asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is aware that certain Foreign Governments, such as Uruguay and Argentina, allow exports of cattle from English counties which have been free from foot-and-mouth disease for three months previous to the importation; and whether he will cause representations to be made to the Canadian Government to accept the county basis as to freedom from foot-and-mouth disease?

The Ministry is already in communication with the representatives of the Canadian Government as to the Regulations governing the import of livestock into that country, and the suggestion made by my hon. and gallant Friend is one of the points under consideration.

asked the Prime Minister whether, when the arrangements for the Imperial Economic Conference have been definitely settled, it is the intention of the Government to consult the representatives of agriculture in this country in regard to any items in the agenda for the Conference directly or indirectly affecting the food supply of Great Britain?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the answer given by the Prime Minister on the 11th December last to my hon. Friend the Member for Stone (Mr. Lamb), in which he stated that the interests of British agriculture will be fully borne in mind in connection with the proposed Imperial Economic Conference.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will consider the propriety of suspending the payment of subsidies for the emigration of agricultural workers until some attempt has been made to re-establish the prosperity of agriculture at home?

I presume that my hon and gallant Friend is referring to the expenditure authorised under the Empire Settlement Act. No special inducements are offered under that Act to agricultural labourers, and I understand that very few, if any, regular agricultural workers have taken advantage of the facilities afforded, although many of the emigrants drawn from urban districts have had some agricultural experience.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether the Ministry had estimated the total annual expenditure which would be incurred by the Imperial Exchequer if the Tuberculosis Order, 1914, were brought into force; and, if so, what is the amount of such estimate?

Yes, Sir, it is estimated that if the Tuberculosis Order of 1914 were brought into operation, the annual expenditure which the Imperial Exchequer would incur thereby would be approximately £80,000. This estimate has been made on the assumption that the same conditions would apply as obtained before the Order was suspended, namely, that the Imperial Exchequer would bear three-quarters of the gross amount of the compensation payable under the Order. The estimate is necessarily very approximate since it is impossible to forecast definitely the number of animals which would be brought within the scope of the Order.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what proportion or number of the coastguard his Department is taking over from the Admiralty; whether such transfer will necessitate any reduction; and what will be the estimated cost to his Department in salaries and general upkeep, including buildings?

The strength of the coastguard in June last was reckoned at 2,380. Under the new system, in addition to about 350 men retained by the Admiralty for wireless and signalling duties and about 350 employed by the Customs on revenue protection work, there will be a force of about 950 employed by the Board of Trade on life saving, coast watching and miscellaneous work. The cost of this force is estimated at £200,000 per annum plus £26,000 per annum for rents and upkeep, and an initial outlay of £15,100 on new works.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether motor tyres are considered as accessories of motor cars for the purpose of import duty by the Irish Free State

This is a matter entirely for the Government of the Free State, and I have no knowledge at present as to what interpretation may be put upon the Finance Acts by the Free State Courts. Under the Finance Act of 1915, as at. present interpreted it would appear that the answer is in the negative.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if there are any accessories of motor cars other than motor tyres that are not considered as accessories for the purpose of import duty in the Finance Act?

I have been asked to reply to this question. Under Section 12 (1) of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1915, an ad valorem import duty of 33⅓ per cent. is charged in terms on accessories and component parts of motor cars, motor bicycles, or motor tricycles, other than tyres. In the case of accessories for cars other than commercial vehicles, the exemption therefore extends only to tyres.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the declining revenue from the two per cent. stamp duty on Foreign securities and our loss of Foreign business, he will consider the desirability of reverting to the lower pre-war rate under which the amount obtained by the revenue authorities in 1912–13 and 1913–14 was much greater than is now the case?

The hon. Member will not expect mo, in a matter of this kind, to anticipate my Budget Statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what approximately would be the total saving realised by the Country by an all-round 10 per cent, reduction of the basic rate of salary in. the Navy, Army, Air Force, Police, and Civil Service?

I am not clear what is meant by the expression basic rate of salary in relation to the Navy, Army, Air Force and Police. These forces are. paid upon an inclusive basis as also are numbers of civilian employés. The total provision for the pay and allowances for the various classes mentioned, exclusive of Civil Service Bonus, is approximately £120,000,000. A ten per cent, reduction would, accordingly, produce a saving of £12,000,000, but I must not be taken as implying that any such general arrangement would be possible or equitable.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the losses occasioned by State printing, particularly in the case of the State printing works at Harrow, he will in the future, in the interests of the taxpayer, ask for tenders in open competition for State printing?

I am unable to add anything to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the hon. and gallant Member for the Basingstoke Division (Sir A. Holbrook) on the 14th December last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the promised inquiry into the working of the State printing works at Harrow will be set up?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the hon. and gallant Member for the Basingstoke Division (Sir A. Holbrook) on the 13th December last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the case of the commissionaires employed in the British Museum was waiting to be dealt with by the Civil Service Arbitration Hoard when the commissionaires received through the departmental council a definite offer which induced them to withdraw their case from arbitration, and that three months later the Treasury made an arrangement with the Corps of Commissionaires that deprived the men of that which had induced them to withdraw their case from arbitration, namely, severance of their connection with the Corps Commissionaires; whether other cases have occurred where offers have been made through a departmental council and then withdrawn without the council being notified; whether the 2s. per month paid to the Corps of Commissionaires is paid under an award made by the Civil Service Arbitration Board arising out of a claim made by the Government Buildings Employés Association on behalf of the commissionaires employed in the museum, and not merely an arrangement between the trustees of the museum and the Corps of Commissionaires; whether he is aware that these men, who are employed by the State, have been informed that they belong to a departmental class which has not been defined, and have been warned that if they sever their connection with the Corps of Commissionaires their positions in the British Museum will automatically become vacant; and whether he will have further inquiries made into the position of these men and have them placed on a recognised and regular basis?

I am not aware of any incident of the nature referred to in the first part of the question. It is not the case that the Treasury made any arrangement with the Corps of Commissionaires. The only arrangement made was between the Trustees of the Corps, which had the effect of relieving the men from payments amounting to 17s. a month. 2s. a month is paid under an award of the Civil Service Arbitration Board as stated. I am aware that these men have been informed that they belong to a Departmental Class and I see no necessity for any further definition of their grading. Men joining the Corps of Commissionaires sign an undertaking that- situations obtained by them through the Corps will only be retained so long as they remain members of the Corps.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that the sales of surplus Governmert machine tools at less than scrap-iron prices is adversely affecting employment in the machine-tool trade; and whether he will consider the advisability of holding up further sales, so as to avoid increasing unemployment in the tool-making industry?

I cannot agree that machine tools are being sold at, less than scrap-iron prices. Sales of machine tools by the Disposal and Liquidation Commission are being made by auction, tender and private treaty, subject to reserve prices, and I am advised that good current market prices are being obtained. The quantities of machine tools available for disposal and now being sold are relatively small, and these sales cannot, therefore, affect to any considerable extent the manufacture of new machine tools. It is considered that the present policy of disposing of existing Government surplus stocks as rapidly as possible is likely to assist rather than to retard the revival of industry.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the quantity of machine tools, ordered during the War, now in this country for disposal; how much of it came from the United States of America; and whether he will give the estimated aggregate value of the machine tools held by the Government?

I am having inquiries made, and will communicate with the hon. Member.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether the Government is discharging large numbers of men from the Chilwell works where large guns are being dismantled; will he explain why contractors are doing the work formerly done by the discharged men and employing low-paid unskilled workmen in violation of the fair-wages clause; whether the contractors are employing their men on overtime at this work; and, if so, what action he proposes to take in the matter?

I understand that the Army authorities are discharging certain temporary employés on reduction of the establishment of the Ordnance Service at Chilwell. These discharges, however, are not connected with the arrangements that have been made between the Disposal and Liquidation Commission and the contractors engaged on breaking down guns. As regards the remaining parts of the question, I am making inquiries, and will communicate with my Noble Friend on the subject.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of old age pensions committees, and the number of persons, male and female separately, employed in investigating the claims for old age pensions in England, Wales, and Scotland, and the cost per annum of the committees and pension officers separately?

There are 1,908 old age pension committees and subcommittees in Great Britain, estimated to cost £50,000 in he current financial year and £55,000 in 1923–24. There are about 260 woman pension officers wholly engaged on this work. Officers of Customs and Excise act as old age pension officers and, where required, carry out this work in conjunction with their ordinary Revenue duties. It is accordingly not possible to state in terms of whole-time officials the number engaged on this work. The total net cost of the work performed by the Customs and Excise Department in connection with the Old Age Pensions Acts was estimated for the current year at 2470,000; the corresponding figure or 1923–24 will be £460,000.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the amount previously paid in old age pensions by the British Government which will now be taken over by the Irish Government?

The amount previously paid by the British Government in respect of old age pensions in Ireland was about £4,400,000 annually. This amount, together with the cost of administration, is now borne by the Governments of Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State,

asked the Home Secretary the number of cases of old age pensioners proceeded against for offences under the Old Age Pensions Acts during 1922, and the number of cases of deaths from starvation of persons over 70 years of age, showing the number of old age pensioners separately during the year 1922?

The number of persons prosecuted in 1922 in Great Britain under Section 9 (i) of the Old Age Pensions Act, 1908, was 127. The other information asked for is not available in this Department.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he is aware that the mother of the late John Freeman, of H.M.S. "Newmarket," D.M.F. 6, was in receipt of a pension of 12s. 6d. per week; that that pension was granted for six years, which does not expire until July; that an application has been put in for an extension of the pension, with the result that the pension has been stopped although the six years have not fully run; what is the reason for the stoppage of payment of the pension; and is there any reason why the extension should not be granted??

I understand that the award in this case, which was made by the Admiralty in 1917, was for a limited amount which has been paid in full. am, however, looking into the case further and will communicate with my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he is aware that a Walsall ex-service man's widow with four children was refused pension on the grounds that her husband was first removed from duty more than seven years before his death, although the man served until 1919 and drew a pension until November, 1921, for the disability which was the primary cause of death and which was attributable to service; that the time for appealing for reinstatement of such pension had not expired when the man died; and that an ex-service man's dependent mother was also refused on the same grounds, although the son was actually receiving pension at the time of death and died from his pensionable disability; and whether he proposes to give any special consideration to these cases?

In the short time available, I have not been able to identify the cases to which the hon. Member refers. Perhaps he will let me have further particulars.

asked the Minister of Pensions, whether he is aware that Forfarshire is still without. a representative on the Scottish regional council; and whether, having regard to the large number of pensioners in the towns and country districts of that county, he intends to make an appointment to this vacancy?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which I gave to the hon. Member for the Central Division of Edinburgh (Mr. W. Graham) on the 19th February, of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Minister of Pensions, if he will state, in tabular form, the number of permanent disablement pen sions granted for specific injuries as set out in the first schedule of the Royal Warrant?

The particulars for which the hon. Member asks are not readily available. I am, however, having certain figures extracted, which will, I think, meet his requirements.

asked the Minister of Pensions, the number of permanent. disablement pensions granted up to date to officers and men?

The number of final awards of pension now in payment is about 110,000.

asked the Minister of Pensions, the amount of the grants made for constant attendance allowance under Article 6a of the Royal Warrant?

The present annual rate of expenditure for constant attendance allowance is about £20,000 for officers and nurses, and about £60,000 for other ranks.

asked the Minister of Pensions, the number of pensioners who have applied for lump-sum payments by way of advances of pensions on the ground of emigrating to British possession and the number granted?

I regret that, as no separate record of these advances is kept, I am not in a position to supply the information desired.

asked the Minister of Pensions, the total number of alternative pensions now being paid to disabled officers, disabled men, and widows respectively?

The approximate numbers of awards of alternative pension at present in payment are:—300 to officers and nurses; 1,800 to other ranks; 2,200 to widows of officers, and 30,900 to widows of other ranks.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether a final weekly allowance, with or without a terminal gratuity, is in fact a gratuity disbursed by weekly payments; whether, on the recommendation of a war pensions committee, the award may be paid in a lump sum to assist the pensioner to purchase a house, or for other definite purposes likely to be of permanent benefit; why the living pensioner should receive more consideration than the widow of a deceased pensioner; and if he will issue instructions that the former practice of the Ministry shall again become operative, and that any balance of a final weekly allowance unpaid on the death of a pensioner shall be credited to the estate of the deceased, and be available for the widow and orphans?

A final weekly allowance is not a gratuity paid by instalments and is properly payable only to the end of the week in which the death of the recipient occurs as is the case in an award of conditional or permanent weekly pension. Where it can be proved to be to the distinct and permanent advantage of the recipient. a final weekly allowance may, on the recommendation of a war pensions committee, be paid in a lump sum, but the fact that the pensioner may be permitted under conditions to receive such payment cannot. be held to entitle the widow to claim a lump sum after the death of her husband.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether, in view of the fact that where local pension committees depute one of their members to accompany ex-service men and their dependants to assist them in presenting their cases before the appeal tribunals a larger proportion of successes tyre obtained than when they go alone, he will authorise the payment of the extra travelling expenses incurred in such cases?

I am not prepared to adopt this suggestion.

asked the Minister of Pensions how many cases he has had within each of the last six months in which the medical advisers of the Ministry have declined to accept the mental derangement of the applicants as due in any way to or aggravated by war service; whether he is aware that there is growing dissatisfaction with the official treatment of these cases; and whether he will modify the system of treating these eases so as to satisfy this feeling?

The number of rejected applications for pension for insanity were, during September, 34; October, 16; November, 57; December, 34; January, 52; and February, 58. I am satisfied that this type of case receives most sympathetic consideration and I would point out that, in cases of dissatisfaction with the Ministry's decision, there is a statutory right of appeal to an independent tribunal by whose decision the Ministry is bound.

asked the Minister of Pensions when a. decision will be arrived at in the case of Private Stanley Robert Smith, late No. 204203, Gloucester Regiment, whose case was represented to the Ministry on 23rd January, and attention called to it again on 19th February?

The cost of treatment obtained privately in this ease has been refunded. I am sending an explanatory letter to the hon. Member.

asked the Minister of Pensions, with reference to the contemplated transfer of the East Midlands Region, if he will state on what date or approximate date the work of the awards and other brandies will be transferred to Birmingham; what proportion of the temporary staff will be transferred to Birmingham, and if any will be transferred elsewhere; what length of notice the members of the staff not so transferred will receive and when such notice will be circulated; whether he has considered the difficulty the transferred men will have in finding suitable accommodation; and whether he will guarantee that no additional staff be engaged in other regions whilst there remains a surplus staff in Nottingham?

I propose to effect the transfer of the work from Nottingham to Birmingham gradually. Any additional staff required in Birmingham as a result of the transfer will be recruited, if possible, from the staff possessing the necessary qualifications who are displaced at Nottingham. Adequate notice—in any ease, not less than two months—will be given to the staff whose services will no longer be required. In view of the continued fall in the work of my Ministry, I do not anticipate the necessity for engaging any additional staff in other regions. Arrangements have, however, been in force for some time past to offer employment to redundants in preference to engaging new staff in other regions.

asked the Minister of Pensions if he has been able to effect any economies in the administration of the Dublin Medical Board; if so, what are the estimated amounts of saving; and when will this board be closed down?

The condition in Ireland, to which I referred in my answer to the hon. Member on the 12th December, still obtain, and until the situation changes I am not hopeful of any substantial saving in the cost of maintaining medical boards in Dublin. The matter is, however, under constant consideration with a view to such economies as may be found practicable. There is no present intention of discontinuing these boards which must necessarily be maintained in the interests of pensioners.

asked the President of the Board of Education, the amount of the economies he proposes to make in our present system of education; and will he recommend that better instruction should be given to children in the following subjects, reading, writing, and arithmetic?

I would refer the hon. Member to the Board's Estimates far 1923–24 which have lately been presented to Parliament and which show a net decrease of £3,340,953 upon the Estimates for 1922–23. With regard to the second part of the Question, I shall always do my best to secure that sound instruction shall be given in reading, writing and arithmetic.

asked the President of the Board of Education, whether the question of holding the acting teachers' examination will fall within the purview of the reference to be given to the proposed Departmental Committee on Training Colleges; and whether, in view of the setting up of such Departmental Committee, the President will defer his decision not to hold the acting teachers' examination subsequent to November 1924, until lie has been able to obtain the adv ice of the Departmental Committee regarding such acting teachers' examination?

I do not propose to ask the Committee to consider this particular matter, but I shall be quite ready to consider, on their merits, any representations I may receive, before finally deciding what shall be done after November, 1924.

asked the President of the Board of Education, whether the Departmental Committee on the Training of Teachers has now been constituted; and whether he can announce the terms of reference and the names of the members?

I have appointed the following to be a Departmental Committee to review the arrangements for the training of teachers for public elementary schools and to consider what changes, if any, in the organisation or finance of the existing system are desirable in order that a supply of well qualified teachers adjustable to the demands of the schools may be secured, regard being had to—

(a) the economy of public funds;

(b) the attractions offered to young persons by the teaching profession as compared with other professions and occupations:

(c) the facilities afforded by secondary schools and universities for acquiring academic qualifications.

The Right Hon. Viscount Burnham, C.H. (

asked the Home Secretary whether he has considered or will consider the desirability of legislation to prevent the publication in the papers of extracts from private wills which are often of a vindictive nature in respect to the living?

I have been asked to reply. No evidence has reached me which would lead me to think that the evil to which the hon. find gallant Member refers is sufficiently widespread to justify legislation, and I do not think that a complete suppression of the contents of wills is desirable to the public interest.

asked the Home Secretary if he will appoint at an early date a woman commissioner with power to make representations on the administrative side of all prisons and Borstal institutions, and with a special view to initiating reforms in female prisons and in the Borstal institution at Aylesbury?

I am sorry that I 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 without administrative experience of prisons, and to add a paid woman would involve an expenditure which could not be justified.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has any figures which he can lay before the House showing the amount realised from pedlars' licences; is he aware that in these days of unemployment many people have difficulty in raising even this small sum; and will he consider whether simple registration with a smaller fee would meet the 'requirements of control?

The fee of 5s. for a pedlar's certificate is fixed by Section 5 of the Pedlars Act, 1871. In the Metropolitan Police District the amount realised by these fees in 1922 was £2,284. I have no information as to the amounts received by other police authorities. I do not think that a fee of 5s. for a certificate available for a year throughout the whole of Great Britain is excessive, and I may point out that, before granting a certificate, the police authority is required to satisfy itself that the applicant is a suitable person, and simple registration would therefore not meet the needs of the case.

asked the Home Secretary if he is aware that hardship is caused to pre-War police pensioners by the imposition of an age limit of 60 years in the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1920; and whether the Government intend to take measures to remove that limitation, seeing that it applies only to police pensioners and the fighting services and that policemen are not allowed to serve after reaching 55 years of age except under special circumstances?

The requirement that constables and sergeants should retire on reaching the age of 55 except in special cases did not apply to men who left the service before 28th August, 1921. The provision in the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1920, that a man shall not be eligible for an increase of pension until he attains the age of 60 applies to all pensioners and not merely to pensioners from the police and from the fighting services, and I am not aware of any reason for removing this limitation in the case of police pensioners.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether His Majesty's Government is prepared to reconsider the case of pre-War pensioners?

I regret that I should not feel justified in introducing new legis lation on this subject, which would have the effect of imposing on the general taxpayer any addition to the already heavy charge involved in the payment of increased pensions under the terms of the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1920.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that grave inconvenience and loss of time was inflicted on many working people and business men and women by holding up traffic on Tuesday, 27th March, in Westminster, between the hours of 9 and 10.30; and whether he will give instructions to the police not to permit any arrangements involving dislocation of traffic at busy hours of the day?

I am informed by the Commissioner of Police that it has been arranged that if another rehearsal is required it will take place at 7 a.m.

asked the Home Secretary if he will state what was the total number of absent voters who recorded their votes at the last election.

As previously intimated the number of absent voters on the lists which came into force on 15th October, 1922, was for England and Wales, 162,927, or taking only the constituencies which were contested at the General Election 154.446. The corresponding figures were, for Scotland, 7,555 and 17,242, and for Northern Ireland, 4,088 and 763. This makes a total for all constituencies of 184,570, and for contested constituencies of 172,451. Excluding three constituencies (in the Borough of Stoke-on-Trent) for which particulars are not available, 97,530 ballot papers were issued to absent voters whose recorded addresses were in the United Kingdom, and 40,295 of them were returned in time for the counting of the votes. The number of absent voters who had appointed proxies in the contested constituencies was 4,173. It will of course be borne in mind that ballot papers can only be sent to absent voters if they are in the United Kingdom at the time of the election, and the number absent abroad on military or naval service at any moment is always large.

asked the Home Secretary if the Amendment to the Regulation, dated 2nd October, 1922, amending Regulation 5 of the principal Regulation of the Dangerous Drugs Regulations, dated 20th May, 1921, will be annulled?

Yes, Sir; I propose to make a Regulation revoking No. l the amending Regulations made on 2nd October, 1922, under Section 7 of the Act.

asked the Home Secretary if he is aware that the employers' association in the woollen and worsted trade, the Woolbrokers' Association of Liverpool, and the executive of the National Association of Unions in the Textile Trade have each passed a. Resolution approving of the disinfection of dangerous wools, and declared their opinion that the delegates at the forthcoming meeting of the governing body of the League of Nations, to be held on the 10th of April, should place upon the agenda for the autumn meeting of the International Labour Organisation a Resolution in favour of compulsory disinfection of dangerous wools, so that there may be international action to secure immunity from anthrax, which still occurs in Bradford, Dewsbury, and other wool-using and cloth-making centres; and will the Government give instructions to this effect to the British representative on the Council of the League?

The answer to both parts of the question is in the affirmative?

asked the Minister of Health whether, in connection with the housing proposals of the Government, special attention will be paid to the needs of the rural areas, where villages often require a few houses but not enough to provide a comprehensive scheme: and whether he proposes to consider and investigate representations sent to his Department by local residents who may think that their authorities concerned are not sufficiently alive to existing housing requirements?

The proposed subsidy will be available for rural schemes of the kind which my hon. and gallant Friend has in mind. The Department will give careful consideration to representations as to the need for additional accommodation in any district, but I would suggest that the local residents should, in the first instance, bring pressure to bear on their own local authorities.

asked the Minister of Health whether, under any scheme of decontrol, the Government will consider the desirability of safeguarding the interests of poorer tenants for a period after the removal of control by according those objecting to increases in rent permission to appear before a judge of the County Court, who will decide whether the owner has a just reason for evicting his tenant or whether the tenant should be allowed to retain his tenancy?

I will consider this suggestion.

asked the Minister of Health the amount of money that was spent by the various local authorities for 1922 in promoting or opposing Bills seeking Parliamentary sanction?

My right hon. Friend regrets that the information desired by the hon. Member is not in his possession.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware of the way in which the Wanstead District Council are disregarding their public health duties: if he is aware of the manner in which they allow the dust-bin refuse to lie about on the vacant land at the Leicester end of Rutland Road; that several of the ratepayers have complained to the council about the matter; whether he has received letters from F. S. Trueman, living at. Rutland Road, Wanstead, complaining about the negligence of the council in carrying out their public health duties; and if he will take action in the matter?

My right hon. Friend has received some complaints on this subject including some letters from Mr. Trueman and he has already been in communication with the council in regard to these complaints. He has no reason to think that the council have shown any general disregard of their duties under the Public Health Acts. My right hon. Friend is sending the hon. Member a copy of a letter from the council on the subject.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that many people have applied for a licence for a wireless set and have been refused; and whether he will take action to allow all the people who apply for a licence to have one granted to them as a source of Revenue to the Post Office?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply of the 15th instant on the same subject to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Shinwell).

asked the Postmaster-General whether, having regard to the large number of home-made wireless instruments now being made by the general public and to the difficulty in obtaining licences therefor, he will have arrangements made for the issue of licences for the same at all post offices, as in the ease of the British Broadcasting Company instruments?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply of the 28th instant on the same subject to the lion. Member for Tottenham North (Mr. R. Morrison).

asked the Postmaster-General how many members of the British Broadcasting Company, Limited, there are, and what are their names: how many types of instrument manufactured by such members he has approved; whether it is necessary for the user of any instrument, whether manufactured by any such member or,not, to obtain fur the purposo of receiving messages an annual or other licence from His Majesty's Postmaster-General: what is the fee payable for such licence: and how many licences have been issued?

I am informed that at present about 260 wireless manufacturing firms have become members of the British Broadcasting Company. The names of the firms will be communicated to the hon. Member if he wishes to have them. The number of types of broadcast receiving apparatus approved by the Post Office is 1,450. Under the Wireless Telegraph Act, 1904, the use of wireless apparatus in this country, whether for sending or receiving purposes, is subject to the licence of the Postmaster-General. The licence fee in the case of wireless receiving apparatus is at present 10s. per annum. The number of such licences at present issued is approximately 115,000, of which about 80,000 are in respect of receiving sets bearing the trade mark of the British Broadcasting Company.

asked the Postmaster-General whether his department has considered the whole question of international law and usage so far as it affects broadcasting; and, if so, whether he is taking any action to co-ordinate action in the matter?

The only international regulations applying to wireless communications are those contained in the International Radiotelegraphic Convention of 1912. They do not apply to inland broadcasting services such as that recently established in this country. The question of introducing regulations governing the wave lengths to be used in connection with such services will be considered at an international conference which will probably he held next year for the purpose of revising the International Convention.

asked the Postmaster-General whether, seeing that girl probationers for the telegraph and telephone Departments can be accepted only if they are over 14 and under 15 years of age, he will consider whether the Regulalations could not be altered by;substituting 16 for 15, and thereby affording entrants greater opportunity of completing a reasonable course of day-school education?

All satisfactory girl probationers are promised a. permanent career in the Post Office; and in order that they may be absorbed into adult situations it is necessary to keep their number at a minimum and therefore to recruit them at a comparatively early age. Arrangements are made for their attendance at educational classes till they reach the age of 16. I regret that I am not prepared to extend the upper age limit from 15 to 16.

asked the Postmaster-General the number of annuitants under the Post Office Saving Fund Scheme, giving the average amount of annuity paid, and to what extent the provision of such an annuity tends to disqualify the annuitant from receiving an old age pension?

The number of annuities granted through the Post Office which were being paid on the 31st December, 1922, was 32,668, and the average amount £22 4s. ld. Many annuitants hold more than one annuity, and consequently the number of annuitants cannot be stated without considerable clerical labour. The question of the conditions.affecting the issue of an old age pension is not within my province, but the amount of an annuity must, of course, be taken into consideration in the calculation of means.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he is aware that the Association of Engineering and Shipbuilding Draughtsmen, to which the draughtsmen it is proposed to substitute by ex-service men at Farnborough belong, maintains that the Lytton Report does not apply to draughtsmen; whether he has been advised to the contrary; and, if so, on what authority has this advice been tendered?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second and third parts, I am in no doubt that the recommendations of the Lytton Committee were intended to cover technical staff.

also asked the Secretary of State for Air whether be has consulted heads of Departments regarding the substitution of draughtsmen at Farnborough: w nether they have advised him that the efficiency of the drawing office concerned will not suffer by such substitution; and, if he has not consulted the opinions of the heads of Departments at Farnborough, will he do so before further discharges take place?

The decisions with regard to the substitution of non-service staff have been taken after full consideration of the views of the responsible officers. Whilst I am aware that substitution may in certain instances involve some temporary loss of efficiency, I see no reason to depart from the policy of His Majesty's Government in connection with the recommendations of the Lytton Committee.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for War how many meetings were held by the Committee entrusted with the disbursement of the 10s. in the £ granted in connection with the failure of MacGrigor's Bank; and what was the purport of the information they obtained direct from those charged with the administration of regimental funds?

I understand that five full meetings of Lord Askwith's Committee have been held to date, and in addition a sub-Committee has held frequent meetings. The information. obtained from those charged with the administration of the regimental funds comprised

(1) the objects of the fund;

(2) its source of income;

(3) the reason for the; account being opened at MacGrigor's;

(4) the extent of liability of the administrator to the subscribers or to other persons;

(5) whether the loss of the balance involves serious hardship to individuals.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will give the following particulars relating to the Department in

Financial Year.			Expenditure on
			New buildings.	Rentals.	Salaries.
			£	£	£
1917–18	…	…	28,162	69,507	980,000
1918–19	…	…	81,603	115,998	1,730,124
1919–20	…	…	706,547	244,239	3,991,585
1920–21	…	…	841,041	232,366	4,761,630
1921–22	…	…	426,938	224,943	6,373,786
1922–23 (approximate)	…	…	195,650	199,000	4,639,954
1923–24 (estimated)	…	…	117,800	177,000	3,551,254

Financial Year.		Total net expenditure out of Ministry of Labour Vote and other Votes of Parliament.	Total expenditure of the Unemployment Fund, less State contribution which is included in previous column.	Combined total expenditure.	Number of staff on 1st April in each year.
		£	£	£
1917–18	…	1,859,815	—	—	5,995
1918–19	…	2,975,754	—	—	6,405
1919–20	…	49,951,974	—	—	26,318
1920–21	…	29,305,892	8,398,655	37,704,547	18,904
1921–22	…	21,153,423	63,243,276	84,396,699	25,298
1922–23 (approximate)	…	19,555,355	37,421,910	56,977,265	21,244
1923–24 (estimated)	…	17,240,533	36,283,000	53,523,533	15,500

A great part of the increase in staff and expenditure in the first years after the Armistice is due to the Out-of-Work Donation scheme, representing a total expenditure of £62,000,000.It is important to observe that the placing of workpeople in work, to which special reference is made in the question, is only one of a number of services administered by the Ministry of Labour; the figures of expenditure given relate to all services administered and include the fol1owing:

The following is the information desired:

• (e) Collection and publication of Labour Statistics.
• (f) National Scheme for the employment of disabled ex-service men and King's Roll Committees.
• (h) Professional training of ex-service men.
• (i) Industrial training of ex-service men.
• (j) Interrupted apprenticeship scheme for ex-service men.
• (k) Re-settlement grants for ex-service men.
• (g) Grant to International Labour Office.

For the following reasons the volume of work involved in administering Un

employment Insurance and the State Contribution to the Unemployment Fund have increased very greatly since 1917–18.

asked the Minister. or Labour whether he receives any representations indicating dissatisfacation at the Exchange method of selection of registered unemployed men for any available posts; whether in all cases the first chance is given, if suitability be equal, to men who have been a long time unemployed as against those who are only recently thrown out of work; and what are the principles governing the offer of posts to out-of-work men on the books of the Employment Exchanges?

I am not aware of any representations indicating any legitimate ground of dissatisfaction with the Employment Exchange method of selection of labour. Subject to a general preference to ex-service men, Employment Exchange officers in dealing with an ordinary industrial vacancy are required to select the applicant who appears to possess the best qualifications for the post. In the case of relief works, the basis of selection is largely determined by the wishes of the employing authority subject to the usual preference for ex-service men, and the duration of unemployment and domestic circumstances of the applicant are ordinarily taken into account.

asked the Minister of Health the amount of out-relief paid to the unemployed and their dependants in each Poor Law union in England and Wales during the 12 months ending 31st December, 1922, or for such period as the figures are the more readily obtainable?

I am sending the hula. Member particulars relating to the nine months ending December last. I regret that information is not available for the first three months of last year.

asked the Under-Secretary to the Scottish Board of Health the number of able-bodied unemployed in the.Rutherglen Burghs on the 1st of March, 1922 and 1993, respectively; the total cost to the respective parish councils in the said burghs: the number of persons given employment under the various Government schemes; and will he indicate any Government proposals for giving relief to the acute destitution due to the prolonged period of unemployment in the district?

I am informed that the numbers of unemployed persons on the live register of the Employment Exchange at Rutherglen on 28th February, 1922, and 26th February, 1923, respectively, were 1,814 and 1,416, of whom 1,3:30 and 1,110, respectively, were men. The total cost of unemployed relief paid by the Parish Councils of Rutherglen, Cambuslang and Blantyre up to the 3rd March, 1923, was approximately 2,47,000. Information as to the amount for the Parish Council of Carmunnock is not available, but its inclusion would not substantially increase the foregoing total. I am informed that the number of men employed in the period ending 2nd March, 1923, on schemes in the area which had been submitted by local authorities and approved by the Unemployment Grants Committee was 18. As regards the measures which the Government have taken for the relief of distress due to unemployment, I would refer the hon. Member to the statements made by my right hon. Friends the Ministers of Labour and of Health on the 8th of March.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Consortium has received any request from China for loans for railway construction; and the attitude of the Powers concerned towards any Chinese proposal for foreign assistance of this particular nature?

I am not aware of any request having been received by the Consortium from China for loans for railway construction. His Majesty's Government, and, I have no doubt, the other Consortium Powers also, will gladly do anything they properly can to facilitate railway construction in China on being satisfied that a reasonable standard of efficiency will be maintained on both existing and future railways, and that they will be placed on a sound financial footing.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that there has been no general decrease in the evil of girls and women boarding ships in ports for immoral purposes; whether, in view of this fact, he can give any information as to what action is contemplated internationally regarding this question by the Committee of the League of Nations on the traffic in women and children; and what steps, if any, have been taken in this country, pending such international action, to deal with this evil?

The question of preventing immorality on board ships in harbour is mainly a matter of domestic concern, and is fraught with many difficulties, but I will consider whether any practical assistance in dealing with it could be obtained by means of international action.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether his attention has been drawn to a statement issued by the United States Government with regard to the use made in an Official Report prepared in 1920 by that Government of certain forgeries purporting to be British official documents; and whether the United States Government can be asked to disclose the source from which these documents were obtained?

The documents referred to are an alleged Proclamation signed by Queen Victoria and by Lord Salisbury, as Secretary of State for India, dated 24th September, 1884, and an exclusive concession to the Burmah Oil Company, dated 23rd August, 1885. Lord Salisbury had ceased to be Secretary of State for India six years earlier, and the language of both documents showed them to be obvious forgeries. The United States Government were so informed in 1921, but no official admission was made till last year, correspondence 'having -in the meantime been diverted to a side issue, namely, the precise effect of existing legislation in India. The use of the forged documents again made in an official report recently addressed to the Senate, and in a decision on an application for an oil lease rendered by the late Secretary of State of the Interior on 3rd March, caused His Majesty's Government to make further representations to the United States Government. These have elicited the statement to which the hon. Member refers. It is not clear from the information in the possession of His Majesty's Government whether the documents originated in the Bureau of Mines in 1919, or in the United States Consulate in Bombay.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what is the present position in Kenya County between the white colonists and the Hindu settlers: and if the friction is now removed?

Pending the arrival at the end of April of the Governor and the deputations which accompany him for discussion with His Majesty's Government, no further development in the position in Kenya need be expected.

asked the Secretary for Mines how many authorised inspectors there are of pit ponies; and if the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is given full facilities to inspect pit ponies and the conditions under which they work?

I would refer the hon. Member to the replies which I gave to questions on this subject on Monday last to the hon. Members for Pontefract (Mr. T. Smith) and Middlesbrough West (Mr. T. Thomson), and yesterday to the hon. Member for Leicester East (Captain A. Evans).

asked the First Commissioner of Works the amount received last year in respect of admission fees charged at the National Gallery, and the cost of collecting such fees?

I have been asked to reply to this question. The amount received during 1922 in respect of admission fees charged at the National Gallery was £4,376 19s. The cost of collecting these fees was 8s. per week.

asked the Prime Minister whether his attention has been drawn to a scheme approved by the National British and Irish Millers' Association for curtailing the production of flour, by the milling trade as a whole laying up certain mills at an estimated cost of £2,000,000, which it is proposed to be a charge on manufacture, thus reducing the amount of Income Tax and Corporation Profit Tax payable by £000,000 and preventing any prospect of a reduction in the price of flour; and, if so, whether he proposes to take.my action in the matter?

My attention has been drawn to a statement in the Press with reference to this scheme. It is not, however, possible for me at present to forecast its effects for the purposes of taxation.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, if he is aware that the Italian Steamship Company, "La Maritima," was until recently in the conference ring of which the Union. Castle Steamship Company is the leader; that this Italian company has left the ring, and is now quoting 25 per cent. less rates than the former ring rate from Genoa to African Cape ports; that the Union Steamship Company has sent out to traders a circular stating that they will accept Italian rates from Genoa; if his department has been informed by the Union Steamship Company that they are quoting this lower rate to force the Italian company back into the ring; is he aware that these lower rates given by a British steamship company to Italian competitors of British manufacturers is cutting the latter out of the South African market; and what action has he taken, or intends to take, in the matter?

I understand that the facts are substantially as stated in the question, and that a rate war is proceeding between the British Company and the Italian Company with regard to traffic from the Mediterranean to South Africa. The Board of Trade has no statutory power to intervene in the matter.