asked the Chief Secretary whether out of 30 ex-service men who were given notice by the Irish branch of the Inland Revenue on account of the Custom House fire in Dublin only four have been reinstated, while all the Civil Service girl clerks have been reappointed at Jury's Hotel and the Four Courts; and, if this is the case, why preference has not been given to ex-service men?

My hon. and gallant Friend is under a misapprehension. It has been found necessary to continue in their employment substantially the whole of the temporary staff formerly engaged on Inland Revenue work at the Custom House, Dublin.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury if there are any officers of the Board of Education, and, if so, how many, who are in receipt of a salary, including war bonus, in excess of the salary of the President of the Board of Education?

There are 10 officers of the Board of Education whose salaries, including war bonus at the current rate, are in excess of the salary (£2,000 a year) of the President of the Board.

asked the Home Secretary whether the amount of law charges was £83,000 in 1913–14, and is estimated at £309,000 in the current year; and whether he will explain the circumstances in which this increase in outlay has been brought about?

The figures given by the hon. Member are substantially correct. The increase is due primarily to the great increase which has taken place both in the cost and the amount of the legal business of all kinds, partly due to war conditions, now thrown upon the Departments of the Procurator-General, the Treasury Solicitor (who acts for a large number of other Departments), and the Director of Public Prosecutions, necessitating an increase of staff in those Departments; and in the second place to the cost-of-living bonus. The services arising out of the War are estimated to cost £57,000 for the current year.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any new instructions have been issued to Government Departments regarding the categories of civil servants who are allowed to travel first-class at public expense; and whether the Estimates of the various Departments will be reviewed forthwith with a view to reducing the amounts allowed for travelling expenses?

I have been asked to reply. No fresh general instructions have been issued in regard to this matter, which is still under consideration. The Estimates of all Departments are kept constantly under review in order to ensure economy in this respect.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the weekly cost of the emergency measures taken on account of the coal stoppage, including the pay of the Army and Navy and Air Force Reserve and the Defence Corps; and what is the cost of the special measures taken by other Departments?

The running cost of the Reserves, the Defence Force, and other emergency measures is £692,000 a week, that of the Defence Force alone being £375,000. These figures are exclusive of initial and terminal expenditure relating to the Reserves and Defence Force estimated at about £2,550,000. The total cost to date of the measures taken by Civil Departments as shown in sub-heads A, B, and C of the Supplementary Estimate for Emergency Services is £260,000. This excludes Government purchases of coal for essential services.

asked the Home Secretary when the Supplementary Estimates in connection with the Emergency Powers Bill will be presented?

The Supplementary Estimate for Emergency Services has now been presented.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether a Supplementary Estimate will be needed in connection with the Railways Bill; and if so, when it will be presented?

Yes, Sir. A Supplementary Estimate will be presented in due course, when further progress has been made with the Railways Bill.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the reasons for the erection by the Air Ministry of the model village mentioned in paragraph 12 of the Report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General upon the appropriation account of the receipt and expenditure for Air Services; what was the cost and why the work was continued after airship construction had ceased; whether the Office of Works has yet been successful in disposing of this model village; and, if so, what was the price obtained?

These matters are under the consideration of the Public Accounts Committee appointed by this House, whose Report I would invite the hon. Member to await.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what Act of Parliament gave the Treasury authority to issue the recent 3½ per cent. War Loan Conversion; what amount of sinking fund will be required in the first year under the terms of the conversion; and what would have been the amount of sinking fund required in the first year if the conversion had been made without increasing the original amount of the loan?

The answer to the first part of the question is the War Loan Act, 1919, and Section 60 of the Finance Act, 1916; and to the second part approxi- mately £5,200,000 taking the amount of National War Bonds converted as £160,000,000. The third part is a hypothetical question which does not admit of an answer.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the. additional cost falling on the Exchequer on account of the superior terms offered under the recent scheme of conversion for War Bonds?

Only very approximate figures are at present available. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer hopes towards the end of next week to be in a position to make a statement showing, subject to final adjustments, the amounts of each class of National War Bonds converted, and the amount of new 3½ per cent. Conversion Loan created in exchange. The latest available figures show that approximately £160,000,000 of National War Bonds were converted.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, as the Finance Bill provides that those firms who have not yet completed their accounting period can, if they so desire, compare the values of their stock on the date of their last stock-taking ( i. e., the end of their accounting period but one of the whole term) with the values as at 31st August, 1921, provision will be made that such firms may postpone the date of their stocktaking until 31st August, 1921, so as to avoid the labour and expense of having two stock-takings and two sets of accounts in a period of one or two months; and whether for this purpose it may be assumed that for payment of Excess Profits Duty or the reclaiming of Excess Profits Duty this profit or loss of the period under review ( i. e., from the date of the last accounting period but one to 31st August, 1921) has been made equally for the whole period?

In the cases to which my hon. and gallant Friend refers the Commissioners of Inland Revenue would not decline to accept accounts made up to the 31st August, 1921. In such cases, however, it may be necessary, in order to make a proper apportionment of profits, to take into account, not only the length of the respective periods (namely, the period up to the date of termination of liability and the period subsequent thereto), but also other factors affecting the division of profits as between those periods.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in the case of companies or persons who have hitherto been entitled to calculate Excess Profits Duty on the basis of pre-War profits, he is proposing to alter such pre-War standard by substituting a percentage standard, bearing in mind the serious injustice which will result to those who have hitherto been assessed and have paid on the pre-War basis?

It is not proposed to alter the basis of the pre-War standard by reference to which liability to Excess Profits Duty is computed, and traders will still be entitled to a standard based on their pre-War profits. My hon. and learned Friend perhaps has in mind the provisions of the First Schedule to the Finance Bill, under which the relief proposed to be granted in respect of a fall in value of trading stocks after the termination of the Excess Profits Duty would in part be computed by reference to the percentage standard. These provisions, however, in no way affect the principles on which excess profits are computed during the lifetime of the duty.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what duties to the public service are performed by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster; and what remuneration he receives from public funds?

The duties of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster are to control the management of the Duchy Estates and Revenues, and also, within the County Palatine of Lancaster, to appoint justices of the peace and county court judges, and to direct the administration of the estates of persons dying intestate and without kin, and to perform various duties which in other counties devolve upon the Lord Chancellor or the Home Secretary. His salary of £2,000 a year is paid from the revenues of the Duchy. He receives no remuneration from the Exchequer.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether the German Government has yet announced officially its intention to reimburse German exporters for the deductions made under the German Reparation (Recovery) Act?

Yes, Sir.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if the French or Belgian Governments, having passed legislation on the lines of the German Reparation (Recovery) Act, have yet taken steps to levy the 26 per cent. reparation duty on goods entering France and Belgium from Germany; and, if this has not yet been done, will he have the matter inquired into, seeing that British importers are called upon to make the payments under the Acts and are making them?

I have no precise information on the point. Enquiries are being made.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what is the total net amount at present invested by the British Government in commercial undertakings; what is the present value of the holding; and what is the average rate of interest received?

If the hon. Member will put down an unstarred question asking for the particulars given in Command Paper 180 of 1920 to be brought up to date, I will circulate a statement in that form.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether in April, 1920, claimants for Income Tax repayments in Moss Side, Manchester, were informed that in future claims would be settled locally instead of from London; whether he is aware of the great delays since experienced by such claimants in consequence of the transference of their claims on four successive occasions from one district office to another in Manchester; and whether he will now expedite the settlement of these claims?

The decentralisation of the work on Income Tax repayment claims was commenced on the 1st December, 1920, and under the new scheme (which was recommended by the Royal Commission on the Income Tax) the claims are dealt with locally in the offices of the inspectors of Taxes throughout the country instead of at London. When this scheme is in full working order it will enable the repayments to be materially accelerated. I regret the delay which has occurred in the particular cases to which my hon. and gallant Friend refers: it was due to the necessity which arose to reconstitute the areas of the Tax Districts in Manchester in a period of great pressure, but the Revenue authorities are making every effort to expedite the settlement of the claims in question. In this connection I would invite my hon. and gallant Friend's attention to the reply which I gave on this subject to the hon. Member for South Kensington (Sir W. Davison) on the 13th June. I am sending him a copy of that reply.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any estimate has been presented to the Cabinet showing the amount required to pay compensation to those who have innocently suffered injury or the destruction of their property by the forces of the Crown in Ireland; whether a Cabinet decision has been arrived at on this matter; and whether a; Supplementary Estimate will be required?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative; as regards the second and third parts of the question, the general question of the extension of the Criminal Injuries (Ireland) Acts, 1919 and 1920, is under consideration.

asked the Chief Secretary whether, in the burning of houses owned by persons of rebel sympathies in Ireland, the description of rebel sympathies is applied only to persons who are proved to have participated in outrage, or whether it is also applied to persons who entertain a political belief in an Irish Republic but confine their activities to peaceful and legal methods of securing their political aspirations?

In this connection, persons of rebel sympathies may be taken as meaning persons whose known sympathy with the rebel cause gives moral support and encouragement to those who actually take part in murder and the commission of other crimes of violence against members of the Crown forces and against loyal subjects of the Crown.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that on 15th April, subsequent to the killing of Major McKinnon, a party of Auxiliaries threatened to destroy the town of Tralee; that they were prevented from so doing by the police and military authorities; that thereupon they proceeded in lorries to Ballymacelligott, where they destroyed the creamery, which had just been rebuilt after its destruction last autumn, also several other houses, including the priest's house, and killed a young man, named Reidy; and whether any inquiry has been held into this outbreak and any arrests made?

I have not yet received the report of the Commander-in-Chief in this matter, and I have asked that it may be expedited.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if any Supplementary Estimate will be necessary in consequence of the continued military operations in Turkey?

The only British military force in Turkey is the Army of Occupation in Constantinople. This force is not taking part in any military operations in Turkey. The question therefore does not arise.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the total cost of the expenditure in East Persia, since the Armistice, on the erection of barracks, roads, railways, and cantonments?

I gave all the information in my possession on this subject in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Sevenoaks (Sir T. Bennett) on 17th February last. I am sending the hon. Member a copy.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is approximately the present monthly cost of maintaining our forces in Mesopotamia?

The average monthly cost of our forces in Mesopotamia in the current financial year is estimated at £1,640,000.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether members of the Defence Corps who have been granted leave for indefinite periods that they may carry on their ordinary occupation are at the same time drawing full pay whilst absent from duty?

Members of the Defence Force who have been granted leave are liable to immediate recall and are entitled to pay. No allowances, other than marriage allowance, are drawn by them.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty how many ships completed in 1914 have now become obsolete?

Fifty-three of the ships of the Royal Navy completed during 1914 may now be regarded as obsolete.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether birching with birch rods is still carried out in the Navy, and why birch rods are listed in the naval rating book?

Since September, 1917, by Admiralty orders, birching as a punishment under the Naval Discipline Act has been restricted to ratings under 18 after sentence of court-martial for a first offence of a particular class of crime. This punishment was considered preferable to imprisonment or dismissal from the service, as being less likely to make habitual criminals of ratings not fully adult. I am glad to be able to add that this punishment has only had to be awarded five times during the 3¾ years in which the present orders have been in force.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether the Appeal Board has refused to revise the case of F. J. Taylor, 55, Jenkinson Street, Manchester, and has maintained a 20 per cent. assessment; whether this refusal is in harmony with the report of the medical referee; whether this ex-soldier still has a bullet lying immediately to the left of his heart; and if he will have the case inquired into?

I am having inquiries made in this case, and hope to communicate with my hon. and gallant Friend in a few days.

asked the Minister of Pensions what proportion of medical men whose services are used in examining ex-service men have had experience overseas during the War; and whether he will consider the desirability of the employment of a larger number of such medical men in the interests of those so examined from time to time?

Approximately 60 per cent. of the medical officers employed by my Department in the examination of ex-service men have served overseas during the Great War. It is the practice of the Ministry, other things being equal, to give preference to medical men possessing the qualification to which my hon. Friend refers.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether on Friday last, in company with the Minister for Agriculture, he had an interview with representatives of the Highland Society, the Scottish Farmers' Union, and other representatives of the agriculture industry in Scotland, and made to them a statement explaining the Government's attitude with regard to the proposed repeal of Part I. of the Agricultural Act, 1920; whether this interview was of a confidential nature; and whether he will now make a statement to the House similar to that made to the above-mentioned representatives of the Scottish agricultural industry?

In company with the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, I had a conference on Friday last with representatives of the Highland and Agricultural Society and of the National Farmers' Union of Scotland. The conference was private, as its purpose was to discuss with representative agriculturalists the policy of the Government regarding the Agriculture Act. As that policy has been already announced in this House, it is unnecessary that I should make a further statement on the subject.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that the people of Lennoxtown have at present to walk or drive to Kirkintilloch, which is several miles distant; that those who are employes at the calico works in Lennoxtown are at present receiving their unemployment donation through that firm's office in Lennoxtown; and, if such be the case, whether similar facilities will be given to the other workers in this town, or if he can see his way to open a branch office of the Labour Exchange?

There are, I understand, at the present time, 45 claimants at Lennoxtown, who, in view of a temporary reduction in the train service, cannot use the normal means of transit; and that there are 300 workpeople in Lennoxtown and district on short time who are paid at their employers' premises. This method of payment cannot be applied to the 45 claimants at Lennoxtown, since the claimants come from various places of employment. I am afraid I cannot undertake to open a branch office, on account of the expense which would be involved; but I would point out that the 45 claimants are required to attend at Kirkintilloch only on two days a week.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether Income Tax is deducted from the pay of Indian Army officers serving in Mesopotamia?

My right hon. Friend has asked me to reply. Indian Army officers in Mesopotamia drawing their Indian Army rates of pay are assessed at the Indian rates of Income Tax.

asked the Secretary of State for India what arrangements have been made to meet the financial difficulties of the officers of the Indian Army studying Japanese in Japan owing to their salaries being inadequate at the present rate of exchange?

In December last special exchange concessions were sanctioned for these officers. The need for further concessions is at present under discussion with the War Office and Admiralty, who are also concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he will instruct the Government of India to appoint a joint committee of the Council of State and Legislative Assembly to consider what can be done to put the prison administration on a more humane footing?

I propose to await the Government of India's opinions on the Report of the Jails Committee as a whole.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether, in view of the comments made in the Indian Press by demobilised officers detained in India, he can take any steps to remove their grievances?

Yes, Sir. In reply to a question by the hon. and gallant Member for Melton (Sir C. Yate), I stated on the 18th April that I understood that the Government of India had telegraphed two months previously that the accommodation on troopships exceeded the demand by 1,000 berths. I added that if the hon. and gallant Member could let me have particulars and any recent details I would make inquiries. At the time that I gave this reply I was not aware that the position had unexpectedly become worse during the period of two months to which I referred. The trooping arrangements are made between the War Office and the Government of India who were in direct correspondence on the subject. This correspondence did not come before my notice, and I regret that my answer, though strictly correct as far as it went, conveyed the impression that the position was better than it actually was. The facts were, however, brought to my notice and inquiry was made of the Government of India within a few days. They had already taken steps to meet the situation by engaging all the available steamship passages from Indian ports. There is every reason to think all the officers in question, and their families, will all have been provided with passages very shortly.

asked the Minister of Health whether, seeing the present position of the Ministry's housing schemes, he can now save public money by discontinuing the publication of the journal, "Housing," and dispense with the services of his propaganda staff in connection with the housing subsidy and the sale of Housing Bonds?

I propose to discontinue the publication of the journal, "Housing," and I have already made considerable reductions in the Publicity Branch.

asked the Minister of Health (1) whether the Rural District Council of the Isle of Wight have com- menced any of the 58 houses referred to by his Department; if so, how many; and whether any steps have been taken by that authority with respect to the other 43 houses contemplated in their new schemes;

(2) if he is now in a position to state, with respect to each parish in the rural district of the Isle of Wight, what is the approximate number of houses occupied or intended for occupation by members of the working classes within the meaning of the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1919; how many of those houses are not in all respects reasonably fit for human habitation; how many of those houses actually are unfit for human habitation; how many cannot be rendered fit for such habitation without reconstruction; what is the number of new houses which the rural district council proposes, under their original scheme, to erect in each parish; what is the number of new houses proposed to be so erected under their new scheme; and, in the event of such information being still unavailable, what steps have been taken by his Department to obtain it?

I understand that the 48 houses to which the hon. Member refers have not been commenced. The rest of the information which the hon. Member desires could only be obtained by a detailed inspection, and I do not think that this would be justified at the present time. I am, however, considering what it may be possible to undertake in this area, having regard to existing circumstances and the needs of other localities.

asked the Minister of Health if he will take into consideration, in view of the large amount of unemployment and consequent distress, the advisability of making an allowance in contributions, under the National Health Insurance Act, so as to prevent a reduction in benefits to those who are drawing allowances under the Act?

The matter to which the hon. Member refers is receiving my serious consideration, in the hope that it may be possible to do something in the direction suggested.

asked the Minister of Health how soon he proposes to have posted up in the waiting-rooms of public asylums the provisions of Section 79 of the Lunacy Act, 1890. which have hitherto been hidden from the friends and relatives of patients?

The Board of Control have notified all Visiting Committees that they propose to make a rule requiring the inclusion of the substance of this Section in the "Regulations as to Visitation" furnished by all asylums to the friends of patients. There is, however, no foundation for the suggestion contained in the last part of the question.

asked the Minister of Health whether the Lunacy Board of Control has recently issued a Regulation putting a stop to the certification of voluntary boarders while inmates of licensed houses or registered hospitals; and, in view of the fact that no procedure for certification has been prescribed by the Lunacy Act of 1890 applicable to the circumstances of such boarders, what has been the nature of the steps required to be taken under Section 20 of the Act of 1891, when certification has hitherto been directed by the Board?

The hon. and gallant Member is under a misapprehension, and no such Regulation has been issued. No steps have been taken by the Board, and none are needed, to give effect to Section 20 of the Lunacy Act, 1891. The methods of certification are laid down in the Acts.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has consulted the President of the Board of Trade, as promised on the 26th of April, with reference to the desirability of amending The Merchant Shipping Act, 1906, Section 34, Sub-section (1), as desired by all interests concerned; and whether he will urge the Government to give facilities for the passing of an amending Bill?

I am in communication with my right hon. Friend on this question, and will acquaint the hon. Member of the result as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Health whether an old age pensioner ceases to be entitled to receive his pension on entering a Poor Law infirmary on the ground that the cost of his maintenance is borne by the institution so long as he is an inmate; and, if so, on what ground the pension is stopped in cases where the cost of maintenance is borne by relatives or friends of the pensioner?

In the former case Section 3 (1) of the Old Age Pensions Act, 1919, provides that an old age pensioner shall not be disqualified for the receipt of a pension during a period of three months from the date of entering an infirmary if he so long continues to require medical or surgical treatment. After that period he incurs disqualification. In the latter case the pensioner ceases to be entitled to a pension so soon as his means, which include the cost of maintenance borne by relatives or friends, exceed the statutory limit of £49 17s. 6d. per annum.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs why Sir Murdoch Macdonald, the adviser to the Public Works and Irrigation Department of the Government of Egypt, has resigned his appointment?

Sir M. Macdonald resigned when the Egyptian Government found themselves unable to proceed with the White Nile scheme, for which he is responsible. This decision was due not to any technical unsoundness in the scheme, but solely to the fact that the Egyptian Government learnt recently and without timely warning that the cost of the dam and subsidiary works would so greatly exceed the earlier estimates as to place the execution of the project beyond their present financial resources.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Government has any information to the effect that the Anglo-American Oil Company, which is the British branch of the Standard Oil Company, proposes to increase its capital by a further issue in this country?

A statement to this effect has been noted in the Press.

asked the Minister of Agriculture at what price per gallon milk is sold in Somerset and at what price it is sold in London?

I have no precise information in regard to the price of milk in Somerset, but the average prices at which contracts have been made for the summer months for milk delivered into London, producer paying carriage, are as follows: May and June, 1s. 2d. to 1s. 3d.; July, 1s. 4d. to 1s. 6d.; August, 1s. 6d. to 1s. 8d.; and September, 1s. 8d. to 1s. 10d. I understand that the price at which milk is being sold retail in London is usually 8d. per quart.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether any part of the herring fishery guarantee has been recovered; and, if so, what is the amount of the same?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. With regard to the second part it is not possible to give even an approximately accurate figure at the present time as a very large proportion of the herrings are being sold through agents in different parts of the Continent, and, in the natural course of events, accounts of these sales do not come forward for some considerable time, with the result that it is impossible to state at any given moment either the amount of herrings which have been sold or the amount of money realised for them.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether the meeting of officials of the British and the Dutch and Belgian Governments, arranged to take place at the end of last month, with a view to the slaughtering in this country of old horses required for food in Holland and Belgium has taken place; and whether such meeting has resulted in an agreement being reached on the subject?

Yes, Sir; the meeting in question has taken place, and the proposals put forward on behalf of the Ministry to secure the slaughter in this country of old horses required for food on the Continent received most sympathetic consideration from the officials representing the French, Belgian, and Dutch Governments. The Ministry is issuing invitations for a further conference in London about the end of the present month, when it is hoped that a definite plan will be formulated.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the need for public economy, he can state the amount of money expended in subsidising associations of farmers to erect and equip factories for handling dairy produce; and whether he still proposes to continue this assistance?

Loans amounting approximately to £6,500 were made in 1919 by the Ministry for the purpose mentioned. No loan has been made since 1919. The answer to the last part of the question is in the negative.

asked the Home Secretary whether, in view of the fact that a constable who retires on a medical certificate has on his parchment only a record as to his character, he will consider the question of advising the authorities to furnish the pensioner with a copy of the police surgeon's certificate, as it is difficult for pensioners to supplement their small pensions by obtaining employment when the prospective employer is in ignorance of the nature of the complaint which rendered the pensioner unfit for police duty?

My right hon. Friend is not prepared to recommend the adoption of this course, as in many cases it would not be in the interests of the pensioner, and many men would object strongly.

asked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been drawn to the inspection of the police force at Grantham by Major-General Atcherley, who stated that he would not recognise a policewoman as being on the authorised strength of the force, and who ordered the appointment of another man to bring the force up to its authorised strength; whether this statement is in accord with the Home Office policy as, regards women police; and whether, in view of the prevalent uncertainty about the position of women police in the minds of many local authorities, he will send a circular to chief constables drawing attention to the conclusions and recommendations of the Report of the Committee on the Employment of Women on Police Duties?

General Atcherley at his last inspection drew attention to a vacancy in the force, and said he considered it should be filled as the full authorised strength is no more than sufficient for the needs of the town. He did not consider that the substitution of a police woman would meet the requirements of the case, and I may point out that the Committee of which I was Chairman supported the view that women cannot be regarded as sutaitutes for men in a police force (see paragraph 12 of their Report). My right hon. Friend sent a circular some time ago drawing the attention of all chief constables to the Committee's recommendations.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what arrangements exist between His Majesty's Government and nickel companies; what liabilities are outstanding; if any public money has been subscribed for such companies; and whether any deliveries of nickel have been made and any interest paid on investments of public money?

His Majesty's Government have no arrangements with any nickel companies except as holders of "A" Income Bonds for $3,000,000 issued by the British America Nickel Corporation, Limited, under a, scheme of re-organisation of the corporation, which provided, inter alia, for the cancellation of an agreement entered into by the Government for the purchase of nickel from the corporation. The amount of public money originally subscribed and now represented by Income Bonds is £629,618. No deliveries of nickel have been made to the Government and no interest has been received on the investment.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department on what date the British Trade Mission to Moscow will arrive in Russia; what are the names and qualifications of those composing the mission; what will be their special duty; what will be the initial cost of establishing quarters in Moscow; and what will be the annual cost of the mission?

It is hoped that the British trade mission will be able to proceed to Moscow at an early date. Its duties will be those provided for under the Trade Agreement. As regards the rest of the question, I am not yet in a position to give a complete reply.

asked the Postmaster-General the amount that was paid to employés in the General Post Office postal, telegraph, and telephone services for the year 1920; and, if these figures are not available, whether he will give the last figures, weekly, monthly, or annual that are available?

The amount paid to employés in the General Post Office postal, telegraph, and telephone services, charged in the Commercial Accounts for the year to the 31st March, 1921, was approximately £45,000,000, divided in the following manner: Postal £29,900,000 Telegraph £7,000,000 Telephone £8,100,000 £45,000,000

To make up the total wages bill of the Post Office it would be necessary to add certain items amounting in all to £4,400,000, which were chargeable to capital, or recoverable from the savings bank fund.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether he can inform the House as to the date upon which the Burnham schedules of salaries will be published, and whether such schedules will respect Clause 19 of the Burnham Report?

I regret that I am not in a position to make a statement on this matter, which is still under consideration by the Government.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether on two occasions recently Chief Inspector Rabbit, of Freetown, Sierra Leone, has been successfully proceeded against in the local court of Sierra Leone; and whether it is proposed to retain this official in his present capacity?

This case has been considered. I am advised that Chief Inspector Rabbit had been at the most guilty only of excusable errors of judgment, and in these circumstances I do not propose to direct that any steps should be taken for his removal from his substantive office.

asked the Minister of Transport whether a Government pool of passenger motor cars is still in existence; and, if so, by whom such cars are used?

As stated in the reply given to the Noble Lord the Member for Battersea, South (Viscount Curzon), on the 25th April, the Government pool of passenger motor-cars ceased to exist on the 13th January last.