asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he can state the number of dakoities in Bengal, the United Provinces, and the Punjab, respectively, in 1913, and in each of the last five years?

The number of cases of dakoities reported in the three provinces in each year from 1913 to 1921 is as follows:

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will give the names of members composing the proposed Royal Commission for investigating the conditions of Civil Service in India?

I regret that I am not yet in a position to give the information required, but an announcement will at once be made as soon as the selection of the members of the Commission is completed.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India how much of the original work which was re-commended as essential by the Indian Railway Commission has been carried out; what is the value of the contracts already placed in connection with such work; and what is the proportion allotted to British or overseas firms?

The Acworth Committee did not recommend any particular work, but advised that rehabilitation of the railways should take precedence of further development. For rehabilitation it has been decided to spend an average of 30 crores of rupees, or £20,000,000, in each of the five years commencing on the 1st April, 1922. Orders for stores and material to the amount of £9,962,500 were placed outside India between the 1st April, 1922, and the present time. Of this total amount £9,622,500 was for orders placed with British firms, and £340,000 for orders placed abroad.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his attention has been called to the decision of the House of Lords in the case of Sutton v. Attorney-General, dealing with the inclusion of war bonuses as part of full civil pay to be granted in addition to military pay while on active service, and affecting, in this case, certain grades of Post Office servants; what will be the cost of giving effect to this decision in the Post Office; whether it will govern the case of other Government Departments, as the judgment appears to indicate; and, if so, what is the approximate number of civil servants likely to be affected?

I am not yet in a position to acid anything to the answer I gave to the hon. Member on this subject on the 21st March last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the terms of reference to the Committee set up to consider the working of the recommendations of the Lytton Report will include inquiries into the starting pay of entrants into the Post Office service?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer gave on the 19th April to the hon. Member for Ashton-under-Lyne.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether women Lytton entrants will be effectually covered by the terms of reference to the Committee which is to be set up to inquire into the pay and conditions of that class of civil servants?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer gave to the hon. Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Sir W. de Frece) on the 19th April.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Committee which is considering the question of the Lytton entrants will also take into account the position of pre-War service pensioners?

No, Sir. As my right hon. Friend has announced to-day, the position of pre-War pensioners will be considered by a Special Cabinet Committee.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the total amount of tithes which has been collected by the Church Commissioners in Wales up to date since the disestablishment of the Church in Wales came into effect; what use is being made of the moneys so collected; what has been the cost to the country for the collection of such moneys; and to what ultimate purpose does the Government propose to apply the tithe money?

The total amount of Tithe Rent Charge collected by the Welsh Church Commissioners between the date of disestablishment and the 31st December, 1922, was £550,052 16s. 6d. The moneys so collected are applied by the Commissioners to meet their obligations under the provisions of the Welsh Church Act, 1914. All expenses in connection with the collection of these moneys and all other expenses in connection with the carrying out of the Welsh Church Act, 1914, are paid out of the moneys in the hands of the Commissioners in pursuance of that Act and not out of public funds. The ultimate purposes to which the property in the hands of the Commissioners are to be applied (when they have met all their obligations under the Act) are set out in Section 19 of the Welsh Church Act, 1914.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he can see his way to increase the income limit now existing for old age pensioners?

I regret I can add nothing to the answer I gave on 27th March last to the hon. Member for Brecon and Radnor (Mr. W. A. Jenkins) on the subject of the amendment of the Old Age Pensions Acts.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the number of individual holdings of Five Per Cent. War Loan, 1929–47, on 1st January, 1922, and 1st January, 1923; and the numbers of holdings under £200 face value on each of these dates?

Apart from holdings of bearer bonds of which, of course, particulars cannot be given, the figures on the 1st December, 1921, and 1st December, 1922, the nearest dividend dates to the dates mentioned were as follow:

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, taking the reduced taxation in the present Budget, he can state how it compares per head of the population in respect of direct taxation, indirect taxation, and total taxation, respectively, with the equivalent taxation in existence in France, United States, Italy, and Germany?

The taxation provided for in the Budget for the current year amounts to £10 2s. 1d. per head of direct taxation, and £5 16s. of indirect, making £15 18s. 1d. in all. For particulars of the other countries referred to I will refer my hon. Friend to the answers given to my hon. Friends the Members for East Lewisham (Lieut.-Colonel Pownall), the Moseley Division (Mr. Hannon), and the Henley Division (Captain Terrell) on the 22nd February, the 27th February and 29th March. I must, however, repeat that international comparisons of this kind, unless subject to innumerable qualifications, are apt to be very misleading.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the exact amount collected for Income Tax and Super-tax in each of the years 1913 and 1914; and the amount paid in the same years as interest on the National Debt?

I would refer the hon. Member to the Finance Accounts of the years 1913–14 and 1914–15 (H.C. 297 of 1914, and H.C. 273 of 1915).

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will give the figures showing the revenue from postal services as distinct from telegraphs and telephones for the period 1st June, 1921, to 1st April, 1922, when the increased postal charges were in force, with the period 1st June, 1922, to 1st April, 1923, when the reduced postal charges were in force?

The following are the figures:

asked the President of the Board of Trade the number of cases of bankruptcies occurring amongst landlords and farmers during each of the last 10 years for which figures are available, and say how these compare with bankruptcies amongst other staple trades for the same period; and the percentage of bankruptcies in each case compared with the total number of those engaged in the various trades and industries?

Figures relating to failures of farmers in England and Wales, and failures of all classes in the 10 years 1913 to 1922 are appended. To compare the failures in agriculture

asked the President of the Board of Trade what was the value per head of population paid by the British Dominions and foreign countries for exports from this country during the year 1922?

I would refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for the North Division of Newcastle-on-Tyne (Mr. Grattan Doyle) on 6th March.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will state approximately the value of the trade which has been carried on between this country and Russia while the Russian Trade Commission has been established in London?

The values of the import and export trade of the United Kingdom with Russia during the period from 1st April, 1921, to 31st December, 1922, inclusive, were as follows: Imports consigned from Russia, £10,626,000; exports consigned to Russia, £8,044,000, made up of United Kingdom produce and manufactures, £5,810,000 and

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Russian Trade Delegation has diplomatic status in this country; how many British subjects are members of the Delegation; and whether they are employed as commercial or political agents?

In answer to the first part of the question I refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply given on 18th April to the hon. Member for Southwark (Mr. Gilbert). A number of British subjects are employed by the Russian Trade Delegation as servants or clerks, but no members of the Delegation itself are of British nationality.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many dozen pairs of leather gloves were imported into this country from various countries during 1922 and their value; and which country is the largest competitor against the British glove industry?

In 1922 the quantity of leather gloves imported into the United Kingdom from all sources amounted to 448,382 dozen pairs, valued at £1,206,898. If this total, 189,576 dozen pairs, valued at £688,818, were recorded as consigned from France, this being the largest total so recorded in respect of any single country.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that last week the Inter-Allied Rhineland High Commission at Coblentz, under the charmanship of Lord Kilmarnock, advised a member of the British Chemical Trade Association that if his firm desired to obtain delivery of their goods lying at Cologne they must pay the 10 per cent. Franco-Belgian Reparation Tax, and that since all goods consigned from Germany to the United Kingdom upon importation are liable to a tax of 26 per cent. ad valorem under the German Reparation (Recovery) Act, payable by the German Government, these goods are liable to a total levy of 36 per cent., whereas goods going to Belgium or France only pay 10 per cent.; and what action he proposes to take to remove this handicap to British trade?

I am not aware of the communication mentioned in the first part of the question. It is, however, correct that goods exported from Cologne, as from other parts of German occupied territory, must, if they are subject to export licence requirement, pay export duty to the Franco-Belgian authorities, such duty at present being in nearly all cases 10 per cent. ad valorem. I am, however, informed that it has been decided to reintroduce as from 1st May the German export tariff as it was in October, 1921. As regards the last part of the question, I may point out that the 26 per cent. Reparation Levy does not act as a tax on German goods imported into this country so long as the German Government carry out their obligation to refund the amount of the levy to the German exporter; and no specific case of the German Government having refused to reimburse the amount has been brought to my notice.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has received a reply from the German Government on the subject of the policy of fixing differential export prices?

I have been asked to reply. The answer is in the negative, but the matter will not be lost sight of.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been called to the upward trend of industrial activity in the United States of America during the past month; that nearly all important lines are reported close to capacity or restricted only by labour supply; that the present output of construction materials, transportation equipment, and manufactured goods generally, is claimed to have never been surpassed; and whether he is in possession of, and will give the figures with regard to, the incidence of taxation upon industry in the United States as compared with this country?

I am not aware of any satisfactory method of measuring the comparative incidence of taxation on industry in different countries. But I may perhaps remind the hon. Member that the United States has a substantial sinking fund for its net war debt, and since August, 1919, has reduced its debt by something like £800 millions sterling.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the relation, if any, subsisting between the Government and the British Trade Corporation; and whether the Treasury has keen involved in any loss by the successive writing down of the capital of this bank?

Apart from the grant of a Charter, the British Trade Corporation is a purely private institution. His Majesty's Government do not hold any interest in the Corporation, and the answer to the last part of the question is, therefore, in the negative.

asked the Home Secretary whether the proposed reduction of police remuneration will be confined to those now joining the forces and not extended to those who joined on representations made upon the basis of which they entered into contracts?

No proposals for the reduction of police scales of pay have been formulated, and any such step could only be taken after the fullest possible investigation of every aspect of the matter.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether an Order has been issued by the Treasury whereby the various unions throughout the country have been called upon by county councils to make provision in their estimates for payment of police pensions in advance?

I have been asked to reply to this question. The requirement that police pensions shall be paid in advance is not a matter of order or regulation of the Treasury, but is a statutory requirement contained in Section 14 (7) of the Police Pensions Act, 1921.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the police pension funds of corporations, previously in existence as separate funds, have recently been merged into the general police funds, and that the repayments of Income Tax formerly allowed from the former fund have been discontinued; and whether, in view of the consequent hardship, he will allow the tax still to be repaid, considering that there is no change in the use to which the transferred funds are put, these being in fact earmarked for the police pensions, the income therefrom being solely applied for that purpose?

The repayment to which the hon. Member refers was made under an extra statutory arrangement dating from a remote past. It was always open to criticism as being extra-legal and was necessarily withdrawn in the altered circumstances resulting from the Police Pensions Act, 1921.

asked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been called to the fact that the United States authorities intend to deport a person known as Jim Larkin on the grounds that he is an undesirable alien; whether it is the intention of those authorities to deport him to this country; and will he take the necessary steps to see that this person is not allowed to land in this country?

I have seen statements to the effect of the first paragraph of the question, but have no information as to their accuracy. Larkin is a British subject and if he comes to the British Isles, either of his own accord or on being required to leave the United States of America, he cannot be refused leave to land.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is to fix the price of sulphate of ammonia and other articles required by farmers, to prevent the trusts absorbing the subsidy?

The Government is not prepared to revert to the system of fixing or controlling prices.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether any importers of fruit and vegetables were consulted by his Department before he decided to support the Merchandise Marks Bill now before Parliament; and, if so, who were they and what evidence they gave?

Yes, Sir. My Department arranged a conference between the promoters of the Bill and the Chamber of Horticulture, which comprises all sections of the trade.

asked the Minister of Agriculture where and when the experimental aeroplane flights made by officers of his Department for the purpose of locating shoals of fish were carried out; and if the further experiments now contemplated could be carried out during the summer fishing season in the North of Scotland?

The following are the details of the five flights undertaken:

• Flight No. 1, 19th October, 1921.—Off the Suffolk Coast.
• Flight No. 2, 2nd November, 1921.—Ditto.
• Flight No. 3, 10th November, 1921.—Off the North Suffolk Coast.
• Flight No. 4, 13th March, 1923.—Off the Coast of South and South-West Cornwall.
• Flight No. 5, 15th March, 1923.—Off the Coast of South Cornwall.

asked the Prime Minister when it is expected that an announcement will be made on Government policy on the relation of the three fighting Services?

A great deal of evidence has already been taken, but the ground has not yet been covered. In these circumstances it is not yet possible to give an answer to this question.

asked the Secretary for Mines how long it is necessary for a man to work at the coal face in order to qualify for the position of an inspector under the Coal Mines Regulation Act, and how long it is necessary for a man to work at the face in an iron-ore mine in order to qualify for the position of an inspector under the Metalliferous Mines Act?

I am sending the hon. Member copies of particulars as to the appointment of junior inspectors and sub-inspectors of mines, which give details of the qualifications required.

asked the Secretary for Mines what percentage of the total number of man-shifts, excluding mans- hifts lost through stoppage of the pits, that could have been worked in each of the mining districts during the month of January, 1923, was not worked?

I have received these particulars in respect of only four coal mining districts up to the present time. They are: Durham, 7·85 per cent.; Northumberland 7·51 per cent.; South Wales and Monmouthshire, 7·05 per cent.; and Bristol, 3·70 per cent.

asked the Secretary for Mines whether he can give the number of coking ovens that are idle in England, Scotland, and Wales?

I am informed that the number of coking ovens idle in Great Britain in March was about 2,000.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department if any units of the British Empire, including those not under Colonial Office control, are still proposing not to be represented at the coming British Empire Exhibition; if so, which they are; and whether he is making any effort to get this state of affairs remedied?

The only units of the Empire who have declared their intention not to be represented at the British Empire Exhibition are: the Irish Free State, British North Borneo, Gibraltar and Ascension. All the other units of the Empire either have definitely decided to participate, or still have the question under consideration. I understand that the decision of the Irish Free State is due to the urgent need for economy and to the difficulty of making adequate preparations in existing conditions. British North Borneo has also had to decline on the ground of the expenditure involved. In the circumstances, I do not think that any action on my part is required.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in the proposed Rating Bill, he will make provision to amend the rating law so as to give the occupying owner of a dwelling-house the same abatements off the local rates as is now permitted to house owners who let a house or houses?

I am unable to adopt the hon. Member's suggestion. The allowances to which he refers are made in consideration of the services rendered by landlords in collecting the rates from their tenants, and paying the rates whether the houses are unoccupied or not. There is no equivalent consideration in the case of an owner occupier.

asked the Minister of Health the estimated average extra percentage cost in the erection of parlour houses of 900 and 950 superficial feet as compared with non-parlour houses of 850 superficial feet?

It is estimated that the cost of building parlour houses of 900 and 950 superficial feet, exclusive of land and cost of development, would be, approximately, 8 per cent. and 11·8 per cent. respectively more than the corresponding cost of a non-parlour house of 850 superficial feet.

asked the Minister of Health, if he will call for a report upon the reason why no effort has been made to remedy the condition of things in connection with the housing of the working class at Cleator Moor, and ascertain why the medical officer of health has not made the house-to-house inspections required under the various Acts?

The latest report in my possession is for the year 1921, and this shows that a number of inspections were made and that the Council were able by informal action to secure the repair of a number of defective houses. On receipt of the Annual Report of the Medical Officer of Health for the year 1922, I will consider in the light of the facts contained therein, what action, if any, is necessary.

asked the Minister of Health whether he proposes to apply Section 63 of the Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890, to the houses to be erected under his new Bill and so disqualify those in receipt of poor relief from becoming or remaining tenants of houses erected by local authorities?

The section referred to was repealed by the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1909, and will not, therefore, apply to houses erected under the provisions of the new Bill.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Government actuary advised in 1922 that at the end of the existing agreements with doctors on the panel it would be no longer possible for the present payment of 2s. 6d. per patient per annum to be continued to be paid from approved societies' funds; and whether he has given any further report or advice since that date?

No, Sir. In reporting on the Financial Provisions of the National Health Insurance Bill of 1922, the Government Actuary did not give the advice which the Question suggests, but merely indicated that his opinion that the charge proposed by the Bill could be safely borne applied strictly to the proposals of that Measure and should not be held to imply that larger or more protracted additional charges could be borne by societies. No further report or advice has since been received from him on the subject.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will consider the possibility of tabulating a scale of relief to be given to ordinary out-relief cases as well as to the unemployed which shall be used universally throughout the Kingdom and thus remove the present anomaly which permits one board of guardians to be generous while another can go to the other extreme and cut down the relief to a scale on which it is impossible for the applicants to exist?

I do not think it would be either practicable or desirable to lay down a scale of relief which would be applicable to all the varying circumstances of individual applicants for relief in all parts of the country.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that, in 1919, an inquiry was made by Poor Law inspectors into the administration of relief to widows and children in 78 unions to see what results had been obtained from the Local Government Board circular of 8th October, 1914, on that subject, and that the Report (Cmd. 744) states that the circular largely escaped the notice of boards of guardians; and whether he will inform this House what steps have since been taken to make sure that the proposals in this circular, to which the Government has referred as a satisfactory alternative to widows' pensions, are being taken notice of by boards of guardians to-day?

I am aware of the statement in the Report to which the hon. Member refers. The detailed reports which were made by the inspectors in 1919 and the publication of the general survey in the following year served to draw the attention of the guardians to the principles enunciated in the circular of 1914, and the inspectors continue to impress upon the guardians, wherever this is necessary, the importance of conforming with these principles in practice.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the fact that it is not part of the duty of the board of control to fix rates of wages and hours of staffs of mental hospitals, he will arrange that views on these subjects should not be expressed as they were in the eighth annual Report of the board of control?

Under Section 162 of the Lunacy Act, 1890, a duty is imposed upon the board of control to make a Report every year, in which they are required to draw attention to the condition of institutions for lunatics, the care of the patients therein and such other particulars as they think deserving of notice. I see no reason, therefore, why references to hours of duty and rates of wages of the staff should not be included in their Report.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will consider the advisability of appointing to the board of control on the mental nursing service a representative from the joint conciliation committee of the Mental Asylum Workers' Union and the Mental Hospitals' Association, which represent a great majority of the asylums authorities?

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to the committee which was appointed by the board of control in March, 1922, to report upon the nursing service in county and borough mental hospitals. This committee hope to report shortly, and the board of control do not consider that at this stage it would be desirable to add to its membership. The joint conciliation committee have already been informed that the nursing committee would be willing to consider a statement of any views which the Mental Hospitals' Association and the National Asylum Workers' Union would desire to put before them.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the fact that the board of control have no legislative power and cannot enforce their recommendations on the visiting committees, he will consider the advisability of abolishing the board of control and transferring its present functions to the Ministry of Health?

The powers of the board of control and their relation to local authorities and to Parliament were fully considered when the board was established, and I do not consider that there are adequate grounds for initiating measures to alter the present arrangements.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that Mr. G. H. Kearsley, who was returned unopposed as a member of the Kingston Board of Guardians, took his seat at the annual meeting on Monday, 16th April; that he has been officially declared disqualified for election as guardian on the ground that he has received out-relief; that the clerk to the council stated that if Mr. Kearsley refused to accept office he was liable to a fine of £20 and if he acted as a member of the board by speaking or voting it would mean that he was liable to a similar penalty; whether the Government is prepared to make an alteration in the law as to prevent such disqualifications; and if he will take action in the matter?

This case had not previously been brought to my notice. It is, of course, obvious that a person who is disqualified by law from acting as a guardian cannot be liable to any penalty for refusing to act; and the clerk's statement to the contrary, if correctly reported, is erroneous. I am not prepared to introduce legislation on this matter.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether whether any representations have been made to him with reference to the further development of Mauritius; if so, what action he has taken in consequence of such representations; and whether, in view of the expressed intention of His Majesty's Government to further develop the resources of the British Empire as a whole, he will take steps to see what possibilities exist there?

No special representations have been received by the Secretary of State as to the development of Mauritius, but I may mention that in view of the prosperous condition of the colony active measures are in progress for carrying out comprehensive sanitary reforms and schemes for the improvement of the harbour of Port Louis and for the betterment of conditions among the wage-earning classes.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any representations have been made to him with reference to the further development of the Falkland Islands; if so, what action he has taken in consequence of such representations; and whether, in view of the expressed intention of His Majesty's Government to further develop the resources of the British Empire as a whole, he will take steps to see what possibilities exist there?

A geological survey of the Falkland Islands has just been carried out, but the results do not point to any appreciable mineral wealth. Whaling and fishing are the principal industries, and in this connection I would refer my hon. Friend to the Report of an Inter-Departmental Committee published as Cmd. Paper 657 of 1920. The S. S. "Discovery" has recently been purchased on behalf of the Colonial Government to carry out the researches recommended by that Committee.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the public expression of disappointment in Southern Rhodesia at the delay in granting the promised constitution, and the suggestion that His Majesty's Government should name the day for the issue of the letters patent; and whether the Secretary of State will consider the advisability of making an early and definite pronouncement upon the subject?

The reply to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second part, His Majesty's Government hope to be able to make a definite announcement at an early date.

asked the Postmaster-General (1) whether he will furnish a Return showing the London post offices where a woman is in charge and giving the rank of such officers in charge and length of Post Office service, their present salary and bonus, the number of staff under their control, and the amount of the annual turnover at each office;(2) whether he will furnish a Return showing the provincial post offices where a woman is in charge and giving the rank of such officers in charge and length of Post Office service, their present salary and bonus, the number of staff under their control, and the amount of the annual turnover at each office?

The information asked for is not readily available, and considerable time, labour, and expense would be involved in collecting it, the expenditure of which would not, I think, be justified. If the hon. Member will mention any particular offices he may have in mind, I will be glad to supply him with particulars regarding these offices.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the insanitary conditions of the Lydney Post Office have yet received his attention; whether he is aware that the staff are suffering in consequence; and whether, in view of the danger to the health of poor families who are affected by the bad condition of the drains, he will cause the necessary remedies to be effected without further delay?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a similar question asked by the Member for the Forest of Dean (Mr. Wignall) on the 22nd ultimo. Tenders for the relaying of the drains have now been received, and the work is about to be put in hand.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the re-organisation schemes in his Department are yet agreed and, if so, what steps have been taken during regrading to put into operation Clause 2 of the Resolution of the House on 5th August, 1921, as to equality of opportunity in the Civil Service; what branches employing Treasury classes, hitherto closed to women, have now been opened to them; in which branches has segregation been abolished; what efforts have been made to ensure that women shall have an opportunity of training in the higher work of the Department, and what has been done to give women an opportunity of employment on executive work other than in executive posts mainly involving supervision of staff; whether any branches in which women were employed in August, 1921, have now been entirely closed to them; and whether any women and, if so, how many and of what grades are now employed in the Secretary's Department?

All the schemes for the Headquarter Departments have now been agreed. In connection with the regrading of work, the practicability of affording women equality of opportunity with men, and of admitting women to branches hitherto closed to them, was borne constantly in mind; and substantial steps in these directions were taken. For example, a woman establishment officer has been appointed to the secretary's office to deal with staff and establishment questions which primarily or exclusively affect the female staff of the Post Office; in the Accountant-General's Department the staff work in connection with the women's branches has recently been transferred to a women's staff section, and in this Department it has further been arranged that, for training purposes, a number of women shall be employed on duties in the men's branches and vice versa; in the London telephone service women, as well as men, are now employed in the accounts branch on rental correspondence duties, which were formerly allotted to men only; in the Savings Bank Department the reorganisation scheme provides for the transfer to women of duties previously performed by men in the quarterly balance, acknowledgment, and inquiry office branches in the Engineer-in-Chief's Office, the Stores Department and the Central Telegraph Office the schemes provide for the employment of women for the first time. These steps do not represent the limit of the possibilities in connection with the extension of the employment of women; the matter is one which is kept constantly under review, and the hon. and gallant Gentleman may rest assured that every suitable opportunity will be taken to give effect to the House of Common's Resolution to which he refers. Although it is the case that most of the higher grade posts in the women's establishments have been created primarily for the supervision of subordinate staff, there are a number of duties which will consist largely of executive work. In several Departments temporary arrangements were made during the War to employ women in branches previously staffed by men; and the withdrawal of these women had not in every case been completed in August, 1921. In the Secretary's office there are employed, in addition to the woman establishment officer and the typing staff, one woman clerk higher grade and five women clerks.

asked the Minister of Labour what is the number of bricklayers, joiners, plumbers, slaters, and plasterers on the unemployment register for the United Kingdom; and what is the percentage of unemployment in these respective trades at the present time?

Statistics for the United Kingdom are not available, but at 26th March the numbers and percentages of persons registered as unemployed in Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the trades mentioned were as follow:

asked the Minister of Health whether, seeing that unemployed men registered at Employment Exchanges as belonging to a particular trade or calling are prohibited by the officials from accepting other work which may be available, although willing to take it, and by this means are compelled to remain unemployed and to continue to receive unemployment pay, he will take steps to put an end to this state of things and enable an unemployed man to take any work he can get and is willing to do?

I am not aware of any foundation for the allegation that men registered at Employment Exchanges are prohibited from accepting any form of employment which they wish to undertake. On the contrary, the function of the Exchanges is to bring all available vacancies to the notice of persons on the register and to submit for those vacancies the persons who appear to be best qualified to fill them.

asked the First Commissioner of Works what arrangements have been made or are in contemplation for housing the Imperial War Museum exhibits when they are removed from the Crystal Palace?

Arrangements are in contemplation for housing the exhibits in the Western Galleries of the Science Museum, and possibly in other accommodation at South Kensington which may become available.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that, in contravention of the terms of the treaties between China and foreign Powers, the provinces of Chekiang and Fukien have imposed an ad valorem tax of 20 per cent. on imported cigarettes and that other provinces are contemplating the imposition of a similar tax; and whether he has made any representations to the Chinese Government on the subject, and, if so, with what result?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative, so far as the provinces of Chekiang and Fukien are concerned; I have no confirmation of the reports of intended similar action by other provinces. His Majesty's Minister has made strong protests to the Chinese Government against this illegal action of the provincial authorities, but no reply has yet been received. I am expecting further reports on the subject.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for War whether, since the hospital at Woolwich Arsenal has been recently closed which accommodated some 40 patients, he can state what medical, ambulance, and other arrangements have now been made in the event of accidents arising at the Arsenal; and whether he is satisfied that such arrangements are satisfactory?

An officer of the Royal Army Medical Corps is always available by day and by night, and adequate facilities exist for the treat- ment of cases of injury pending their removal to hospital. Injured employés requiring in-patient treatment will in future be taken to the Royal Herbert Hospital, which is distant only about a mile and a quarter from the Arsenal and which has ample accommodation and facilities. With regard to ambulances, apart from the Arsenal ambulance, which is always available in working hours, arrangements have been made with the Metropolitan Asylums Board for the immediate supply, on telephonic demand by day or night, of fast motor vehicles. These will, in the first instance, be drawn from the Brook Ambulance Station, which is close to the Royal Herbert Hospital and which disposes of a considerable number of vehicles. In the event, however, of a very serious accident additional ambulances can at once be called up from other neighbouring stations. The London County Council ambulances are also available. I am advised that ambulances are likely to be on the spot before the sufferers are ready for removal in them. The hospital which has been closed would not in any event have been able to deal with an extensive accident, and I am satisfied that the arrangements which have been made are satisfactory.

asked the Under-Secretary to the Scottish Board of Health the terms of the remit to the Scottish Land Court in connection with the question of the valuation of small landholders' buildings and the fixing of fresh valuations and rate of interest; and whether notices have now been issued to the smallholders concerned, informing them of their rights to apply for a fresh valuation?

In reply to the first part of the question, I would refer the hon. and learned Member to the reply given on the 17th April to a similar question put by the hon. and gallant Member for Caithness and Sutherland (Sir A. Sinclair). Forms containing the necessary particulars are being communicated to each holder concerned in order that he may put forward an application if he desires to do so.

asked the Under-Secretary to the Scottish Board of Health if he is aware that in the matter of the deportation of John Gallagher, 1, Duncruin Street, or 22, Argyle Street, Maryhill, and Denis Breslin, 6, Clarendon Street, Glasgow, the police authorities in Glasgow refused permission to relatives and solicitors to see the men; is he aware that the Free State Government allow solicitors to see deportees; and why permission was refused in Glasgow?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second part, the Regulations of the Irish Free State Government permit persons interned in Ireland to be visited by their authorised legal advisers for the purpose of assisting them in appealing against their internment. As regards the last part of the question, the police authorities in declining to grant the permission sought were acting in accordance with the desires of the Free State Government.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport whether his attention has been called to the growing practice of the railway companies in recent years of charging from 1d to 3d. for platform tickets to people seeing their friends away on a railway journey; how many railway companies are now charging for platform tickets; and what is the income from this source to these railway companies in the years 1920, 1921, and 1922?

I am aware of the practice to which the hon. Member refers, but I have no information as to the number of railway companies which have adopted it, or what income is derived from this source, as such income is not shown separately in the annual accounts of the railway companies.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport whether he is aware that on 23rd January a statement in writing of the views of the Allotment Holders' Association regarding compensation was submitted to his Department in connection with the dispossession of allotment holders by his Department at Red Bridge Lane, Wanstead; what consideration, if any, has been given to that statement; and whether, as certain allotment holders received notice to quit in May, 1921, at a week's notice, consequently stopped their work after they had undertaken considerable labour and expense on their plots, and were informed months later that they could resume possession of their land at a time when they were deprived of their crops, he will consider the question of compensation for the loss sustained?

As I promised on the 27th March in reply to a question from the hon. Member far Edmonton (Mr. Broad), I have caused the assessments of compensation to these allotment holders to be investigated afresh, in consultation with officers of the Valuation Department. I am happy to say that the terms of settlement have now been agreed, and I understand that the payments have been made.