asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in filling up the assessment for Income Tax for the quarter ending 5th April, 1917, a working man is entitled to claim a reduction for a child born since the commencement of the Income Tax year for which the assessment is made, that is to say, for a child born since 6th April, 1916; and, if not, will he say when such allowance can be claimed?

Upon the facts suggested no allowance would fall to be made in respect of the year 1916–17. The relief is claimable only in respect of children who are, in fact, under the age of sixteen years at the commencement of the year of assessment, i.e., are then in being and under sixteen. In the case taken by my hon. Friend relief could be claimed for the whole of the year 1917–18 and following years up to and including the year in which the child attains the age of sixteen.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether nearly 500 men, many of whom are of military age, have been brought into the tax surveying branch of the Inland Revenue and graded as surveyors or assistant surveyors of taxes; if not, what is the number of men so appointed; whether any staff clerks to surveyors of taxes have received promotion to the rank of surveyor or assistant surveyor; and, if so, in how many cases this has occurred in the London area, the rest of England, Scotland, and Ireland, respectively?

Some 400 surveyors and assistant surveyors of taxes were appointed in consequence of the vast addition to the work of the Inland Revenue Department arising out of the War Budgets approved by this House. These appointments were made after full and careful investigation by a Committee of Selection set up under the authority of the Government. More than half of the men selected had previous Inland Revenue service; of the rest approximately half were selected from other Public Departments, the balance being chosen from outside sources with special reference to proficiency in law and accountancy. The number of tax clerks found suitable was eighteen, of whom nine were staff clerks, including five staff clerks serving in London, two serving in other parts of England and two serving in Scotland. I am unable to say what was the nationality of the tax clerks in question.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty, in view of the announcement of the French Minister of Marine on 26th May that by next October all French merchant ships would be armed with two 3.7-inch guns, whether he can make a similar announcement as to when it will be possible for all our merchant ships to carry one gun of over 3-inch calibre, and to what extent we shall be able to give more than one gun to suitable merchant ships?

Over 3,000 ships have already been armed, large numbers continue to be armed weekly, and great efforts are made to get the maximum possible numbers. It is not in the public interest to give exact details, nor to state the types of guns mounted.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office whether his attention has been drawn to the effect on the fellmongering trade of this country of a notice issued by the Director of Wool Contracts on 5th July that the importation of sheepskins from Australia is to cease; whether this accurately represents the position; and what steps, if any, have been taken to anticipate the distress which is likely to ensue?

I am aware of the difficulty to which my hon. Friend refers.

Steps have been taken to secure, as far as possible, the continued importation of colonial sheepskins, but I fear that in any event supplies are bound to be short.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he can state the details regarding rent, rates, wages, seed, manure, and so forth, included in the £7 7s., the cost of growing, harvesting, and marketing an acre of wheat in two Eastern counties for the five years before the War; and whether he can state the comparable details included in the cost of £11 17s. for the present season?

The estimate of £7 7s. for the cost of growing wheat in the five years before the War was based on various accounts in the possession of the Board; the figures in column (1) for the year 1913 afford the best comparison as they are derived from the same source as the figures in column (2), which, with the figures in column (3), provided the basis for the figure of £11 17s. for the cost of growing wheat in the present year. The lower figure of £7 7s. is accounted for by the fact that wages and other costs had risen in 1913 as compared with the average of the years 1909–13.