asked the Postmaster-General whether his attention has been called to the practice adopted by the Free Church Touring Guild of having circulars issued by the guild printed in Germany and posted to England from that country; and if he will consider the possibility of prohibiting this practice, which deprives the Post Office of revenue and accentuates unemployment in this country?

I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to my reply to the question on this subject put by the hon. Member for West Lewisham (Sir P. Dawson) on the 27th of March.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that the Manx House of Keys has appointed a committee to consider the question of proposing to the Government the taking over of the postal services of the Isle of Man; and whether he has received any representations on the subject from the House of Keys?

I have no information as to the appointment of any Committee such as that referred to by the hon. Member, nor have I received any representations from the House of Keys on the subject.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that instructions have been issued authorising the expenditure of large sums of money upon approved extensions and renovation of post office buildings in. London in order to provide employment; whether it is in accordance with this instruction that the work of erecting a new building at Mount Pleasant has been restarted; and whether, in cases such as that of the Central Telegraph Office, where the money has already been voted by this House, he will have the work put in hand without delay?

The hen Member is mistaken in thinking that the unemployment relief works recently undertaken include works of extension in Post Office buildings in London. They are confined to works of a maintenance character, and do not include the new building at Mount Pleasant. This building has not been re-started, but arrangements have been made to commence work on it immediately on this House approving the relevant Estimate. I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question of the 19th March, and in regard to the Central Telegraph Office, to the reply given to him by the Postmaster-General on the 91st March.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Government have abandoned the idea of charging fees for admission to the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Science Museum?

Yes, Sir.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the approximate values of undisposed surplus stock in France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Mesopotamia, and Palestine; and what steps are being taken to dispose of it?

The Disposal and Liquidation Commission have no surplus stock undisposed of in France, Belgium, Germany, Italy or Turkey. In Mesopotamia there are still surplus stocks, consisting mainly of boats of the river fleet and of fixed assets, such as electric installations, which are not being purchased by the Iraq Government. Their value is approximately half a million pounds. In Palestine the Commission have still a small quantity of material, mainly railway stores, to dispose of. The exact quantity which will ultimately be for disposal to the public cannot be stated at present, as it depends on the quantities to be purchased by the Palestine Government for use on the railways. There are officials of the Disposal and Liquidation Commission in Mesopotamia and in Palestine, and steps are being taken to finish sales at the earliest possible date. I would add that surpluses declared after the 31st March will be sold, not by the Disposal and Liquidation Commission, but direct by the War Office, Admiralty, Air Ministry and other Departments to whom the stores belong.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware of the prohibitive duty placed upon British fishing nets by the Spanish Government; is he aware that there is only one net manufactory in Spain; that this factory is reported to be always busy; and that the duty, therefore, serves no object except to raise the prices of the whole fishing industry in Spain; and whether he can make representations to the Spanish Government with a view to the removal of this duty?

I have received complaints as to this duty, in which reference was made to the other circumstances mentioned in the question. Representations on the subject were addressed to the Spanish Government in 1921 and the duty which had been fixed Provisionally in May at. 2.40 pesetas per kilogram was reduced by the definitive tariff of l6th February, 1922, to 2 pesetas per kilogram. I do not consider that further representations to the Spanish Government would serve any useful purpose.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will state, from the last available Returns, the total number of municipally-owned tramway, gas, and electric undertakings in Great Britain, together with their total capital expenditure; and the number showing a profit or loss, respectively, with the total amounts of such profit or loss?

has supplied the following addition to his answer [published in theOFFICIAL REPORT, 9th April, 1923, cols. 887–8]Detailed information as to municipally-owned gas undertakings is given in Part II of the Return relating to all authorised gas undertakings in Great Britain for the year 1921. As regards municipally-owned electricity undertakings in Great Britain, which number 325, no officially compiled returns are at present available giving the information asked for. A return is, however, in process of compilation by the Electricity Commissioners.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether a delegation representing the British Government has left for Australia and other parts of the Empire to examine the work of settlement schemes; if so, who are these delegates and by whom were they appointed; whether any Scotsman is on it; and, if not, what is the reason, seeing that Scotland in proportion to its population has sent more settlers to the Dominions than any other part of the United Kingdom?

The names of the delegates to Australia, who were appointed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, were published in the Press on the 15th of March. The delegates go out as representatives of the United Kingdom as a whole and not of any part of it. So far as I am aware they do not include a Scotsman, but Sir W. Windham, who is in charge of the delegation, is domiciled in Scotland.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is yet able to make any further statement on the future of the Mesopotamian railways; and what has been the loss on running them for the first three months of the current year?

The Secretary of State is in communication with Iraq on this subject, but I am not yet in a position to make any further statement. Revenue and expenditure figures for the first three months oil the current year are not yet available; but, as I informed the hon. and gallant Member for Kincardine and Western (Lieut.-Colonel A. Murray) on the 20th February, no loss is now being incurred on account of the ordinary working expenses of these railways.

asked the Minister of Health whether the Government Housing or Rent Restriction Act amendment proposals will deal with the evils of overcrowding by sub-letting tenants over whom the landlord has no control?

I should prefer to reserve my statement upon this and similar questions until we enter upon a discussion of the Bill which will deal with restrictions of rent and mortgages.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the importance of the matter to the taxpayers who have to pay the subsidies, he will state how the actual output of the building trade operatives compares with 1913: how many bricks the average bricklayer now lays per day in ordinary house-building as compared with 1913; and whether, as there is ample housing work for at least five years, it is anticipated that the available supply of labour will, apart from dilution, be sufficient?

Accounts given me as to the number of bricks laid per day in ordinary house building and as to the output of building trade operatives as compared with 1913 vary so much that I am unable to offer any reliable expression of opinion. I will, however, inquire further into this matter. With reference to the last part of the question, the supply of labour at present available would probably be insufficient to carry out a very considerable housing programme. It will, however, I hope, be found practicable to increase it gradually by natural methods as the demand for it rises.

asked the Under-Secretary to the Scottish Board of health if he can give the number of parishes in Scotland in which payments have been made out of the poor rate for relief of able-bodied persons out of employment, under the provisions of the Poor Law (Emergency Provisions) (Scotland) Act, 1921; the total amount applied for this purpose by the parish councils in each of these parishes since the passage of the Act; the poor rate levied in each parish; and the increase in the poor rate in each parish due to the payment of unemployment relief under the Act?

The number of parishes in Scotland in which payments have been made out of the poor rate for the relief of destitute able-bodied unemployed persons is 269. Complete information is not available on the other points specified by the hon. and learned Member, but I am sending him a statement giving particulars, which I trust will serve his purpose.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he will enter into arrangements with the Departments concerned whereby publications relating to agricultural matters, such as agricultural statistics and reports, shall be placed on sale at the Ministry of Agriculture in the same manner and place as the leaflets now issued by the Ministry?

Several publications are already on sale at the Ministry's office. There are practical difficulties in the way of adding to the number, but the suggestion made will receive careful consideration.