asked the Minister of Pensions whether the late Private Robert Mair, No. 43489, King's Own Scottish Borderers, who enlisted on 12th October, 1914, was discharged on 5th January, 1918, with a gunshot wound on the right hand, totally disabling the whole arm, for which disability he was in receipt of a 60 per cent, pension permanent; whether he is aware that this man fell ill on 20th January, 1920, and his panel doctor certified him to be suffering from neuritis and sciatica; that this was reported to the local pensions office and six weeks elapsed before he had a visit and an examination in his own home; whether he was informed four weeks later that his disablement was neither caused nor aggravated by his service in the Army; on appealing against this decision he had to appear for examination by a medical board at the Adelphi Hotel, Dunlop Street, Glasgow, on 24th June, 1920; whether he was so weak that he had to be accompanied to that board by a friend; whether the decision from that board was again the same; if he is aware that this decision was received by him on 20th July, 1920, and that he was admitted to Bellahouston Hospital on 21st July, 1920, from which date he was paid full treatment allowance for himself, his wife, and five children; whether on 19th August, 1920, he was removed to Sheidhall Sanatorium, certified to be suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis; whether he is aware that his friends objected to the condition of this institution and removed him to his home on 25th August, where he died on 4th September, 1920; whether his death has been certified to be due to his service, and a certificate sent to the local war pensions divisional office; whether he is aware also that the pension has been stopped to the widow and children of this soldier; whether the funeral grant has been refused to his widow; and what his Department is prepared to do regarding this case?

I regret that I have not been able to complete my inquiries in this case in the short time available. I will, however, communicate with the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether discharged and disabled men whose claims under Article 9 of the Royal Warrant have been rejected, and whose claims have been submitted to the pensions appeal tribunal, are denied allowances pending decision in their appeal; whether in any cases such men while awaiting a decision in their appeal have been referred to the parochial authorities for assistance; and whether, seeing that this involves hardship for the men and is contrary to the general practice of the Ministry of Pensions regarding Poor Law relief for the discharged and disabled, he proposes to take any steps to deal with the matter?

I would remind my hon. Friend that in the difficult class of case referred to, the position is that the man has recently been examined by a medical board in possession of all the relevant facts, including the man's own statement of his case and evidence in support of it, and he has been found not to be eligible for pension. If, thereupon, he appeals to the appeal tribunal and adduces any fresh evidence, full consideration is given to it, and if the claim is admitted, pension is awarded without the case going to the tribunal. I have no authority to grant an advance against pension unless in my judgment and that of my advisers the claim is well founded. In the class of case referred to, therefore, I should not be justified, as my hon. Friend will appreciate, in authorising an advance.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether his attention has been called to the refusal of the Department to recognise the dementia of Private Richard Blaydon, No. 4/087111, Royal Army Service Corps, as in any way due to his military service; whether the appeal tribunal took into consideration his admitted acute suffering from rheumatism for which a disability allowance has been made to his wife; and whether there are any cases on record in his Department in which such contributory suffering is recognised as being responsible for dementia?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative, and to the third part in the negative. I have no reason to doubt that the full facts of the case were before the tribunal when they heard and rejected the claim.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he is aware that Private James Roy, No. 325, Gordon Highlanders, was discharged owing to a gunshot wound in the left arm and neck, and was in receipt of a pension for his wife, his son, and himself of 17s. 3d. weekly; whether the pension was stopped on 24th March, 1920, and no further attention is being paid to the claims made on his behalf; whether he was examined by a doctor two months ago and recommended for a pension; and whether this pension will be paid, and if arrears also will be paid back to the stoppage of the pension on 24th March?

I am afraid there has been unfortunate delay in this case into which I am having immediate enquiry made. I am glad to say, however, that the present position is met by the fact that the man commenced a course of treatment on the 13th October, and is now in receipt of full allowances. Payment of arrears due between 30th March and 12th October has been authorised.

asked the Minister of Pensions if he is aware that Sergeant Robert B. Butcher, No. 598385, who, after serving in the South Lancashire Regiment in France, Gallipoli, and Mesopotamia, was transferred to a labour corps on return to England and discharged in March, 1920, was assessed at 50 per cent, disability for loss of his right eye and for deafness by a medical board in February, 1919, and granted a disability pension of 6s. 6d. per week for 12 months; that in June, 1919, Sergeant Butcher appealed against this award, and was directed to apply to the Local Pensions Committee; that the Local Pensions Committee thereupon laid the case before the Ministry, but received no reply for 10 months, when Butcher was granted a medical board; if he will explain the reason for this delay and for the fact that, in spite of numerous applications, no definite reply has yet been given in regard to Butcher's pension; and whether, in view of the fact that the inadequate pension awarded to Butcher in February, 1919, expired in February, 1920, he will now settle the case without further procrastination?

An award of pension has now been made in this case and instructions given for payment. I very much regret the delay which has occurred.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he has considered the practicability of recognising qualified medical men who are at present attached to ex-service men's organisations?

I have considered this proposal, but I am not prepared to accept it.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he will reconsider the ruling whereby the wife of a man who marries after his discharge from the Army, and dies as a result of service in His Majesty's forces, is not considered eligible to receive a pension; and whether he will state the general grounds on which this ruling was adopted?

The principle of the Pensions Warrant is that the State compensates the man and accepts the liabilities he was under at the date of his injury; and, accordingly, widows of deceased men are not admitted to pension if they were married after the man's discharge. I am not prepared to recommend the removal of this restriction from the Warrant?

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the War Office whether his attention has been drawn to the case of Mrs. Bignell, of 73, Green Lane, Wolverton, Bucks, wife of Corporal T. G. Bignell, M. 2/226521, Royal Army Service Corps, Mechanical Transport, who is now driving the General Officer Commanding Rhine Army's car in France; whether he is aware that, owing apparently to the loss of the pay book at Woolwich, Mrs. Bignell has drawn no separation allowance since 27th September, and is suffering hardship therefrom; whether he will cause the case to be investigated forthwith and the separation allowance, with arrears, to be paid to Mrs. Bignell?

The Pay Office record shows that a new book of allowance forms, authorising payment to Mrs. Bignell from 3rd October, was sent, at the due date, to the Post Office at Wolverton, and telegraphic inquiry has now been made as to whether the book was received. Any adjustment necessary will be made immediately a reply is received by the Paymaster.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether English and Scotch teachers' pensions are now paid out of the education grant; why Irish teachers' pensions are not paid out of the same grant; and, since Scotch teachers have had their premiums refunded from the accumulation in their pension fund and those in receipt of pensions are now receiving additional benefits from the remainder of that accumulation, even if their pensions are over £200 per annum, why Irish pensioned teachers, whose necessities are so much greater, have received no benefit from the larger accumulation in their pension fund?

I cannot undertake to answer questions as to pension schemes in England and Scotland. So long as the National School Teachers (Ireland) Act, 1879, stands, Irish teachers' pensions must be paid from the pension fund established under that Act, and premiums must be deducted from their pay. In spite of the deduction of these premiums, and of grants in aid from the Treasury, this fund is, owing to increases of salaries, now actuarially insufficient to secure its future liabilities.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland (1) whether Charles Lynch, of Miltown-Malbay, Michael Ryan, of Curraghduff, Thurles, and Thomas Egan, of Coshia, Athenry, were dragged from their beds on the night of 24th October last and shot dead by servants of the Crown; whether Charles Lynch was a man of 70 years of age: whether Michael Ryan was the only son of a widow and was seriously ill in bed when the party of men arrived; what steps he proposes to take in the matter;(2) whether on 25th October last a band of armed men, who described themselves as secret service agents, entered the house of William Gleeson, Moher, County Tipperary, in search of his son James whom they stated they had come to kill; whether they threatened the father, and on his son William offering his life for his father they took him, the son, outside the house and shot him dead; whether any form of inquiry has taken place; and what was the evidence and finding?

A military court of inquiry is being held in each of the four cases mentioned and the result in any one of the cases has not yet reached me. I regret that I am therefore not yet in a position to make any further statement in the matter.

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether the sacking of Templemore, county Tipperary, on the evening of Friday, 29th October, was undertaken as a reprisal for the ambushing of a party of Northamptons nearly 20 miles away?

A military enquiry has been held into this matter and no evidence has been forthcoming that any part of the damage committed in Templemore on the 29th ultimo was caused by members of the forces of the Grown in Ireland. In the absence of such evidence I am unable to accept the hon. Member's suggestion. What the hon. Member refers to as the "sacking of Templemore" consisted of the burning of two premises and damaging generally by window breaking of a number of others. The local council thanked the police for their efforts in helping to extinguish fires.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in the event of the Government owing money to a merchant or other person abroad, such debt is paid in full in such a way that the creditor is not prejudiced by any adverse rate of exchange?

If the Government owes money in a foreign currency, e.g., dollars, the Government has to make payment in that currency, and whatever the rate of exchange the creditor receives the amount of foreign currency due to him and is unaffected by the rate of exchange. In some cases, however, the contract entered into by the Government may be to pay a person resident abroad a given amount of sterling in London. In such a case the risk of gain or loss on exchange falls on the creditor if he wishes to convert the sterling into some foreign currency.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he proposes to introduce a Finance and Revenue Bill embodying the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Income Tax during the present Session?

It would certainly be impossible to pass through Parliament in the present Session the lengthy and complicated legislation that would be required to give full effect to the recommendations of the Commission. All that I have contemplated as possible was to deal with one or two or the more urgent and important points, but I am afraid that them is now little chance of my being able to do even so much before Christmas.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he can give the amounts of any refunds which have been made up to the present under the Excess Profits Duty proposals?

The total amount of Excess Profits Duty (including Munitions Exchequer Payments) repaid since the introduction of the tax is £27,564,524.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his attention has been called to the importation of German goods to the value of £17,000,000 during the present year; whether, in consequence of the state of the exchange, persons engaged in such importation are able to make vast profits: and what steps ha is taking to make such profits liable to Excess Profits Duty or otherwise to contribute towards the national revenue?

I am aware of the circumstances to which my hon. Friend refers. The Income Tax Acts, the principles of which apply also to Excess Profits Duty, provide for the taxation of profits arising from any business carried on in this country, whether by a resident or by a branch or agency on behalf of a non-resident. As regards the latter case, I would refer my hon. Friend to the provisions which were enacted in 1915 and now appear in the General Rules applicable to all Schedules of the Income Tax Act, 1918.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether communication has been re-established between Baghdad and the British troops at Kasvin and other places in Persia; whether the accommodation for these troops is adequate to maintain them during the winter season; and whether these troops can be relieved or withdrawn from Persia at an early date?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second party the General Officer Commanding, Mesopotamia, has been authorised to make necessary arrangements for winter accommodation. In answer to the last part, I would refer the hon. and learned Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on the 19th October to the hon. Member for Central Hull (Lieut.-Commander Kenworthy) as regards the force in North-West Persia. I would also refer to my reply on the 2th October to the hon. Member for Stafford (Mr. Ormsby-Gore) in which I stated that the force in North-East Persia was in process of withdrawal and there now remains at Meshed only a small consular escort.

asked the Prime Minister whether the proposal to find employment for ex-service men in the foundry trades has yet been submitted to the executive councils of the trade unions concerned; and, if not, whether it is the intention of the Government to consult them upon the matter?

I have been asked to reply. The National Trade Advisory Committee for the Engineering Trades have invited the Foundry Trades to discuss with them the training of fit ex-service men for foundry work. No definite reply has yet been received, and we are pressing for a reply before the 5th November, when the National Committee again meet to consider the matter.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will explain the position under the Unemployment Insurance Act of an ex-service man in receipt of a military or naval pension; whether such a man will be entitled to unemployment benefit without regard to the amount of pension other than a full disability pension; and, if not, the reason for treating pensioned ex-service men differently from other persons covered by the Act?

The position of pensioned ex-service men under the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1920, is the same as that of other employed per- sons. Subject to their satisfying the statutory conditions they will be entitled to receive benefit when unemployed. Ex-service men in the receipt of pensions of £26 a year or upwards in common with other employed persons in receipt of private income or pensions may claim exemption from the payment of contributions if they so desire.

asked the Undersecretary of State for War whether it is a fact that disabled ex-service men who were regular soldiers before the War are not eligible for the Civil Liabilities resettlement grant of £104?

I have been asked to reply. I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour to a similar question which he addressed to the Minister of Pensions on the 26th October. I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of this answer.

asked the Prime Minister what are the constitution, functions, and powers of the Council of Ambassadors in Paris; what States are represented at the Council; who is the British representative; and what steps are taken to make public the decisions of this Council?

The Conference of Ambassadors was formed at the beginning of this year to deal with all matters arising out of the execution and interpretation of the treaties of peace. It includes representatives of the five principal Allied and Associated Powers. A Belgian representative is also entitled to be present when matters affecting Belgium are discussed. His Majesty's Ambassador at Paris is the British representative on the Conference. Upon the conclusion of each conference an official communiqué reporting the proceedings is generally published by the French Foreign Office.

asked the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Government has received news of the fall of Hadjin on or about 15th October after being besieged for seven months by the Kemalist insurgent Turks; whether the town was burnt and almost all the inhabitants, numbering about 10,000 people, were massacred; whether there is grave cause for anxiety as to a similar fate befalling the town of Zeitoun; whether these two towns are within the zone of Turkish territory in which French special interests were recognised by the tripartite agreement made between Great Britain, France, and Italy in August last; whether, in consideration of such recognition, France undertook responsibilities in respect of the protection of the minorities within that zone; and what steps have been taken by France in fulfilment of that undertaking?

His Majesty's Government have received indirect information that Hadjin fell into the hands of the Turkish Nationalists on 16th October and that there are few survivors. Confirmation and details are being sought. There is no information about Zeitoun. We learn that considerable French reinforcements have reached Cilicia. Hadjin and Zeitoun are within the French sphere of economic priority, but French rights and responsibilities within this zone only come into formal existence when the Treaty of Peace comes into force.

asked the Prime Minister whether any of the draft mandates for any mandated territories are now complete; whether they will be presented in the first instance to a meeting of the principal allied and associated Powers to whom the sovereignty of all mandated territories was transferred by the Treaties of Peace or direct to the League of Nations; and whether finally to the Assembly or Council of the League?

The draft mandates are not yet ready. Negotiations are still proceeding between the powers concerned in regard to certain points. If the negotiations are concluded at an early date the mandates will be completed and brought before the League of Nations at their next meeting for confirmation.

asked the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the reason for the delay in Germany paying the British holders of the 3 per cent, coupons which have been sent some time ago to the German Clearing Office through the British Clearing Office; and when payment may be expected in accordance with the Treaty obligations?

I have been asked to reply. I would refer my hon. Friend to the replies given to questions on this subject by my Noble Friend, the Member for South Battersea (Viscount Curzon), and the hon. Member for Wednesbury (Mr. Short) on the 25th October and by the hon. Member for Keighley (Mr. Clough) on the 1st November, of which I am sending him copies.

asked the Prime Minister what were the terms of the letter from the German Minister for Foreign Affairs, dated 2nd October, 1920, with reference to the action of the Council in definitely transferring to Belgium the sovereignty over Eupen and Malmedy, which was read to the Council of the League of Nations at the meeting just held at Brussels?

I am in communication with the Secretary-General of the League of Nations with a view to ascertaining whether there is any objection to the immediate publication of the full text of the letter in question.

asked the Prime. Minister whether the Italian steamship "Ancona" was stopped at sea on her way to Novorossisk and taken to Batoum by British warships; and why we are interfering with trade between Russia and Italy in this way?

The Government have no information of this incident. The Commander-in-Chief has been asked for a Report.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is aware of the serious position of the British dye industry, of the increasing importation of German dyes in competition therewith, of the amount of public money subscribed in support thereof, and of the statements of the President of the Board of Trade, thrice repeated, that legislation on protective lines would be enacted; and whether an agreed Bill can be introduced at once to carry out the Government pledges in this respect?

I am aware of the position in respect of the dye making industry in general and the British Dye Stuffs Corporation in particular, and of the pledges, in regard thereto given at various times on behalf of His Majesty's Government. My hon. Friend may rest assured that a Bill dealing with key industries will be introduced and proceeded with as soon as possible, but it would be inadvisable to limit such a Bill to the dye making industry alone.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, as appears from the statement concerning General Wrangel issued to the English Press by the Russian embassy in London, General Wrangel has now official representation in this country?

The answer is in the negative.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a statement denouncing the continual attacks on Soviet Russia by Generals Wrangel and Balahovitch in view of the effects such attacks must have on prices and unemployment in this country by preventing the peaceful reorganisation of Russia?

I can add nothing to the reply which I gave on 16th August to a similar question by the hon. and gallant Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Colonel Wedgwood).

asked the Secretary of State for India what is the estimated annual saving to the Indian Exchequer in the payment of Indian Army pensions in the United Kingdom owing to the difference in the exchange between 1s. 4d. to the rupee and the present rate?

The payments in question amounted to about £1,500,000 in 1919–20. The difference between the rupee equivalents of this sum at 1s. 4d. and at the present rate of exchange, say, 1s. 7½d., is Rs. 4,039,000 or about £330,000.

asked the Secretary of State for India why Government of India Army Department Order No. 790, of 23rd July, 1918, was issued with retrospective effect only from the 1st December, 1916, instead of for the whole period of the War; and whether he will issue instructions for the cancellation of paragraph 2 of this Order?

The date was fixed to cover the first case that came to notice. If my hon. and gallant Friend will give me particulars of any cases which are adversely affected by the restriction I will consider them.

asked the Secretary of State for India, considering that a consistent rate of increase has been maintained in the revised pensions for officers of the British Service, for what reason has a corresponding rate of increase not been maintained in the revised rates of pensions for British officers of the Indian Army, thus depriving the officers of the Indian Army of the extra pension hitherto awarded for long service in India?

Under the revised rules the rate of increase of pension for officers of the Indian Army above the rank of lieutenant-colonel is less than in the British Service, as it was decided to limit the maximum for all grades of general officer to that laid down for the British Service.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he will consider the question of granting some temporary alleviation, which might be made to depend on the cost of living, to the distressed widows and dependants in receipt of small pensions from the various Indian families, pension funds, civil and military, pending the result of his consultation with the Government of India on the subject, of dealing with pensions generally on the lines of the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1920?

I hope the decision will not now be long delayed.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is yet in a position to make a statement in regard to the result of the question asked of the various Colonies as to their views upon Imperial Preference?

Pending legislation by the various West Indian Colonies arising out of the recent Canadian West Indian agreement, I am not yet in a position to add anything material to the answer given on 7th June to the hon. and gallant Member for Leith (Captain W. Benn).

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the statement that children are enslaved in the colony of Hong Kong, and urging that if they were being mistreated to any great extent something should be done; and is he prepared to take any action in the matter?

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to a statement that children are being bought and sold openly in Hong Kong; and whether he will make inquiries into the facts?

My attention was drawn before the Recess to statements of the nature described, and inquiries have been made of the Governor as to the facts. I need hardly say that slavery does not exist in Hong Kong or any other British Colony. A custom does exist there, as elsewhere in China, by which, in return for a money payment, girls are transferred by their parents or natural guardians to the care of another household, usually for purposes of domestic service, though the transaction is described by the Chinese as a form of adoption. The law of the Colony, which is the law of England, dons not recognise such a transaction as conferring any right or title whatsoever on the employer as against the girl. There is no evidence that such girls are frequently ill-treated, and in cases where any ill-treatment takes place they are protected by the law in exactly the same way as children living with their parents. The Secretary of State's view is that the right course is to aim at gradual reform, where reform may be necessary, in co-operation with enlightened and humane members of the Chinese community, and he has suggested to the Governor that he should persuade a number of prominent Chinese to form a society for the protection and improvement in the condition of these girl domestics. It is considered that such an arrangement would be preferable to a system of compulsory registration, which, in the opinion of responsible officers in the Colony, it would not be practicable to administer satisfactorily.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he has now received the report upon the torture inflicted upon a native or natives of East Africa; and whether he will lay this Report upon the Table of the House?

The report on the case to which my hon. Friend refers has not yet been received. I understand that the accused was sentenced on each of two counts to two years' rigorous imprisonment, the sentences running concurrently, with a fine of 2,000 rupees or nine months' rigorous imprisonment on a third count. An appeal against the sentence was dismissed, the presiding Judge stating that the record disclosed serious acts of heartless and callous brutality. He added that such cases were happily very rare in East Africa, and that the general behaviour of the whites showed a strict sense of duty, fairness, and humanity towards natives.

asked the Secretary for Scotland the number of houses approved by the Scottish Board of Health of the following types: houses built of stone, houses built of brick, houses built of cement blocks, and houses built of wood, respectively; and how many of the various types are under construction and how many have been completed?

Of 16,003 houses for which tenders were approved by the Scottish Board of Health, as at the 15th October, 1,464 are of stone, 13,485 of brick, 462 of brick with stone fronts, 86 of concrete, and 506 of timber. The numbers under construction are: Stone, 718; brick, 4,300; brick, with stone fronts, 156; concrete, 10; timber, 254. The numbers completed are: Stone, 187; brick, 179; timber, 182.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has been made aware of the departmental inspector's report of the public inquiry recently held at High-worth for the compulsory acquisition of land for housing purposes; whether he is aware that the local authority have been informed that the Ministry are not prepared to confirm the order for compulsory acquisition on financial grounds; that several months ago the Highworth Council selected a number of alternative sites, and that the Ministry of Health commissioner decided that this site was the only one suitable; whether the alternative site now recommended by the Department is a portion of the same field, but is adjoining undesirable property, which would depreciate the value of the new houses; and whether, in view of the fact that the original site selected by the local authority runs parallel with the main road, and near a sewer and gas and water supplies, he will have further inquiries made into the matter?

The reply to the first and second parts of the question is in the affirmative, but it is not a fact that the site in question is the only one which the Housing Commissioner was prepared to approve. As regards the alternative site referred to in the fourth part of the question, I am advised that this is entirely suitable, and I would further point out that this is not the only alternative site which is available and suitable. The whole question has been very carefully considered, and a public enquiry held, at which both parties had a full opportunity of presenting their case, and I do not think I can re-open the question.

asked the Minister of Health the latest terms for the building of houses proposed by the Ministry of Health to the National Building Trades' Industrial Council: and the latest terms proposed by the National Building Trades' Industrial Council to the Ministry of Health?

Negotiations are now proceeding, and I do not think it is desirable to make any statement at the present moment.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Walsall Board of Guardians have refused to put into force Civil Service Award No. 102, and have refused to submit the matter to arbitration; that the officers employed by this board did not receive the benefit of Award 84 until three months after the award was made; that they did not receive the benefit of Award 101 until four months after the award was made, and that they have now lost seven months of the increase due to them under Award 102; and whether he will seriously consider the advisability of making these awards compulsory?

I have received a letter from the Walsall Trades and Labour Council suggesting that there is a difference on the question of war bonus between the Guardians and their employ£s, and I am prepared, if necessary, to press both sids to take any such difference to arbitration, but I do not think action could properly be taken upon the lines suggested in the last part of the question.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Wisbech Board of Guardians have refused to pay their servants in accordance with the terms of Bonus Award No. 102 and have also refused to receive a deputation on the subject; and whether he will use his influence with the board on this matter?

I have already communicated with the Guardians upon this subject, and I propose to address a further communication to them.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been called to the heavy vote given at the recent borough councils election in favour of a reduction in municipal expenditure: and when the White Paper, which he has promised, on the burdens now imposed or about to be imposed on the ratepayers will be available?

I am aware of the results of the recent municipal elections. My hon. and gallant Friend has probably seen the White Paper which was circulated on Tuesday evening.

asked the Minister of Health if he will give in respect of local taxation and expenditure for the years 1914 and 1919 the total rateable value, the total expenditure, the total contribution from Imperial sources, and the total amount remitted under the several Agriculture and Tithe Rates Bills; the estimated effect on rateable value for 1920 of the rating provisions of the Housing (Additional Powers) Bill of 1920 and the estimated increased burden in 1920 over the year 1914 in respect of the application of the Civil Service scale to the employés of local authorities, the increased pay and pensions of the teaching staff and police force, the administration of the Housing and Land Settlement Acts, and all other burdens arising out of the passage of legislation in the years 1919 and 1920?

As regards the first part of the question, the particulars required are given in the appended table. With respect to the remainder of the question, I do not think I can do more at present than refer to the White Paper on the Increase of Rates.The following particulars relate to England and Wales:

asked the Primes Minister whether, in view of the fact that the taxation of land values has been abandoned for the purpose of Imperial revenue, the Government will introduce a Bill for the rating of land values, so reducing the burden of local taxation?

I cannot give any undertaking in regard to this matter at the present time.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Bingley Urban District Council propose to convert certain allotments into a bowling green; that if this conversion is carried out 90 fruit trees and other foodstuffs, glass-houses, etc., will be affected; that several meetings of citizens in the district have passed resolutions protesting against the proposal, but the local authority persists in its intention; and whether, in the interests of food production, he will approach the local authority on this matter?

also asked the Minister of Health the same question.

I am informed by one of the Ministry's Sub-Commissioners who has visited Bingley to make inquiries into this case, that the land in question was purchased some 13 years ago for the purpose of a public park, and that the Council have now decided to make a bowl- ing green and tennis courts upon that portion of the land temporarily let in allotments. The Council propose to provide suitable alternative land for the allotment holders who will be dispossessed and neither this Ministry nor the Ministry of Health has, I understand, any power to over-ride the decision of the Council-who are in the best position to know the local requirements for both allotments and recreation.

asked the Minister of Health when it is proposed to proceed with the Milk and Dairies Bill?

I am not at present able to say when the Second Reading will be taken.

asked the Minister of Health what progress has been made by the Committee set up to inquire into the determination of a standard for condensed milk; if he will take immediate steps to prevent the importation or manufacture of condensed milk of low standards of fat, to the detriment of the consumer; if the Committee has yet reported; and, if not, will he state the reasons for delay?

I have received the Committee's Report and am considering the question of issuing Regulations to give effect to their recommendations.

asked the Minister of Food why, in setting up the Departmental Committee to consider and report on the legislative and administrative measures necessary to secure adequate protection for the health of the people in connection with the slaughter of animals and the distribution of meat for human consumption in England and Wales, no practical agriculturalists have been put on; and whether he will add to the Committee persons having practical agricultural knowledge?

I have been asked to reply to this question as the Committee to which the hon. and gallant Member refers was appointed by me. Questions primarily affecting agricultural interests did not appear to me to come within the scope of this Committee's deliberations. The Ministry of Agriculture is, however, represented on the Committee, and I have no doubt that the Committee will be glad to receive any material evidence bearing on questions covered by their terms of reference which agricultural organisations desire to submit. I do not think that at this stage of its proceedings it is practicable to add fresh members to the Committee.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his attention has been called to the recent char-à-banc accident at Oxenhope, near Keighley, on Saturday, 30th October; and whether his department will be represented at the inquiry, and at all subsequent inquiries of equal importance, so that, in view of the extension of this form of locomotion, his Department may be in possession of the fullest amount of information needed for the framing of regulations which may be deemed essential to minimise danger?

Directly the accident referred to by my hon. Friend was reported in the Press, an Inspector of my Department was instructed to visit Keighley and to inquire into the circumstances. He is now on the spot and I am awaiting a report from him. As regards the second part of the question, I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the Noble Lord the Member for South Battersea (Viscount Curzon) on 1st November.

asked the Minister of Transport if his attention has been called to a circular letter issued by the managing director of the Anglian Mills, Eye, Suffolk, alleging that the industry producing feeding-stuff from waste products carried on at these mills is being strangled by the excessive railway rates of the Great Eastern Railway Company; and whether, seeing that during the War this industry was described by the Ministry of Food as one of national importance, and that they gave instructions that all needful machinery required by the industry should be, if possible, supplied, as they were saving and using waste products which would otherwise be wasted, and compounding the same into an excellent feeding-stuff, it is, in the opinion of the Department, essential in the national interest; and whether transport facilities can be given to this company to enable them to continue this work that would not be of a preferential nature?

A copy of the circular letter referred to was received on the 30th October. Inquiries are being made of the railway company concerned, and I will communicate with the hon. Member as soon as these inquiries are complete.

asked the Minister of Transport whether a proposal has been received from the South Metropolitan Electric Light and Power Company with respect to the erection of a power station at Erith; what is the present kilowatt capacity of the company's existing station and what is the present demand thereon;. whether this company is a subsidiary company of the County of London Electric Supply Company which is also seeking to erect a new power station at Barking; and whether he is taking steps to prevent consent being given to any schemes which would prejudice the whole position of the electricity authority for London shortly to be set up under the 1919 Act?

A proposal has been received from the West Kent Electric Company, Limited, not the South Metropolitan Electric Light and Power Company. These two companies are, it is understood, closely associated. No decision has been given in regard to the application. The West Kent Company have not a generating station, but the kilowatt capacity of the South Metropolitan Company's station on 31st December, 1919, was 19,500 k.w., and no extensions have been since sanctioned by the Electricity Commissioners; the maximum demand recorded for the year ending 31st December, 1919, was 7,900 k.w. It is hardly correct to describe either of these companies as a subsidiary company of the County of London Electric Supply Company, but it is understood that a certain amount of their capital is held by the latter company. The Electricity Commissioners are fully alive to (he necessity for avoiding taking any action which would prejudice the setting up of a joint electricity authority for Greater London.

asked the Minister of Transport whether an application was received in the early part of this year from the County of London Electric Supply Company for consent to erect a power station at Barking capable of expansion to 600,000 kilowatts; whether the proposal was opposed by the London County Council, the local authorities, and by the majority of the London companies, who asked for an inquiry on the ground that the proposal would prejudice the position and work of the electricity authority for London to be set up hereafter; whether an inquiry has been held; and what was the result?

The answers to the various questions raised by the hon. Member are in the affirmative. The inquiry was held by the Electricity Commissioners on 6th October to 9th October. Important questions of law and policy are involved to which the Commissioners must give careful consideration before arriving at a decision.

asked the Home Secretary if he is aware that a load of stones appeared at Whitehall simultaneously with the arrival of the unemployed demonstration on 18th October; and can he say whether this load of stones was sent from East Ham on that day?

A motor lorry laden with large pieces of broken road concrete, which was proceeding south through Whitehall, was held up by a mob and stones were taken from this lorry and thrown at the police. No particulars with regard to the lorry were noted by the police, and I cannot say where it came from.

asked the Minister of Labour whether the joint industrial councils have in any important degree undertaken to assist in the development of the industries for which these councils are established; whether these councils have considered any methods for the prevention of unemployment; and, if so, with what result?

The point raised in the first part of the question is, of course, a matter of opinion, but I certainly think that the answer is in the affirmative, and that in the future also a great deal of good work of this kind will be done. The constitutions of practically all the councils provide for consideration of the questions which my hon. Friend has in mind, and I am sending him copies of two statements which give some account, though not a complete account, of what has been done. In their early days the councils are naturally concerned with the removal of causes of disputes, such as inequalities in the basis of wages and conditions of employment, but to an increasing extent they are dealing with these other matters. As regards unemployment, the question has not arisen until recently in an acute form, but several of the councils have given attention to it, and they all have before them the qeustion of their relation to the new Unemployment Insurance Act.

asked the Minister of Labour whether in future he will require that all employers and trade unions shall not only provide, as formerly, information upon the extent of unemployment which at any time prevails, but shall supply whatever information they possess upon the cause or causes of such unemployment as they report?

In the majority of the returns on unemployment furnished to the Ministry of Labour by employers and trade unions provision is made for the inclusion of statements as to the causes of unemployment in the various trades reported on. I have no compulsory powers of obtaining such information, but I take this opportunity of expressing my appreciation of the voluntary assistance rendered to me in this respect by so many employers of labour and trade union secretaries.

asked the Minister of Labour if his attention has been drawn to the statement of some of the London mayors that the arterial roads system will not in any way help the London boroughs inside the London area in regard to the unemployed; and what steps he proposes to take to remedy such alleged defects in the scheme?

Yes, Sir. I heard the statement. I was present at the meeting. It is true that the proposed arterial roads in the neighbourhood of London lie mainly on the outer fringe of the London boroughs, but I hope the scheme will be proved of greater assistance in the inner boroughs than has been suggested. However, the point raised by my hon. Friend is now before the Cabinet Committee on Unemployment.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that girls who were trained in the Joan of Arc Hostel, at a cost of approximately £100, are unable to find employment because employers to whom application has been made state that the applicants have not served a sufficiently long apprenticeship; and whether, in view of the money already expended, he will consider the possibility of extending the period to make the training complete, or take special steps to have these girls employed as improvers until such time as they are fully efficient?

The implication contained in my right hon. Friend's question, that these girls are unable to find work owing to any insufficiency in their training, is not borne out by our experience. Of those girls who com- pleted their training in dressmaking in similar centres during the earlier part of the year, approximately 90 per cent, found immediate employment at standard rates, and it was not until the present depression in trade occurred that any difficulty was experienced in placing these trainees. I am assured that no complaints have been received from employers as to the training given by the Ministry of Labour. I would add that the total cost of training is £35 per head, and not £100 as stated by my right hon. Friend.

asked the Home Secretary what rent, boot and clothing allowances are made to the members of the Metropolitan Police Force; and if the same allowances are made to single and married policemen?

Married men of all ranks receive rent allowances equal to the amount of rent and rates paid up to a maximum limit, which is at present 17s. weekly for inspectors, 14s. weekly for sergeants, 12s. weekly for constables. The great majority of single men are provided with accommodation in section houses rent free. Those single men who are permitted to reside out of section houses receive allowances equal to half the maximum rates for married men. The boot allowance is 2s. weekly, and the plain clothes allowance is £24 per annum for superintendents, £22 per annum for inspectors and 7s. weekly for sergeants and constables. The boot allowance and the plain clothes allowance are the same for single as for married men.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has received any protest from the single men of the Metropolitan Police Force as regards the recent increases which have been paid to that force and the increases being varied as regards the amount paid to single and married policemen; and if he can make any statement as to whether such varying methods of payment to men employed in the same work is causing any discontent in this force?

No protest on the subject has been submitted to me or to the Commissioner of Police, but I understand the Constables' Branch Board have submitted to the Central Committee of the Police Federation a Resolution regretting the differentiation in bonus payable to married and single men respectively. The scheme was unanimously recommended by a committee on which the Police Federation were fully represented, and the reason for the differentiation was that the increase in the cost of living affects single and married men to different degrees. Any cases of single men who have immediate relatives dependent upon them for support are specially considered by the Commissioner.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has sanctioned a bye-law for the borough of Folkestone; if he is willing to sanction similar bye-laws in other localities allowing school children to be employed delivering newspapers before going to school, but refuses to sanction their employment in the performance of household and domestic duties; and, if so, on what grounds he makes this distinction?

A bye-law has been provisionally approved for Folkestone allowing children between 12 and 14 to be employed for one hour in the morning in delivering newspapers. In other places where good cause has been shown for it this bye-law extends to domestic employment, but the number of children in this employment in Folkestone was extremely small. No case was made for its continuance, and the local authority has not pressed the proposal.

asked the Postmaster-General the number of horse-drawn vans and the number of hand-barrows which are now employed in the London Postal Area; and if he will consider, in the interests of quick despatch and saving of labour, whether motor-driven vehicles can be used in place of this method of dealing with London postal work?

The number of horse-drawn vehicles in use for the con- veyance of mails in the London Postal Service is 625. Motor vehicles have been largely substituted for horse-drawn vehicles during recent years and this substitution is still proceeding. The number of hand-barrows is 1,104. Most of them are in use for part of the day only, and it is doubtful whether motor-driven vehicles could with advantage be substituted for any large number.

asked the Postmaster General whether the system of closing sub-post offices from 12.30 to 1.30 in the dinner hour in many industrial districts, in addition to the weekly half-holiday, causes a great deal of inconvenience to working people who wish to transact post office business in this period; whether such offices have, as a rule, two assistants; and why it is not possible for one girl to be absent between 12 o'clock and 1 o'clock and the other between 1 o'clock and 2 o'clock?

The closing of sub-offices during the dinner hour is limited to localities where the mid-day closing of shops is general. I should be averse to altering the rule irrespective of local requirements as regards those sub-offices only where more than one assistant is employed, but I shall be glad to consider any specific case in which the midday closing is found to be inconvenient to the locality.

asked the Postmaster-General if the postmaster of Omagh, county Tyrone, is exhibiting Sinn Fein methods in a loyalist district and pursuing a campaign of religious bigotry whereby he has converted a staff of clerks once evenly balanced to one composed of 15 Roman Catholics and Sinn Feiners and four Protestants and Loyalists, one of the latter of whom he has threatened with dismissal; if such is the suspicion created by this man's public conduct that the Government authorities have deemed it necessary to carry out a military raid both upon the Omagh post office and this man's private house; and what steps he proposes to take in the matter?

I am enquiring into the matter and will communicate further with the hon. Member.

asked the President of the Board of Education if Mr. H. W. Carter, a superannuated teacher at Herne Bay, was informed by the Ministry on the 22nd of September that his superannuation allowance and annuity could be paid to him while residing abroad, but was further informed on the 25th of October that any increase in his pension would depend on his remaining in the United Kingdom; why this distinction is drawn between old and new rates of pension; and, having regard to the fact that even the increased pension will not enable a pensioner with a family to live in comfort in this country, why such pensioners as have opportunities for emigration are discouraged from doing so?

I would refer the hon. Member to Sub-section (1) of Section 2 of the Pensions (Increase) Act, which provides that the increase of a pension shall be conditional upon the pensioner residing in the British Islands. Mr. Carter's original pension is not subject to such a condition.

asked the President of the Board of Education if the teachers in the schools under his supervision are strictly carrying out the syllabus prescribed; whether certain teachers are inculcating doctrines inimical to the State; and, if so, what steps he purposes taking to prevent this subversive propaganda?

The Board do not prescribe any syllabus of general instruction for use in grant-aided schools. I have no information which would justify me in believing that teachers in such schools are abusing their position in the manner suggested.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether there has been any re-organisation of the office of his Ministry during the past three months; whether any economy in personnel or cost has resulted; and, if not, whether it is proposed to undertake any re-organisation within the coming three months?

There has been no general re-organisation of the Ministry during the past three months, but the question of effecting economies is under constant and careful consideration. Apart from the staff employed in hospitals and institutions which are concerned with the care and treatment of disabled men, and represent additional work which has been, and is being, gradually taken over from the War Office, the staff of the Ministry has been decreased during the past three months by 500, and further reductions are in prospect. On the last part of the question, I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Bridge-ton (Mr. M. Scott) on the 28th ultimo.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what was the total cost of that section or department of the Ministry of Food which deals with the limitation of the average gravity of beer and the regulation of the prices of beer and spirits for each of the past two financial years, and the estimated total cost for the current financial year?

I have been asked to reply. The cost of the staff employed in this section was £10,832 for 1918–9; £4,550 for 1919–20; and the estimate for 1920–21 is £2,460. To these amounts should be added 15 per cent, to cover rent, stationery, postage and general overhead charges, which would give the following total cost:

asked the Joint Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that recently an applicant from the Treasury has been appointed office-keeper at the Custom House, E.G., on the recommendation of the Treasury; whether, in making this appointment, the claims of men employed for many years in the Custom House were ignored; that promotion in this Department has been held up for 11 years by the appointment of a man from the Treasury; and whether, in view of the injustice to the Custom House staff and the dissatisfaction with this appointment, he will take steps to have the matter reconsidered, with a view to the promotion of Custom House officers?

The recent appointment of an office keeper to the Customs and Excise Department was made by me only after I had fully considered the qualifications of the assistant office-keeper in that Department who, I may mention, is a man of considerably shorter service. I am not prepared to reconsider my decision in this matter. I am unable to agree with the implication in the question that office keeperships can only be filled from the staff of the Department in which the vacancy arises irrespective of all other circumstances.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will cause inquiries to be made as to whether manufacturers and retailers are giving the public the proper benefit of the many reductions in the value of raw materials or costs of replacements, or whether they are profiteering by maintaining prices at an unduly high level, in view of current prices of materials or replacement?

The Central Committee under the Profiteering Acts have the importance of this question fully in view. The bulk of the Board of Trade's powers under the Profiteering Acts, so far as retail transactions are concerned, have been delegated to the local committees. It has been pointed out to these committees that in considering the reasonableness of a given rate of profit they should take into consideration the coat of replacement.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if his attention has been drawn to the prices at which mineral waters are being retailed in places of public refreshment or amusement; whether he is aware of the fact that though the wholesale cost of certain brands ranges from 4s. to 4s. 6d. per dozen single bottles of the same are frequently served at from 9d. to Is. each; that whereas it is not an unusual occurrence for only one bottle of mineral water to be employed in the dilution of several similar quantities of spirit supplied to a single order, yet a charge is made as though each separate serving of spirit contains also the entire contents of one bottle of the dilutient; and whether he can see his way to inquire into the retail prices of mineral waters generally supplied in such places, with a view to protecting the public?

While I was not aware of all the matters to which the hon. Member refers, I understand that the retail price charged for mineral waters is frequently high as compared with the wholesale price. The Profiteering Acts have been applied to mineral waters and it is open to anyone who considers that he has been charged an excessive price on a retail sale to lodge a complaint with the appropriate Local Committee, who are empowered to decide whether in view of all the circumstances an unreasonable profit has been made.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the manufactured articles, either partially or wholly, whose import into this country has notably increased since the beginning of the year?

The following statement shows those classes of merchandise, wholly or partly manufactured, the imports of which into the United Kingdom, from all sources, notably increased in the second and third quarters of 1920, as compared with the first quarter:

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether the Government has any financial interest in a concern called the Metal and Chemical Bank, controlled by a Mr. Tilder Smith; and whether any preferential treatment was given to this institution to enable it to import flax into this country?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. As regards the second part, the bank has received in its negotiations with the Governments of the Baltic States such diplomatic support as would be accorded in similar circumstances to any British concern of good standing.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Munitions the quantity of wool disposed of by his Department to Messrs. James Hill and Sons, Messrs. Francis Willey and Company, Mr. W. C. Gaunt, and any other Bradford merchants between the dates of 30th November, 1919, and 30th September, 1920, with the names of the firms and individuals concerned, the description and price of the wool, with the dates of order, sale, and delivery?

To give particulars of all the sales of wool to Bradford buyers in the ten months referred to would involve a great amount of labour, and, moreover, it would not be in the public interest to establish the precedent that such commercial details should be disclosed.