case, what action they propose to take?

The recommendation of the Historical Monuments Commission has not escaped the attention of His Majesty's Government; they are not, however in a position at present to make any statement on the subject.

May I take it that the Government have the matter under consideration, and that it will not be lost sight of?

The First Commissioner is very anxious to do all he can to preserve historical monuments, but, of course, the whole subject presents enormous difficulties.

asked when the design for the memorial to King Edward is expected to be submitted to the Government by the memorial committee in London, and when the question of the site will be taken into consideration?

The memorial committee is to meet on 3rd November, and until that meeting has taken place it is hardly possible to fix the date on which the design will be submitted to the Government. If the hon. Member will refer to the replies given in this House on 7th July and 8th August he will see that the First Commissioner has promised to exhibit the plans in this House as soon as they are ready.

In allocating the time of the Session, will the Government bear in mind the promise made that the House would be consulted before the site is decided upon?

That is not for me to say. I am sure the Government will remember all its promises.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether on the 18th September last a submarine arrived in tow of a tug at Portsmouth Harbour in a sinking condition; that the submarine was slung ready for lifting, but before it was possible to lift her and tow her into the submarine depot she was under water for three nights and three days; whether the salvage plant for submarines in the German Navy could have dealt with the accident in a very much shorter space of time; and whether, in view of the fact that these accidents to submarines generally occur when the officers and crew are on board he will see that our salvage plant is at least equal in efficiency to that of the German Navy?

The hon. Gentleman appears to be under a misapprehension. There was no question of an accident, and therefore no necessity for immediate salvage. The boat was obsolete and had been the subject of experiment. As regards the last part of the question, the Admiralty has for some time past given very careful consideration to the problem of the most effective method of salvage.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he has received representations regarding the damage done by Foreign fishing vessels to the gear of British fishermen in the English Channel; and what steps he proposes to take in the matter?

Representations have been received at the Admiralty on this subject. The protection of British fishing vessels is a matter constantly engaging the attention of the Admiralty, and any representations are carefully considered. It does not appear that the patrol at present carried out by the fishery cruisers is inadequate, and no alteration of the patrol arrangements is contemplated.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that recently a trawler was entirely disabled and the whole of its gear taken away by a French vessel?

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been called to the damage caused by French fishing vessels to our own fishermen's gear in the English Channel; and whether he will take steps to see that the area from Berryhead to the Lizard is specially patrolled during the months of September, October, and November, in order that the rights of British fishermen may be sufficiently protected?

I fear I cannot usefully add anything to the answer on the subject referred to in the question given to the hon. Members for Devonport and Torquay on Thursday last, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy.

asked the President of the Local Government Board if, when a person over seventy years of age applies for an old age pension owing to a breakdown in health, the pension committee have not power, during the time inquiries are being made, to make the pension retrospective to the time when the application was made; and, if so, will he take steps to remedy this state of affairs, which presses on those who have suffered owing to their own industry by continuing work after seventy years of age?

An old age pension cannot be made to take effect from a date earlier than that specified in Section 5 (2) of the Act of 1908—namely, the first Friday after the claim has been allowed, or, in the case of a claim provisionally allowed, the first Friday after the day on which the claimant will become entitled.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that in many cases pensions which are applied for owing to a breakdown in health are not obtained for two months, whereas if the applicants had not been so industrious they would have received their pensions months before?

We do our best, and the pension officers are advised to do the same, and to see there is no unnecessary delay. We could not concede the point pressed by the hon. Gentleman.

asked whether the necessary printed forms of claim, etc., under the Old Age Pensions Act, 1911, have yet been issued to the Inland Revenue and Post Office Departments in Ireland; whether claims for pensions, or increases of pensions, under Section 2 (2) of the Act addressed to Inland Revenue officers in Mayo county are withheld from the local pension sub-committee because they have not been made on official forms, which are not yet available; and whether steps will be taken to ensure that deserving claimants shall suffer no loss by the delay in issuing such forms?

It is expected that the printed forms of claim will be issued to the Post Office in Ireland this week. With regard to the latter part of the question I will make inquiries and inform the hon. Member of the result.

asked why the Local Government Board disallowed a pension granted by the local pension sub-committee to Mrs. M'Manus, of Aughamula-doney, county Fermanagh, on the grounds that she was not the statutory age, although she produced an official record showing that she was over seventy years old?

No official record was produced by Mrs. M'Manus, but she submitted an old book, published in 1843, containing an entry purporting to show that she was born in 1837. The entry appeared to have been made some years after 1843, and as claimant's age was given in the Census Return of 1851 as five years, and no other satisfactory evidence as to her age was forthcoming, the Local Government Board were not satisfied that she had attained the statutory age.

asked the Chief Secretary if he can state on what grounds an old age pension of 5s. per week, granted by the local pension sub-committee to James Gorman, of Treenmore, Dromore, county Tyrone, was reduced by the Local Government Board on appeal to 3s. per week; and can he furnish the details of the pension officer's estimate of the income of Gorman, whose only means of livelihood is a small holding of inferior mountain land, for which he pays a yearly rent of £3 12s.?

The Local Government Board allowed James Gorman a pension of three shillings a week only as they considered his means were not less than £23 12s. 6d. a year. He is the tenant of a farm of twelve acres of land of moderate quality, carrying crops of potatoes, oats and hay, together with a cow, calf and poultry. The Board are not bound by a pension officer's estimate of income.

asked why the Local Government Board on appeal disallowed an old age pension granted by the Louisburgh, county Mayo, pension sub-committee to Ellen Sammon, née Gordon, of Askelane, Louisburgh, who, being unable to procure evidence of the date of her birth, produced a certificate that she was married in April 1861, over fifty years ago, which, with the evidence of several old persons, satisfied the committee that she was over seventy years old; and what further evidence the Local Government Board require in such cases?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to a similar question asked by him on the 7th August last.

asked the number of persons who have emigrated from this country to the United States and to the British dominions oversea, respectively, for the years 1909, 1910, and 1911, up to 30th September?

According to the Returns issued by the Board of Trade the numbers of emigrants from this country are as follows:—

Does the right hon. Gentleman mean by this country the United Kingdom or England only?

No, the United Kingdom.

asked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture whether an organisation known as the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society had applied for a grant from the Development Commissioners, and whether his department had reported upon the same; whether he had withdrawn the grant from this society in the month of January, 1908, on the publication of very remarkable disclosures; and what steps he now intends to take in the matter?

The answer to the first and second questions on the Paper is in the affirmative. The Irish Agricultural Organisation Society applied to the Development Commissioners for a Grant-in-Aid of their work, and the Department, in compliance with the Statute, reported upon the application. In reply to the third question, I have to say that for eight years prior to the date named in the question the society drew £29,000 by way of grant from the Department's funds. After full discussion, and with the concurrence of the Council of Agriculture, and by a Minute of the Agricultural Board amounting almost to a direction, the grant was withdrawn. I informed the Development Commissioners in July last that, in view of the circumstances attendant upon the withdrawal of the Department's grant, I could not comply with their suggestion to aid in reconstituting the society with a view to a grant being made without the matter being considered by the Council and by the Agricultural Board. Meetings of these two statutory bodies have, therefore, been convened for 16th and 17th November next. After these meetings have been held I shall be able to state the decision of the Department.

What are the remarkable disclosures referred to in the question?

That would be rather an involved story, entirely unsuited to question and answer in the House.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that great dissatisfaction exists in Ireland owing to the withdrawal of the grant?

I am aware of nothing of the kind.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether representations were not made to him to that effect in the recent election at North Tyrone?

The answer is in the negative. Not a single representation of dissatisfaction was made to me.

asked whether the question of the cultivation of beet in Ireland is engaging the attention of the Department of Agriculture; and, if so, what steps, if any, it is proposed to take in regard to the matter?

The matter of the cultivation of beet in Ireland has frequently engaged the attention of the Department, whose views on the subject have been stated in reply to numerous Parliamentary questions. In the light of new facts which have come to our notice, further inquiries are being made, and I will communicate with the hon. Member on the subject in due course.

Is it not a fact that beet can be successfully and profitably grown in Ireland?

It can undoubtedly be grown in Ireland, but whether it can be profitably grown is not known.

Might I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he could give us any information as to the experiments that have already been made in this direction in Ireland?

I should be glad of notice of that question, but it would involve some inquiry.

Will the right hon. Gentleman direct his attention to the experiments recently made in the county of Norfolk in this country and ascertain whether such experiments have been successful or not?

The whole question is being inquired into.

Will the right hon. Gentleman be good enough to extend his inquiries so as to include an account of the experiments already made in Ireland?

We are quite familiar with the experiments that have been made. I have said there is no question as to the possibility of beet being grown. The whole question is one whether it can be profitably grown or not.

asked the Prime Minister whether he has received a memorial from the Employers' Parliamentary Council, signed by sixty-five associations of employers connected with various industries in the United Kingdom, calling his attention and the attention of His Majesty's Government to the evils which have arisen in consequence of The Trades Disputes Act, 1906, and to the present combination of labour unions for the purpose of promoting national strikes; and whether he will inform the House of the intentions of His Majesty's Government with regard to the matters urged by the memorialists, namely, that picketing should either be rigorously suppressed or the number of pickets should be limited to two, and such pickets should be required to wear a distinguishing badge and to attend only where a person carries on business; that unions, whether of workmen or masters, should be subjected to the ordinary law of the land, and made responsible, like all other classes of the community, for their actions; and that a federation of unions for the purpose of paralysing the country by means of a general strike or lock-out, throwing all industries and communications into disorder and stopping the food supplies of the nation, should be suppressed as an unlawful combination and immediately so proclaimed?

The memorial referred to and the question of the hon. Member raise a number of debatable points, as to which I can only say at present that the question whether, and, if so, in what respects, the present law affecting these matters requires amendment is receiving the attention of the Government.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he will consider the propriety of appointing a Committee or a small Commission to inquire into this very important question?

No, Sir.

asked the Prime-Minister whether his attention has been called to the recommendation of the Railway Commission to the effect that members of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants should not be permitted to incite or coerce by threats, or by any form of intimidation, men who desire to give their labour; and whether he proposes to introduce legislation to carry into effect the recommendation of the Commission?

I have seen the passage in the Report to which the hon. Member refers. It does not mention the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, nor does it recommend legislation. What the Commissioners say is that, in their opinion, strikers should not be permitted to incite or coerce by threats, or by any form of intimidation, men who desire to give their labour. Coercion by threats and intimidation are offences which can be punished under the existing law, and, though I am aware of the difficulties which are sometimes encountered in prosecutions, I think the law can be, and ought to be, enforced.

If the existing law is adequate, why is it not put into operation?

It is not the inadequacy of the law that constitutes the difficulty; it is the impossibility of procuring evidence.

Has the attention of the right hon. Gentleman been drawn to the statement of the Recorder of Dublin, in sentencing a man to six months for intimidation, that the present law was amply sufficient for every purpose?

I have not seen that statement, but I believe the law to be sufficient.

Does the same law apply to the North of Ireland trade unions?

asked the Prime Minister whether he will state the reasons why His Majesty's Government advised His Majesty the King to omit from his recent Proclamation of Neutrality the especial warning against breaking any blockade lawfully established and against carrying officers, soldiers, despatches, arms, ammunition, military stores or material, or any article or articles considered to be contraband of war according to the law or modern usages of nations for the use or service of either belligerent Power; whether, seeing that this especial warning was given in the Proclamation of Neutrality of February, 1904, the omission of such warning on the present occasion is intended to signify that His Majesty's Privy Council take a different view of the duties of the King's subjects from that taken seven years ago; and whether it is to be understood that there is now no longer any harm in breaking blockade or in carrying contraband of war to belligerents?

The language used in the King's Proclamation of Neutrality, issued on the 3rd instant, was designed with a view to bringing it into closer harmony with modern requirements and usage than did the phraseology employed in similar instruments issued in past years. The carriage of contraband to a belligerent is not an offence against English law, but is undertaken subject to the usual risk of capture, and the penalties attaching thereto. The same principle applies to breaches, or attempted breaches, of blockade. That being so, it appeared to His Majesty's Government no longer necessary to state that British subjects concerned in such operations would thereby necessarily incur the high displeasure of the Sovereign, and the King was accordingly advised to omit the phraseology referred to from his recent Proclamation. No inference should, however, be drawn from this change of wording that British subjects are no longer liable to the pains and penalties recognised by the Law of Nations if, at their own risk, they embark on such transactions.

Can the hon. Gentleman say why it was put in former Proclamations?

I cannot give an answer to that question.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that His Majesty's subjects were specially warned against any breach of blockade and the carriage of contraband in all proclamations of neutrality issued by this country in 1859, 1866, 1870, 1877, 1898, and 1904?

The hon. Member is giving information, not asking for it.

I am asking the hon. Gentleman whether his attention has been called to that fact.

Perhaps the hon. Member will put his question on the Paper?

May I ask whether His Majesty's Government do not consider it desirable to warn British subjects of the consequences which follow from a breach of blockade and the carriage of contraband?

The hon. Member should give notice of important international questions of that sort.

asked the Prime Minister if his attention has been called to a speech delivered by Sir Edward Strachey, at Shepton Mallet, on 18th September, advocating the purchase of large quantities of land by county councils with a view to the councils becoming landlords not only of small holders but of tenants of more than fifty acres; and whether this proposal represents the policy of His Majesty's Government?

I have seen a report of the speech referred to in the question, and I gather from it that Sir Edward Strachey, in the statement quoted, was only expressing his own views on the subject.

Was the advocacy of these views the reason for the hon. Baronet's removal to a higher sphere?

asked whether the Government will undertake an inquiry into the cost of living of the working classes, so that full and reliable information may be available as to the extent to which it has risen in recent years?

The Government have already determined to undertake through the Board of Trade a full inquiry into this matter.

asked the Prime Minister whether he has received the Report made by the Liverpool licensing committee, and adopted in its entirety by the Liverpool justices, recommending the curtailment of the hours of sale of intoxicating liquor in clubs and public-houses and other reforms; whether he will circulate the same for the information of Members; and whether the Report will receive early consideration from the Government with a view to the recommendations being included in the promised Government Licensing Bill?

The Prime Minister has asked me to reply to this question. I have not yet received officially a copy of this Report, but my attention—and, I suppose, that of every hon. Member interested in the question—has been attracted to the summary which has been widely published. My hon. Friend will be aware that the Licensing Bill of 1908 contained provisions going a considerable way in the direction recommended by the Liverpool licensing justices, and I can assure him that in so far as their recommendations go beyond the Bill, they will be given all the weight to which the views of so careful and vigilant a bench are entitled.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether in the London elementary schools, both county council and non-provided, frequent promotions and degradations of scholars are being enforced on the teachers, without regard to the educational fitness of such scholars, merely to make the classes fit the schoolrooms; and whether he will take the necessary steps to remedy this state of affairs?

I am aware that complaints have recently been made as to difficulties of the character described by the hon. Member. These difficulties have arisen mainly from the undoubted pressure on the school accommodation, which is seriously defective in certain districts of London. The Board have been in constant communication with the council with a view to expediting the provision of additional school premises, which are gravely needed, and will continue to press the council to provide adequate accommodation. The classification and promotion of scholars is, however, a duty which belongs to the teachers in the schools, and the local education authority are primarily responsible for its proper performance. I understand that the matter has recently been discussed by the Education Committee of the London County Council, and that a sub-committee is at present engaged in its investigation. If the local education authority's inquiries are carried out with reasonable promptitude, I do not think it is desirable that I should attempt to anticipate the result. I am, however, fully alive to the educational importance of the matter.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether the Governors of Raine's Foundation Schools, St. George-in-the-East, have applied for an amendment of their school scheme; whether they ask for the insertion of a clause providing that co-optative governors shall, in future, be members of the Church of England, that the existing scheme provides that such persons shall be Protestants, and that £15,000 of public money was granted in 1908 to the Raine's schools on condition that the clause as to the religious persuasion of governors should be modified; and whether he proposes to allow the new scheme to impose a religious test on governors, which was previously absent?

The scheme governing the foundation requires that "No person shall be capable of acting or being elected as a governor unless he is a person professing the Protestant religion according to the usage of the Church of England." It is understood that the London County Council are prepared to make a grant of £15,000 to the foundation on certain conditions, one of which is the modification of this requirement. In law no alteration in the provisions of the scheme with regard to the religious qualifications of governors can be made without the consent of the governing body. The governors have, however, intimated their readiness to consent to a modification of the scheme now in force so as to remove the requirement in the case of representative governors. The proposal, therefore, now under consideration is directed to remove an old test and not to impose a new one.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is the practice of labour exchanges to register men who are in employment for jobs that may become vacant; is such registration contrary to the principle of the Labour Exchanges Act; will the recent decision of the Government making it compulsory for all men seeking employment in the Royal Naval establishments to register at the labour exchanges greatly swell the number of men obtaining employment through the labour exchanges; and, in view of the fact that the majority of these men only seek re-engagement, and their names and capacity are fully known to the heads of departments, what is the object of the new regulation?

There is no provision in the Labour Exchanges Act preventing persons from applying for employment through a labour exchange if they are still in employment at the time of registration, and the practice of the labour exchanges is to accept the registration of such persons. The arrangements which have been come to between the Admiralty and the Board of Trade for the engagement through the exchanges of all labour required by the dockyard authorities will no doubt to some extent increase the number of persons dealt with by the labour exchanges. The arrangements, however, do not apply solely to men known to the dockyard authorities, but to all labour required by them, and the object of the new regulation is to facilitate the prompt and effective supplying of all labour requirements at the yards.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware of the difficulty caused by this practice?

The procedure is more effective.

asked how many tons of sugar beet were exported from this country last year and in the year before; the country or countries to which it was exported and what quantity of beet sugar, if any, was imported into this country from the countries to which the beet was exported?

The quantity of sugar beets registered as exported in 1910 was 3,909 tons, the whole of which was consigned to the Netherlands. There are no records of any exports of sugar beets prior to October, 1910. The imports of unrefined beet sugar into the United Kingdom consigned from the Netherlands were 24,199 tons in 1909 and 15,715 tons in 1910. Refined sugar is not distinguished according to whether it is produced from raw cane sugar, raw beet sugar, or both, so that the quantity of refined beet sugar imported from the Netherlands cannot be stated.