asked the Chief Secretary whether his attention has been drawn to the shooting, at Mullinagown, Borris, County Carlow, on 18th April, 1921, of Michael Ryan, aged 62, and his two cousins, James Farrell and Peter Farrell; if he is aware that Ryan was drawing water from his own well at the time and was known to be a peaceful man unconnected with the rebels, and that James and Peter Farrell were walking to their work after their dinner at the time that they were shot; and whether any arrests have been made in connection with these shootings?

According to the police report, a patrol of Crown forces came upon a fully armed party of about 15 rebels and a running fight ensued, in the course of which 4 civilians, including these 3 men, were killed and at least two others wounded. Ryan was apparently shot just outside his house which was in the line of advance of the Crown forces. It is believed by the police that the Farrells were not actually drilling, but that they ran away with the rebels. An unoccupied house in the vicinity had apparently been used as a barrack, and arms and ammunition were found there. The Court of Inquiry found that these men were killed during an action between Crown forces and armed rebels.

asked the Chief Secretary whether a court of inquiry has been held into the death of John O'Donnell, blacksmith, at Queens-town, on 31st May, stated to have been shot by one of three officers of the Cameron Highlanders after a conversation between them and O'Donnell; what was the finding of the court; and whether any arrests have been made?

The Court of Inquiry in lieu of inquest in the case of John O'Connell of Carrignafoy, which is, I think, the case to which the hon. and gallant Member refers, found that the deceased was killed by the accidental discharge of a pistol by a military officer. In the execution of his duty the officer was "covering" the deceased at the time. He has been found to have been guilty of negligence and has been censured by his brigade commander.

asked the Chief Secretary how many members of the Crown forces in Ireland have been punished since 1st January for the destruction of houses or other property in unofficial reprisals?

No soldiers have been punished for offences of this nature since 1st January last. Action is proceeding against certain soldiers for the destruction of shop windows and other damage at Youghal, but the results of the trials are not yet to hand. No police have been punished for such offences during the period named.

asked the Chief Secretary if his attention has been called to a signed statement of Lieut.-Colonel Napier, the Officer Commanding Kilkenny, denying the report issued from Dublin Castle to the Press which stated that, while walking in the direction of Thomastown on the afternoon of the 5th instant, Private A. Yorke, 2nd Green Howards, who was unarmed, was held up by three armed masked men, who fired at him, seriously wounding him in the left leg and right hand; and whether, as the denial comes from a responsible officer in Kilkenny, he proposes to take any action?

The hon. Member is under a total misapprehension. The official report correctly described an incident which took place at Thomastown, County Tipperary, and in which an unarmed soldier was waylaid and savagely mutilated by masked rebels with the expressed object of rendering him permanently incapable of using a rifle. The communication addressed to the local Press by the Officer Commanding, Kilkenny, was merely for the purpose of correcting an incorrect report which described this atrocious outrage as having taken place in Thomastown, County Kilkenny. I am glad to say that the newspaper imputation upon which the hon. Member presumably based his question was subsequently withdrawn with an expression of regret.

asked the Home Secretary if persons interned in Ireland for acting in a manner prejudicial to the restoration of order in Ireland are informed of the precise grounds for this charge; and, if not, how they can rebut such charge?

In view of the grave danger which would in many cases ensue to persons giving information, the practice is not to supply interned persons with a formal statement of the evidence against them. If they apply to the Advisory Committee the evidence against them is indicated, as far as possible, when they appear before the Committee, and they are given the fullest oportunity of answering it. They are heard in person by the Committee at the internment camps.

asked the Minister of Health on what grounds the regrading scheme of the health insurance officers in his Department reduced the maximum of the grade by £20 in the case of women, while increasing it by £50 in the case of the men, thus adopting the scale of the lower clerical grade of the Reorganisation Report; and why this grade of women, appointed in 1912 with the same maximum as their male colleagues doing the same work, should have their scale reduced to conform to the recommendations of a Committee whose terms of reference were restricted to the clerical grades of the service, seeing that their work is not clerical, and that their former scale bore no relation to the scale of the former women clerks?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Plymouth (Viscountess Astor) on 12th April last, of which I am sending a copy to him.

asked the Minister of Health how many officials in his Department at present receive a salary of £1,000, including War bonus, or over; and how many received a salary of £1,000 or over in June, 1914?

The number of officers of the Ministry in receipt of a substantive salary of £1,000 a year or upwards is 83. In the original Departments out of which the Ministry of Health was created the number was 29. In addition to these numbers, there are 215 officers receiving a substantive salary ranging between £570 and £1,000 a year, who, with the addition of the present War bonus, are drawing upwards of £1,000 a year. The reduction of the War bonus contemplated to take effect on the 1st September next will reduce this latter figure by some 150, and the total figure will be still further decreased by reductions in staff which I am now making.

asked the Minister of Agriculture how many officials in his Department at present receive a salary of £1,000, including War bonus, or over; and how many received a salary of £1,000, or over, in June, 1914?

The number of officials of the Ministry who are at present receiving salaries, including bonus of £1,000 a year or over is 84. The corresponding figure in June, 1914, was 11. I may point out, however, that the work of the Ministry has greatly increased since 1914 and also that a salary of £1,000 at the present time is worth very much less than the same salary in 1914. If a comparison is made between the number of officials receiving £500 a year and over in 1914 and those receiving £1,000 a year and over at the present time the relative numbers are 68 and 84. Moreover, the amount of bonus payable at present will be substantially reduced on the 1st September as a result of the reduction in the cost of living.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty how many officers and officials in his Department at present receive a salary of £1,000 or over; and how many received such salaries in 1914?

The numbers are as follow:— Officers. Officials. June, 1914 36 37 June, 1921 247 44 (excluding War bonus).

asked the Minister of Labour the number of ex-officers and men who have been substituted by the Joint Substitution Board of the Ministry of Labour for non-service men in Government Departments, i.e., men who obtained their appointments during the War and had no military or naval service?

I have been asked to reply. Between the 13th September, 1920, and the 17th June, 1921, 8,694 ex-service men and women were allocated by the Joint Substitution Board to Government Departments in London to fill vacancies of a temporary nature, arising as a result either of substitution, staff wastage, or increase of work. In addition, a considerable number of ex-service men and women have been appointed to temporary posts in Government Departments in the Provinces, but the exact numbers are not immediately available. These figures do not include the very numerous cases in which ex-service personnel, whose work has come to an end, has been substituted for non-service personnel employed in the same Department.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when examinations will be held by the Civil Service Commissioners for girl sorters and girl writers?

Open competitions for the classes of writing assistant and sorting assistant will be resumed as soon as the claims of the existing temporary staff have been met. I am not in a position to fix a definite date at present.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will give the particulars of the housing schemes he has recently vetoed; and what conclusion he has reached as to the minimum requirements of the State housing scheme?

I am not sure what are the precise particulars which the hon. and gallant Member desires, but pending a conclusion as to the minimum requirements I am withholding sanction to new housing schemes except in special cases.

asked the Minister of Health the amount of compensation to be paid to contractors for each house under the provisions of Contract No. 3 in the event of the break clause operating; and if he will give the number of houses vetoed by the Ministry to which this Clause applies?

In a No. 3 contract the work is divided into such sections as the architect may determine. Under the break Clause 14 days' notice may be given. No payment in respect of profit is due in respect of sections not started. In respect of sections started but not completed profit remuneration at the rate per house provided for in the contract is payable in respect of each house included in the section. Any liabilities or commitments which the contractor may have incurred for the purpose of the works in so far as the determination of the contract involves an actual loss to him are made good. I am not at present in a position to give information regarding the negotiations for curtailing contracts in this form.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will give particulars of the rents sanctioned by his Department for the occupation of new houses recently completed by local authorities under the ægis of the Ministry; and the total cost of the subsidised houses in each case?

A return has recently been prepared showing the weekly rents which have been fixed for new houses completed by local authorities, and I am sending a copy to the hon. and gallant Member. Houses are, of course, occupied and rents fixed before the final costs under the contract are ascertained, but the total building costs of parlour houses, as far as particulars are available, vary from £797 to £1,266.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the widespread prevalence of unemployment and the consequent distress in so many working-class homes and of the reductions in wages in so many industries, he will consider the withdrawal or postponement of the permission to increase rents by a further 10 per cent. next month?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the answer given by the Prime Minister to a similar question on the 26th May.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if he will reconsider the decision to allow a further increase in rent on and after 1st July; whether he is aware that a considerable number of tenants will be unable to pay such increase, and that property owners' associations, notably in Padiham, have decided by resolution to postpone for a period the imposition of any further increase owing to the sustained depression in trade?

I have not seen the resolution referred to, and I regret that I can add nothing to the previous replies on this subject.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been called to the pollution of the River Lea by sewage; whether its present state constitutes a menace to public health; whether he will take steps for the purpose of remedying the present state of affairs?

I am not aware that the present state of the River Lea con- stitutes a menace to public health, but if the hon. Member has any information to support the suggestion I shall be much obliged if he will supply me with it so that I may consider what action should be taken.

asked the Minister of Health on what date an arrangement was arrived at by which a new journalistic enterprise was advertised on the back of the official notice accompanying the recently issued Census Schedules; and whether that arrangement was arrived at by competitive offers by open tender or, if not, by what other method?

The advertisement contract for the space on the back of the leaflets issued with the Census Schedules was awarded on the 11th May. The information asked for in the last part of the question was given in my reply to the hon. Member for West Ham (Mr. J. Jones) on the 16th instant.

asked the Secretary of State for India what were the credentials of the Islamic Deputation to this country and by whom was Mr. Kidwai selected; what was the cost of the hospitality afforded to this Deputation by His Majesty's Government; what subsidies they received; and whether the amount paid was that demanded?

The gentleman referred to came to this country under the auspices of the Government of India, and as representing the Moslems of India, to place before His Majesty's Government the views of their community on the Treaty of Sevres. When the Deputation was first received by me, Mr. Kidwai was introduced by His Highness the Aga Khan as one of its members. In accordance with the recommendation of the Government of India the expenses of the delegation will be met from Indian revenues. I cannot at present state the precise amount involved. The statements submitted by the members of the delega- tion have been referred to the Government of India for examination and settlement in India as far as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for India the result of the inquiry, which he sent to the Government of India regarding the conditions at Deolali camp?

The Government of India have reported that punkahs and fans are considered unnecessary at Deolali, which is a hill station; and that the camp has been inspected by officers from Army Headquarters and by the Colonel Commandant, Bombay, who report that there is no reasonable ground for complaint either as regards messing or accommodation.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that J. Humphreys, 87, Govan Road, Govan, Joseph Johnston, 23, McLellan Street, and William McCaig, 71, Smith Street, were dismissed from their employment on 1st April owing to slackness of trade, and have been signing at the Employment Exchange since 4th April; whether none of these men have yet received any money and that no reason has been assigned for the non-payment; and whether he will take action to have the unemployment benefit paid to these men, together with arrears, from the date of signing?

I am making inquiries in these cases and will communicate the result to my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Labour whether the labour appeal boards are refusing claims made by unemployed people on the grounds that these workers are not looking for work; and whether, seeing that the onus of proof lies with the exchanges, and that this proof consists of the refusal of the applicants to accept an employment exchange offer of suitable employment, and in view of the large number of cases which have been refused employment benefit by these boards without such proof having been submitted by the exchanges, he will have instructions issued that unemployment benefit shall be paid in such cases where such proof has not been submitted?

It is a statutory condition for the receipt of benefit under Section 3 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1921, that the applicant shall prove that he is genuinely seeking whole-time employment, and is unable to obtain it; the Section clearly lays the onus of proof upon the applicant. This is a general condition and is not necessarily connected with a specific refusal of an offer of suitable employment—which is an additional ground for disqualification. If my hon. Friend has any case or cases in which he thinks injustice has been done I will make inquiry concerning them.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that Mr. Frear, 16, Mercer Street, Newton-le-Willows, was advised by his panel doctor to give up his then employment and seek lighter work, but before giving up work he secured another job; that after serving his notice and presenting himself to his intended new employer he was prevented from starting work owing to the coal dispute, with the result that he signed on at the Employment Exchange; whether benefit was refused from the date of his application until the 25th May; and, if so, on what grounds was the earlier period not regarded as unemployment?

I am informed that the officers of the Ministry had no knowledge of the advice given by the panel doctor in the case of Mr. Frear. This applicant first claimed benefit on the 8th March, and, as it appeared that he left his employment of his own accord, the insurance officer disallowed his claim for six weeks. Mr. Frear did not take advantage of his right to appeal to a Court of Referees. He made a fresh claim on the 23rd May, on which benefit is now being paid. As he did not renew his claim between the expiry of the period of disqualification and the 23rd May, no period of unemployment prior to the 23rd May can be taken into account for benefit.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that men following the occupation of bleachers and dyers have been working short time in the Lancashire district of Newton-le-Willows since last December; that owing to the cotton trade dispute some of these men have been and are now unemployed, and that their unemployment benefit has been stopped or refused as a result of this dispute; that these men suffered a wages reduction last month, being in no way connected with the textile workers; and whether, in these circumstances, he will explain why unemployment benefit is not paid?

Inquiries are being made into the matter, and I will communicate the result to my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Labour the figures of the total number of unemployed men, women, boys and girls registered on the Leith register on the 11th June, 1921, and the corresponding figures for 1920?

The numbers of unemployed persons registered at the Leith Employment Exchange at 10th June, 1921, and 11th June, 1920, were as under: 10th June, 11th June, 1921. 1920. Men 4,656 663 Women 713 98 Boys 288 82 Girls 257 27 Total 5,914 870

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that people who reside in North Manchester, Harpurhey, Blackley, and Cheetham Hill have to travel some distance to the nearest employment exchange, the people in Blackley having to travel three miles to Newton Heath; and whether he will consider the possibility of establishing an exchange in the Harpurhey district?

I am not satisfied on the facts and figures before me that there is a case for providing additional local office facilities for the North Man Chester district, but I am arranging for further inquiries to be made involving a detailed analysis of the live registers at the Manchester, Newton Heath, and Middleton Employment Exchanges, and will communicate the result to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will refer back for further consideration by the Grocery and Provision Trades Board the new rates of wages which have been submitted to the Minister of Labour for confirmation, in view of the fact that these rates were first agreed to by the board when the cost of living was 175 per cent. above the 1914 level, whereas at the time that the Minister of Labour is asked to confirm the rates the cost of living is only 128 per cent. above the 1914 level?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the answer which I gave to a similar question on this subject this afternoon, a copy of which I am sending him.

asked the Minister of Labour how many days' work in the aggregate have been lost in Great Britain by labour disputes in the years 1919 and 1920, and to the latest available date in 1921, respectively?

The aggregate duration of all trade disputes involving stoppage of work, so far as reported to the Ministry of Labour, was approximately, 34,900,000 working days in 1919, and 27,000,000 working days in 1920. From the beginning of the present year until the end of May (the latest date to which statistics have been compiled) the corresponding number of working days lost was approximately 47,800,000, and when allowance is made for the continuation of the coal mining dispute and for other disputes known to have occurred during June, the total to the present date is estimated at over 70,000,000 days. These figures include time lost by workpeople thrown out of work, owing to the disputes, at the establishments where the disputes occurred, as well as by those actually on strike or locked-out, but not the time lost by those workpeople rendered idle at other establishments, as to which statistics are not available.

asked the Minister of Pensions why ex-Sergeant Arthur Collins, No. 30,519, Royal Garrison Artillery, who served 10 years in the army with a clean record of service, and is now totally disabled by ex-ophthalmic goitre, has been refused a pension; and whether this man was pronounced by Dr. Murray, of Manchester, to whom he was sent by the Carlisle War Pensions Committee, to be suffering as a direct result of his War experiences, and as having contracted this disease in 1917 whilst serving in France prior to his service in the Gretna police force?

The application for pension (made more than a year after demobilisation) was very carefully considered in the light of all the available evidence, and rejected on the ground that no connection had been established between the disablement and service. This decision has been confirmed by the Pensions Appeal Tribunal and is, therefore, final.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether he is aware that Mrs. Dunlop, 15, Langlands Road, Govan, has made application for arrears of pension; that her husband, Robert Dunlop, was drowned on 16th August, 1917, when his ship the s.s. "Athenia," was torpedoed off the coast of Ireland; that she was in receipt of £6 18s. 3d. per month for herself and children; whether a war risks compensation scheme was amended on 1st September, 1919; whether this woman is now receiving £6 18s. 3d. per month instead of per quarter and that this sum commenced in August, 1920; whether she is entitled to the arrears of pension from September, 1919, until August, 1920; and whether he will issue instructions for such arrears to be paid?

I have been asked to answer this question as Mrs. Dunlop's pension is being paid under the War Risks Compensation Scheme administered by the Board of Trade. I am sending the hon. Members particulars of the scheme, from which he will see that in cases where money was paid into court under the Workmen's Compensation Act, the final pension awarded dates from the time when the money in court was exhausted. Mrs. Dunlop's pension was increased as from August, 1920, in accordance with this provision of the Scheme, and no arrears are due.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been called to the recent increased cost of postages issued by the Post Office and to the effect they will have on the expenses of all candidates for local elections, especially in London where there are so many local elections; and whether he will approach the Post Office as to instituting a local post service at a cheap rate to be available for local election postage?

I have been asked to reply. My attention has been called to the matter. I have consulted my right hon. Friend the Postmaster-General, and am informed that the hon. Member's suggestion as to a cheap local rate of postage is not one which he sees his way to adopt.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will consider the special case of the thrift, friendly, and other approved societies general in the matter of higher postal rates, seeing that much of their business is done through the postal service, and, in the case of the Hearts of Oak Benefit Society alone, nearly 3,250,000 communications by post were sent out and 2,750,000 were received from members during 1920; and whether a rebate of the increased postal rates in the case of such organisations established for the benefit of a deserving section of the people can be made?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to a similar question put by the hon. Member for Frome (Mr. Hurd) on the 9th June.

asked the Postmaster-General whether, in the event of any agreement being contemplated be- tween the Government and the Marconi Company as to wireless services between England and the Continent, the draft will be laid before Parliament?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given on the 31st ultimo to a similar question by the hon. Member for Smethwick (Mr. J. Davison). I regret that I am unable to add anything to that answer.

asked the Postmaster-General the amount of overtime 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?

I am having the figures compiled, and will send them to my hon. Friend as soon as they are ready.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he received a letter from the Federation of British Industries, dated 8th June, demanding an advisory committee of competent business persons with plenary powers to reform and reorganise the business of the Post Office; whether the advisory committee recently set up at the Post Office was set up in response to the request from this body; and whether, in order to make the position clear, he will state the conditions and powers under which the advisory committee will deliberate?

My decision to establish a Business Advisory Council in connection with the Post Office was taken early in May, and the letters of invitation were sent out on June 2nd. The function of the Council will be to advise me on the business aspect of matters of policy which I may refer to them either on my own initiative or at the suggestion of members of the Council.

asked the Secretary for Scotland why the hours for licensed houses are from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. in the county of Peebles, and still only from 12 noon to 2.30 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the county of Midlothian; and why, if it is not considered desirable to revert to pre-War hours, similar hours should not be allowed in both counties?

My right hon. Friend has asked me to reply to this question. It would not be possible to impose the hours current in a scheduled area like Midlothian upon the unscheduled county of Peebles without legislation.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether in certain instances exception has been taken to the appointments to the panels of arbiters, under the Agriculture Act, 1920; and what steps are taken to secure the appointment of universally esteemed practical agriculturists?

I am aware that in some quarters exception has been taken to the present panel of arbiters appointed for Scotland under the Agriculture Act, 1920. The appointment of the panel rests with the Lord President of the Court of Session. I am not in a position to answer the last part of the question.

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

The estimated monthly cost of our forces in Egypt in the current financial year is £495,000, as shown on page 17 of the Army Estimates.

asked the Home Secretary whether he would be willing to appoint a woman when next a vacancy occurs to be filled amongst the Prison Commissioners?

My right hon. Friend is sorry that he cannot adopt this suggestion. The work of the Prison Commissioners is too heavy to make it possible to replace any of them by a woman with- out administrative experience of prisons, and to add a paid woman would involve an expenditure which could not be justified. The number of women prisoners is now very small, there is already a woman inspector of prisons, and women justices have been appointed to the Visiting Committees of all the chief prisons in which women are detained.

asked the Home Secretary whether any American citizens have been deported under the Aliens Act during the last month; and, if so, can he give their names and reasons why their residence in this country was considered undesirable?

In the four weeks ending 11th June four American citizens were deported. Their names are Jack Robinson alias Williams, Edgar Fritz Gibbons, Charles Dunn, and Prentis Earl McMillan. The reasons for deportation were in the first case larceny, in the second begging, and in the other two illegally landing in this country without permission.

asked the Home Secretary (1) the cost per head of the maintenance of persons undergoing sentences for criminal offences in Great Britain;

(2) the cost per head of the maintenance of adult paupers in Poor Law institutions throughout Great Britain, and the cost per head of the maintenance, as distinct from education, of pauper children?

I can only give the figures for England and Wales, and I assume "cost of maintenance" to mean the cost of victualling, clothing, bedding, medicines and similar requirements, and the cost of warming, lighting, cleaning, etc. On this basis the cost per head for maintenance in prisons and Borstal institutions for the year ending the 31st March, 1920—the latest period for which figures are available—was £27 1s. 3d. As regards paupers, I am informed by the Ministry of Health that the main- tenance of adults cannot be separated from that of the children living in the same institutions. For the year ending the 31st March, 1920, the average cost of maintenance per head for inmates of general Poor Law institutions was about £32; and the average cost of maintenance for children in separate Poor Law homes for children was £27 19s. 0d.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total expenditure falling on the Army, Munitions or other Votes in connection with military and naval operation in Russia since the Armistice?

The total expenditure is approximately £57,135,000, including expenditure on South Russian refugees.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury whether it is proposed to adopt the recommendation of the Seventh Report of the National Expenditure Committee, 1918, to abandon the present basis of Estimates and Accounts, which is of little value for purposes of control, and remodel them in a form of greater significance and utility?

I would refer my right hon. Friend to the answer which I gave on Monday to the hon. Member for Harrow (Mr. Mosley).

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the amount of death duties paid upon property for the financial years ending March, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, and 1921; and the number of adults who died during the same time without property that was worth taking the trouble to pay a few shillings to obtain authority of the Inland Revenue to be legally dealt with?

The information available is given in the annexed table:

Year ended 31st March. Exchequer Receipt (all Death Duties). Net Receipt of Estate Duty including Settlement Estate Duty. Number of Estates liable to Duty. Year ended 31st Dec. Number of Deaths in the United Kingdom. Of all ages. Age 21 and over (Irish figures estimated). £ £ 1916 … 31,035,000 24,363,378 81,676 1915 720,035 491,243 1917 … 31,232,000 25,097,630 84,998 1916 650,248 467,403 1918 … 31,674,000 25,742,554 83,370 1917 641,129 462,773 1919 … 30,262,000 25,143,566 91,499 1918 768,928 536,417 1920 … 40,904,000 36,637,708 104,841 1919 657,964 486,490 1921 … 47,729,000 Not available. 1920 Not available.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether steps have been taken to ascertain the opinion of British merchants and traders actually resident in China on the subject of the proposed renewal of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance; and whether his attention has been called to the fact that all classes in China are united in their opposition to the renewal of the Treaty?

His Majesty's Government are aware of the views generally held by the British commercial community in China. As regards the second part of the question, I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question put on the 21st instant.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is prepared to consider the advisability of reintroducing the Factories and Workshops (Bakehouses) Bill, in view of the considerable support accorded this Measure by the medical profession, both on hygienic and other grounds, and the comparative unimportance of the work done at night?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the question asked yesterday by the hon. and gallant Member for the West Willesden Division (Lieut.-Colonel Pinkham).

asked the Minister of Transport if his attention has been directed to the dissatisfaction that exists in the police department of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Company in consequence of out-of-pocket expenses having been deducted from the officers' retrospective wages from January, 1920, contrary to the agreement arranged between the committee of general managers and the accredited representatives of the railway police; and can he take any action in order to have these amounts paid to the police officers concerned?

I am informed that it is not the case that out-of-pocket expenses, which were incurred by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Company's police officers when engaged on inquiries, were deducted from the amounts paid in respect of the increases in wages which were retrospective to 1st January, 1920. A deduction was made in respect of a special weekly allowance which had previously been granted in addition to out-of-pocket expenses, but I am informed that the staff have always been granted out-of-pocket expenses even to the smallest amounts.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is now in a position to make any statement as to the negotiations with Continental countries with regard to the worn-out horse traffic?

As stated in my reply to my hon. Friend, the Member for York (Sir J: Butcher), on the 15th inst., the Ministry hopes to be able to arrange a conference with the officials representing the French, Belgian and Dutch Governments about the end of the present month, when it is hoped that a definite plan will be formulated.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what was the cost of the Wages Board and district committees for the years 1920–21; and what was the cost of the Ministry's inspectors to enforce the Board's decisions during that period?

The cost of the Agricultural Wages Board and of the district wages committees for the financial year ending 31st March, 1921, amounted to £88,040. This sum includes the cost of the Wages Board Inspectorate amounting to approximately £18,322.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether, although it is stated in the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act, 1919, that a person shall not be disqualified by sex or marriage from the exercise of any public function or from carrying on any civic profession or vocation, women teachers on marriage are being dismissed by local education authorities, and are thus being prevented from serving the number of years necessary to qualify for a pension under the School Teachers' Superannuation Act, 1918; whether, seeing that the dismissal of married women teachers and the refusal to reappoint them makes of no effect Section 1 (3) of the School Teachers' Superannuation Act, 1918, which allows married women teachers to qualify for a pension on 20 years' service if they return to the teaching service, what steps is he prepared to take in order to prevent married women teachers from being debarred by local education authorities from qualifying for pensions under the Superannuation Act, 1918?

I am aware that some local education authorities are unwilling to employ married women as teachers, and consequently a married woman must serve in the area of some other authority which is willing to employ married women, if she is to qualify for a pension under the School Teachers (Superannuation) Act, 1918. Section 1 (3) of that Act makes a discrimination in favour of married women by making it easier for them to qualify for a pension, but I have no power to compel local education authorities to employ married women.