asked the Post master-General whether he will now consider the advisability of reducing the number of subscribers before a system of rural telephones is installed in a district from a minimum of eight to a minimum of six, in view of the importance of the telephone to the agricultural industry?

A substantial loss is being incurred on exchanges already opened under the scheme for rural telephones to which the right hon. Member refers. I regret that I do not feel justified at present in proposing a reduction of the minimum of eight subscribers now required.

asked the Postmaster General if he will take the necessary steps to have reintroduced into the Post Office Guide the table of mails that appeared prior to the War, in view of the great utility of the said table to the commercial and business sections of the community

The table referred to was an extremely voluminous one and occupied some 85 pages of the Post Office Guide. I have reason to believe that the use rtiade of it by the public was relatively small and that its discontinuance about eight years ago has not caused any appreciable inconvenience. I do not think it is worth reviving the table, but I am considering whether part of the information can conveniently be made available in some other form.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware of the large number of moneylenders' circulars which are now sent through the halfpenny post and, having regard to the fact that large numbers of these come into the hands of minors, will he consider the advisability of taking such steps as will ensure the postage of these circulars in sealed envelopes; and will he consider the advisability of taking steps to prevent these circulars being sent. out promiscuously?

Moneylenders' circulars are not prohibited from transmission by post, and an amendment of the law would be required if it were desired to prohibit them. I do not think it would be practicable to exclude such circulars from the printed paper rate of postage solely on the ground that they emanate from moneylenders.

asked the Postmaster-General if he will undertake to establish a morning despatch of letters from Cockburnspath, Berwickshire?

I am having inquiry made, and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Postmaster-General if a telephone exchange is to be established at Cockburnspath, Berwickshire; if so, will the permanent official be appointed by advertisement or otherwise?

An exchange is being installed at Cockburnspath on the premises of an attendant who was obtained without advertisement.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that in the parish of Barvas, in the Island of Lewis, the present restricted rural mail service is causing considerable delay, inconvenience, and loss to the inhabitants of that parish, numbering 6,654; and whether, in view of the restoration of the daily mail steamer to Stornoway, he will take steps to provide the daily delivery of mails previously enjoyed?

I am having inquiry made, and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that the present occupants of the Burnhouse, Carronbridge, by Denny, are compelled to walk 25 minutes to the place at Kirk o' Muir where letters are left for them by the postman; and if he will consider the re-establishment of an occasional postal delivery at the Burnhouse?

I am having inquiry made, and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Postmaster-General how many women officers in the Post Office, paid on the executive scale, are doing higher clerical work; what is the longest period during which any officer has been so employed; what is the minimum of the higher clerical scale; what is the maximum salary received by the officers filling the posts; and when it is intended to pay the arrears of salary due to these people and to appoint them to substantive higher clerical posts?

There are 82 women officers in the Post Office employed on higher clerical duties who have been provisionally appointed to the executive grade pending the allocation of the executive and higher clerical posts created on the re-organisation of the clerical establishment. In a few cases these officers have been employed on higher clerical duties since the 1st April, 1921, the earliest date from which such employment could be taken into account for the purpose of fixing the starting pay on appointment to the higher grade. The minimum of the higher clerical scale for women in London is £230 and the maximum salary at present being paid to any of the officers in question is £210. The principles on which the executive and higher clerical posts in the Post Office shall he allocated are still under discussion with the representatives of the staff; and until these are settled it is not practicable to decide which of the women concerned will be appointed to higher clerical posts, or to pay the arrears of salary which will become due.

asked the First Commissioner of Works if his attention has been drawn to the serious inconvenience of the Post Office workers at the House, consequent upon the inadequate accommodation; and whether steps can be taken to enlarge the office space at their disposal?

I understand that the Postmaster is making certain alterations in the organisation of his office which may to some extent alleviate the inconvenience to which the Hon. Member refers. I am also investigating a. proposal by which it may be possible to give a small amount of additional space.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has reconsidered the decision of his predecessor as to the revival of the Tuberculosis Order of 1914; and, if so, when the Order will be put into operation?

I have been asked to reply. I may explain that the question as to whether it is practicable to put into operation at the present time the Tuberculosis Order of 1914 is now under consideration. I hope to be able to come to a decision in the matter at an early date.

asked the Minister of Health the number of cases of leprosy notified in the United Kingdom during the last annual period; how many persons there are in the United Kingdom suffering from leprosy; and can he give any information as to the efficiency of the new cure for leprosy?

Leprosy is not compulsorily notifiable in this country, and the information available as to the number of persons suffering from this disease is only approximate. It is, however, known that the total number of cases in this country is very small, and during the past 25 years official records show that only 24 cases have been imported. As regards the last part of the question, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for India tells me that favourable reports are being received from that country regarding new methods of treatment, but it is not vet possible to say what proportion of cases can be cured.

asked the Minister of Health whether there is any indication of a falling off in the extent of the outbreak of influenza; and whether he is taking any special steps to deal with the outbreak?

I am advised that it is not possible to predict with certainty the course of the present outbreak of influenza, but there are indications that its maximum incidence will be reached shortly. The disease appears generally to be of a mild type, and it has not been considered necessary to take any special emergency measures.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that the villagers of Canewdon, Essex, have to pay per bucket for water; and if he will make representations to the Rochford Rural District Council to secure adequate facilities being provided?

My attention has been drawn to this matter, but I will have inquiries made.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that, since an increase of 66⅔ in the water rate for the district of Crawley was sanctioned, the water company has continued to refrain from carrying out its statutory obligations to provide a continuous supply of pure and wholesome water, thereby imperilling the health and life of the inhabitants: and whether he will draw the immediate attention of this company to its default?

I am aware that complaints have been made as to the water supply afforded by the company in question, and I am having the matter further investigated.

asked the Minister of Health the number of children born in Poor Law institutions of mothers of weak intellect

I regret that I have no statistics which would enable me to give this information.

asked the Minister of Health whether Thomas Coxall, who died of starvation at Haddenham in December last, aged about 68, voluntarily left the workhouse or whether he was discharged; will he inquire as to this man's treatment in the workhouse, what take he had before he left, and whether he was permitted to go out of the workhouse sometimes; whether this workhouse is conducted in a humane manner; and what is the name of the union to which the workhouse belongs?

Thomas Coxall left the Ely workhouse voluntarily. While in the workhouse he did light work, assisting in the cleaning of knives and forks and the peeling of potatoes, and he was allowed leave of absence every Sunday afternoon and on one half day and one whole day in the month. The workhouse, which belongs to the Ely Guardians, is, according to my information, conducted in a most humane manner.

asked the Minister of Health, with reference to the verdicts of death from starvation or accelerated by privation during December last, whether James Downey, aged 76, who died of starvation in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, was in receipt of an Old Age Pension; whether, seeing that the guardians could have given him, whether he had a pension or not, medical and outdoor relief and so prevented him from falling into the condition in which he was found, he will inquire whether it is the practice of the Newcastle Guardians to supplement Old Age Pensions when necessary; and, if so, whether they will let it be known in Newcastle so that old age pensioners may apply?

James Downey was in receipt of an old age pension. The guardians could have given him medical and out-door relief, and it is their practice to supplement old age pensions where necessary. Downey, however, made no application to them, and I understand that he had other means besides his old age pension. I am informed that the practice of the guardians is well known in Newcastle.

asked the Minister of Health the reasons which led his Department to modify and postpone the operation of the Public Health (Dried Milk) Regulations; what is the nature of the objections to those Regulations that are regarded by his Department as confidential; and why the representative organisation of dairy farmers in England and Wales was not permitted to learn the nature of the objections taken to the original draft Regulations?

The Public Health (Dried Milk) Regulations were published in draft. form in July last with a view to eliciting any representations which might be made by parties concerned for consideration in my Department. A number of representations dealing with points of detail were made on behalf of manufacturers and traders, and my predecessor was satisfied that it was possible to meet some of them without prejudicing the interests of the consuming public, and that it would be impracticable to bring the Regulations into operation at the date originally suggested. I am not aware whether the representations made were intended to be regarded as confidential, but it was not considered that there was any ground for communicating representations submitted for the consideration of the Department to other bodies.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that the Customs authorities have no power to hold up consignments of imported condensed milk the labelling of which does not conform to the Public Health (Condensed Milk) Regulations; and whether, since such improperly labelled milk may reach the consumer before the local authority concerned is in a position to take action, he will say what steps he proposes to take in the matter to safeguard the public health?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. The ultimate procedure for the enforcement of the Regulations is by prosecution involving the liability to a substantial fine, and I see no reason to suppose that the arrangements adopted for enforcement will prove to be inadequate to secure the object. in view.

asked the Minister of Health if his attention has been drawn to the facts disclosed as to the prevalence of tuberculosis in bovines as a result of the slaughtering of cattle in connection with the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease; and what steps he proposes to take to reduce the risk of the dissemination of tubercle-infected milk for human consumption?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave on the 18th instant to the hon. Member for Newcastle-upon-Tyne East (Sir R. Aske).

asked the Minister of Health the number of children under the age of seven years who died of infantile paralysis during the last 12 months; has his Department any evidence showing that the high mortality amongst young children is due to the drinking of impure milk; and what steps does he propose to take to ensure a pure milk supply?

I can best answer the first part of the question by giving the following provisional figures for deaths during 1923 of children under seven years of age registered as due to polio-myelitis and polio-encephalitis:

asked the Minister of Health whether, seeing that the London District Council proposed that the salaries for inspectors and health visitors in London should be for sanitary inspectors £190 per annum, rising to £300 per annum, and health visitors 2150, rising to £250 per annum, that his predecessor refused to agree to this scale, and that the subject was left in abeyance, he will state what action His Majesty's (1overnment proposes to take in the matter?

I have arranged to discuss the matter with representatives of the London District Council.

asked the Minister Health whether he will take steps to obtain the necessary powers enabling supplies of glycerinated calf lymph of the same guaranteed purity as that supplied to public vaccinators to be procurable at a reasonable charge by private medical practitioners from Government sources?

I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the answer which I gave on this subject to the hon. Member for Pontypridd (Mr. Mardy Jones) on the 12th instant.

asked the Minister of Health if he can give the comparative figures for 1918 and 1923 relating to the death rate and infantile mortality in Poplar

The figures are as follow:

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received any complaints from residents in Tooting regarding the objectionable odours given off by a dust destructor situated between Alston Road and Blackshaw Road, Tooting; whether he is aware that residents in this neighbourhood are caused considerable annoyance; and whether he will take steps to have the source of complaint removed?

Complaints have been received by my Department in regard to the destructor in question and inquiries have been made. The Borough Council have promised to keep the destructor under observation.

asked the Minister of Health what was the total number of deaths from small-pox in the town of Leicester during the 42 years, 1838 to 1879, when the practice of vaccination was well observed there; and what was the number during the 44 years, 1880 to 1923, when the practice of vaccination has been largely neglected in favour of the policy of notification, isolation, and general sanitation?

The earliest year for which separate figures for Leicester are available is 1851. During the years 1851 to 1879 there were 599 deaths from smallpox in the town of Leicester, and during the years 1880 to 1923 the number of deaths was 51.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that old people are being deprived of an old age pension on the ground that the value of their housing accommodation places them outside the scope of the Old Age Pensions Act though their actual income was nil, and that in one case in Devonshire it necessitated an old lady over 80 years of age being removed from a comfortable house to a workhouse; and whether, in consequence of these hardships to the aged poor, the Government can see its w ay to propose, without delay, some legis1:tion that would exclude the value of housing accommodation being taken into account when assessing the income of old people claiming an old age pension

The question of old age pensions is at present under consideration, and I would ask the hon. Member to await the Government's proposals.

asked the Minister of Health whether plans for new abattoirs in Liverpool have been approved: and, if so, whether he has any information as co when building operations will be commenced

I understand that the Liverpool Corporation have appointed a consulting engineer to prepare plans and specifications for the erection of the proposed abattoir, but these particulars have not yet been submitted to my Department.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that applicants for registration under the Nurses Registration Act, 1919, amended by a Rule passed in July, 1923, have been rejected on the ground that their applications should have been lodged before 14th July, 1923; and whether he will take the opinion of the Law Officers of the Crown as to the legality of this action of the General Nursing Council?

I am advised that the council have no power to admit applications for registration as existing nurses after 14th July, 1923, and I see no necessity for consulting the Law Officers of the Crown.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has evidence that many hospital-trained nurses have failed to register under the Nurses Registration Act, 1919, because of neglect to send in applications within the period prescribed by the Act; and, if so, will he consider an amending Bill extending this period?

There is no evidence that any appreciable number of trained nurses who desired to be registered failed to apply during the two years period allowed by the Act; and I see no necessity for amending legislation.

asked the Minister of Health if his attention has been drawn to the inadequate remuneration of registrars of births, deaths, and marriages; and, if so, does he propose to introduce legislation altering the present position during the Session?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second part, I have the question of the reconstruction of the registration service under consideration, but I regret that at present I cannot hold out any hope that it will be possible to introduce legislation dealing with the matter in the present Session.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will request the Poplar Board of Guardians to prepare a Return for the information of this House showing the total number of persons, men, women, children, sick, aged, and infirm, in receipt of institutional and domiciliary relief chargeable to the Poplar Union on 31st January, 1924, and the number of such persons whop are ex-service men or the dependants of ex-service men; and will he also publish in the Official Report copies of all correspondence relative to outdoor relief which has passed between the Ministry of Health and the Poplar Board of Guardians during the years 1921, 1922, 1923, and 1924?

I will ask the guardians to supply me with the information referred to in the first part of the question. As regards the latter part, I do not think that any useful purpose would be served by publishing the whole of the voluminous correspondence relative to outdoor relief which has passed between my Department and the guardians during the four years mentioned, but if the hon. Member will indicate the particular letters which he has in mind I will consider the question of their publication.

asked the Minister of Health whether the accounts of the Poplar Board of Guardians for the period during which the Local Government (Financial Provisions) Act, 1921, was in force have been audited; whether any surcharge or surcharges on the accounts for that period have been made; and whether notice of such surcharge or surcharges has been given to the guardians concerned?

The audit of the accounts referred to for the half-year ended 31st March, 1922, has been completed, but the audits for the following half years are still open. At the audit for the half-year first mentioned the auditor surcharged sums amounting to £1,880. As regards the audits which are still open, I understand that the auditor has given notice of intention to surcharge, but. I have not yet received any report on the subject.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will have printed, for the information of the House, the outdoor relief scales which have been operating in Bradford, Middlesbrough, Sheffield, Birmingham, Norwich, Poplar. Bermondsey, Whitechapel, West Ham, and Stepney unions during the years 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923 and 1924; will he also ask the Jewish board of guardians to supply him with the number of persona relieved by that organisation in the Stepney borough during the same years. and the cost of such relief; and will he also state to the House the total number of persons in receipt of in-door and outdoor relief, respectively, in the West Ham and Poplar unions on the 31st day of January, 1924?

I am taking steps to obtain the information desired by my hon. Friend, but I should doubt whether there would be any advantage in printing a series of detailed scales of relief.

asked the Minister of Health what was the total expenditure in England and Wales under all heads of Poor Law relief, indoor and outdoor, for the last complete year for which the accounts have been made up; and what that amount would have been if the scale throughout the country had been similar to that adopted by the Poplar Board of Guardians?

The total expenditure on the relief of the poor in the year ended 31st March, 1922, in England and Wales, was £42,273,000. There are no scales of indoor relief; in many unions there are no scales of outdoor relief; where there are such scales they are not scales of payment but scales of income, and the application of these scales is governed by a variety of complicated conditions and qualifications. For these reasons it is quite impossible to give the hon. Member any estimate in reply to the last part of his question.

asked the Minister of health the number per 1,000 of the population in receipt of outdoor relief, and the scales of such relief, at the time, when Mr. Cooper made his investigations in regard to Poplar, in the case of the Poor Law unions in which the following Parliamentary constituencies are comprised: Bucks (Aylesbury), Cornwall (Camborne), Kent (Tonbridge), Lambeth (North), Middlesbrough (East and West), Paisley, Poplar, Rochdale, Sheffield (seven divisions), Southampton, South Shields, Stafford, and Woolwich (East and West)?

I will send my hon. Friend such information as is available in regard to the unions mentioned.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will lay upon the Table a statement showing the increase in the costs of administration which have taken place in the various boroughs in London since 1st January, 1919?

I will cause a statement to be prepared as soon as possible showing for each of the metropolitan boroughs the total expenditure of the council and the net. cost falling on the rates for the three years ended March, 1922.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that a practical scheme for the building of additional public baths has been passed by the Stoke Newington Borough Council, whereby an urgent need would be supplied and work found for some of the large number of unemployed in that borough; and when he intends to put this scheme into operation?

I cannot see my way to passing this work at the present time because it would cause a demand for skilled building labour, of which there is already a shortage in the district and which is needed for housing and other urgent work.

asked the Minister of Health what is the minimum wage paid to the labourers in the electrical department of the Poplar Borough Council; what is the wage cost of production per unit and what price is charged per unit; and whether those costs are above or below those usual in other boroughs in London?

I have been asked to reply. I regret that I have no information officially as to the minimum wages paid to labourers in Poplar nor are the other figures for last year yet available. It appears, however, from figures published in the technical Press, that the wage cost of production per unit sold in 1922–23 was lower in Poplar than in any other municipal or company station in London. The prices charged per unit cannot he exactly compared owing to the variety of the tariffs: hut the average price obtained by Poplar per unit was lower than that of any other undertaking (municipal or company) in London.

asked the Minister of Health whether he can state the steps he proposes to take in connection with the recommendation of the court of inquiry into the remuneration of medical practitioners on the panel

The question of introducing the legislation required to give effect to the recommendations of the court of inquiry is now under consideration and I am not yet in a position to make any statement.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will take steps to amend the existing National Health Insurance Acts in such a way as to provide that when an insured person is admitted to a public institution for treatment the panel practitioner responsible for the case should be subjected to a reduction of his panel fee in respect of his failure to supply medical attention in accordance with his contract?

When an insured person is under treatment in an' institution with a selected medical staff, which is not open to all general practitioners in the area, the obligation of the insurance practitioner to provide treatment ceases for the time being. The hon. Member is under a misapprehension in suggesting that in such cases there has been any failure on the practitioner's part to fulfil his contract, and I see no ground for reducing the capitation fee, in fixing which the limits of the obligation in regard to institutional treatment were taken into account.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that unemployed persons who fall sick are frequently deprived of the benefits of health insurance for which they have subscribed, owing to the temporary lapse of their contributions during unemployment; and whether he proposes to take steps to remedy this hardship in so far, at any rate, that such persons shall be entitled to benefit to the extent of their contributions?

Not only are insured persons whose contributions under the National Health Insurance Acts have fallen into arrears by reason of unemployment. already entitled to benefit to the extent of their contributions, but special provisions has been made to prevent their ceasing to be insured by reason of prolonged unemployment and to allow them to retain their title to medical benefit and full maternity benefit and to the minimum rates of sickness and disablement benefits, however few may have been the contributions paid in respect of them. They can, moreover, qualify for the full rates of sickness and disablement. benefits by paying a small sum within a specially prolonged period of grace after the end of the contribution year.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that, when persons insured under the National Health Insurance Acts are admitted to Poor Law hospitals for treatment, the boards of guardians concerned are precluded from receiving any benefits under these Acts in respect of the treatment so afforded: and whether he will take steps to have this restriction removed?

Boards of guardians have the ordinary powers of recovery of expenses incurred in providing treatment in a Poor Law hospital to a person insured under the National Health Insurance Acts, as in the case of all other persons for whom such treatment. is pro- vided. I do not think it either necessary or desirable that they should have any additional powers of recovery in the case of insured persons. and I would remind the hon. Member that any benefits to which such persons may be entitled under the National Health Insurance Acts are given in return for contributions con pulsorily payable by themselves and their employers.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the excessive rents which are being charged for apartments and so-called flats, and the consequent hardship which is being inflicted upon large numbers of citizens, he will institute fair-rent courts for the protection of all tenants?

The general question of rent restriction is under consideration, and this particular aspect of it will not be lost sight of.

asked the Minister of Health the number of houses for which tenders have been accepted for the Liverpool area, the number to be built by private enterprise, the number by direct labour, at what estimated cost, and the rents at which it. is expected the houses will be let?

The corporation have been engaged in the completion of the erection of the 5,784 houses approved under the Housing Act, 1919. This scheme is now on the point of completion, and I understand that. the Corporation have before them a proposal to proceed with the erection of 1,000 houses under the Act. of 1923, and that the number of houses for which tenders should he obtained in the first instance is now under consideration and that 32 houses have been completed by direct. labour under the 1923 Act. Information as to the estimated cost of the houses to he build by contract is not yet

asked the. Under-Secretary to; he Scottish Board of Health the number of workmen, specifying the different crafts, employed on housing schemes under Government. subsidy in Scotland for the months of June, 1921, 1922 and 1923, and the months of January, 1022, 1923 and 1924, respectively?

The following table shows as for each trade the number of men employed in January, 1924, on the construction of houses by local authorities under the Housing, Etc., Act, 1923:—

asked the Minister of Health the number of persons who have been deprived of their homes through the medium of the police and County Courts under the Rent Restriction Act of 1923?

asked the Minister of Health the approximate number of orders of ejectment made in England during the month of December in consequence of the house shortage?

I would refer the hon. Members to the reply given on Monday to a question by the hon. and gallant Member for Leith (Captain W. Benn) on the same subject. I have been in communication with the Lord Chancellor, and regret that the precise information desired is not available. Certain the Housing, Town Planning, Et. (Scotland) Act, 1919, at the dates stated:—statistics relating to warrants executed for the possession of premises are given in the judicial statistics which are published annually. The statistics for 1923 will be issued as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Health what arrangements he has made to provide for families ejected under order from houses without having alternative accommodation available?

I have no power myself to provide accommodation in the, cases referred to in the hon. Member's question, but I hope that local authorities will give the most sympathetic consideration to applications made to them in such cases in connection with the letting of houses built by them to meet the general need for working-class houses.

asked the Minister of Health what, if any, steps he is taking to control and prevent the heavy number of evictions now taking place as a result of the provisions of the Rent Restrictions Act, 1923; and whether it is his intention to introduce legislation to suspend the operation of the said provisions of the Act until the supply of houses is brought into line with the demand?

As I have previously stated, the Government are considering the whole question of rent restriction, but meantime they have no authority to interfere with the administration by the Courts of the existing law.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been called to the many evictions which have taken place in Bristol and to those which are threatening as a result of the operation of the 1923 Rent Act; and whether, pending the introduction of the promised legislation, he will, by administrative action, afford to these poor tenants any protection or relief?

I am aware of the circumstances at Bristol; but I have no authority to interfere with the decision of the Courts, in anticipation of legislation.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received a copy of a resolution, approved by the Birmingham City Council, recommending that. powers be granted to local authorities to have control of dwelling-houses which have become void for a, period of six months; and what action he will be prepared to take in the matter?

I have received a copy of the resolution to which my hon. Friend refers. I am looking into this matter, but am not at present in a position to make any statement on the question.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has or can obtain statistics to show the number of unoccupied houses in the country which the owners refuse to let and are holding over for sale; and whether he will take special powers, in view of the admitted shortage, to requisition these houses at a fair rent from the owners with a view to making them available temporarily until the Government's housing scheme has been completed?

Statistics arc not available showing the number of unoccupied houses which the owners refuse to let and are holding for sale, and in view of the difficulty in obtaining reliable information on the point, I am of opinion that the labour and expense involved would not justify the compilation of such a return. I am looking into the matter referred to in the last part of the hon. and gallant Gentleman's question, but I am not at present in a position to make any statement on the subject.

asked the Minister of Health whether his Department has any record of the number of houses in the Greater London area at present unoccupied and which are offered for sale, but which the owners refuse to rent to eligible tenants; whether he can say what is the approximate amount which is being lost to the local rating authorities by these houses remaining unoccupied; and whether, in view of the very grave shortage of houses, he will introduce legislation to compel owners of empty houses to pay the same rates as would be paid by them if the houses were occupied, as a means of inducing such owners to accept eligible tenants, and thus easing the housing shortage to a considerable extent?

There is no record of the number of houses which are unoccupied for the reason mentioned and, therefore, I am unable to give any estimate of the loss in rates due to such houses. With regard to the last part of the question, I may refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave last Thursday to the hon. Member for Spennymoor (Mr. Batey).

asked the Minister of Health whether he has approved of a loan to the Cannock Urban District Council amounting to £7,600 for 38 houses to be built in St. John's Road, Cannock; whether he is aware that an agreement has been entered into giving a colliery company the right to control these dwellings as tied houses for 20 years; and whether, in view of strong public opposition to this arrangement, he will institute a public inquiry into the circumstances of the loan under such an agreement?

The Cannock Urban District Council have undertaken in the exercise of their powers to make a loan of the amount stated in respect of 38 houses to be erected by a private builder in the district, and the raising of the necessary loan has been sanctioned under the Housing Act, 1923. The arrangement between the builder and a colliery company, by which the company will control the letting of the houses, is not one to which I can take exception under the scheme of the 1923 Act.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received a request from the Cannock Rural District Council for a loan to be granted in respect of dwelling houses to be built at Hilton, Featherstone and Huntington; whether he is aware that, dependent upon such a grant, an agreement has been entered into between the council and two colliery companies for the latter to control them as tied houses for 15 years and whether he is prepared to withhold grants where such an agreement. applies?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second part, I understand that agreements have been made between the rural district council and two colliery companies under which the rents of the houses to be erected are guaranteed to the council by the companies. I am informed that a clause in the agreement which gave the companies a right of control in the selection of tenants has now been cancelled.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that the recent reduction in the price charged by the British Cement Trust for cement is largely due to the importation of foreign cement at much lower prices: and will he therefore allow local authorities to continue buying foreign cement for use on relief work in order to prevent the British cement ring again putting up their prices, and thus retarding the building of houses and the construction of roads?

This question is under the consideration of the Government.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that the Government subsidy under the 1923 Housing, Etc., Act is being given in the urban district of Cirencester in the case of houses which are being sold at prices of £900; and whether he proposes to continue the giving of subsidies under such conditions?

I have communicated with the local authority, and am informed that they are not aware of any cases in the district in which houses in respect of which subsidy is being given under the Housing, Etc., Act, 1923, are being sold at prices of £900. As regards the second part of the question, I should not be prepared to approve the grant of subsidies by local authorities in respect of houses having a selling value of £900.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the doubt which apparently exists as to the nature of houses for the erection of which it is contemplated giving financial assistance, he can give a definition of the expression working-class houses: and whether it is intended to give such assistance only to those engaged on manual labour?

While I am clear that. the expression working classes cannot be limited to those engaged on manual labour I do not propose to attempt a definition which the House and previous Ministers of Health have refrained from giving. I do not think, however that local authorities generally find practical difficulty in satisfying themselves as to the kind of houses for which financial assistance should be given.

asked the Minister of Health whether any municipal authorities have made representations to his Department as to the desirability of increasing the size of houses to which the Government subsidy applies?

In a few cases representations to this effect have been made by local authorities.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that, at con- siderable cost to the nation, the Ministry of Munitions, in conjunction with the brickmakers of the country, fixed in 1918 the price of all the principal grades of building and engineering bricks; and whether he will consider the advisability issuing a comparative table, giving the prices of building bricks as fixed in 1918 and the prices of similar grades to-day, coupled with a tabular statement of wages, fuel, and transport during the same periods?

I am aware that under the brick control in 1918 prices were fixed for the principal grades of bricks. I will have inquiries made to ascertain whether the necessary material for the preparation of a comparative table such as the hon. Member has in mind can be obtained.

asked the Minister of Health what are the prices for bricks of various classes to-day as compared with the prices shown in the Report of the Committee on Building Materials for December last?

Complete information of the February prices is not yet available. but is being obtained and will be published as soon as possible. The returns obtained ror January indicated that there had been no change in prices of bricks since December.

asked the Minister of Health if houses built under the Addison scheme by local authorities were assessed according to the cost of building then prevailing; and, if so, whether the Ministry has been giving instructions to local authorities to lower the assessment of these houses as the cost of building has fallen?

As regards the first part of the question, I may refer the hen. Member to Sub-section (9) of Section 12 of the Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (Restrictions) Act, 1920, which provides that the gross estimated rental of a house forming part of a housing scheme to which Section 7 of the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1919, applies, shall not exceeed the rent (exclusive of rates) charged by the local authority. The answer to the second part of the question is in the negative. My Department has no authority to give instructions to assessment Committees as to the manner in which properties should be assessed.

asked the Minister of Health whether he proposes to continue the Inter-Departmental Committee appointed to survey the prices of building materials?

The question whether this Committee should be continued in its present form, or whetho: there shall be an extension of its scope and powers, is under consideration. I may say that the arrangements made by the Committee for the collection of information as to prices are being continued.

asked the Minister of Health what action has been taken with regard to the Report. on the prices of light castings and rain-water goods made by the Committee on Prices of Building Materials in November, 1923?

The Report of the Committee refered to, together with other circumstances in connection with the supply of building materials, is receiving consideration with a view to determining the lines upon which further action may be taken.

asked the Minister of Health what number of working-class houses were built last year without a subsidy at all; which of them were parlour and non-parlour houses; and what was their average cost?

Detailed statistics are not available of the number or cost of working-class houses built last year by private enterprise without subsidy. A return obtained from the local authorities for the six months ended 30th September last showed that in that period 20,982 houses had been completed of not more than £26 rateable value in the provinces and not more than £35 in the Metropolitan Police district. A similar return obtained in March, 1923, showed that 9,971 similar houses had been completed by private enterprise in the period from 1st October, 1922, to 1st March, 1923.This return did not include building in the areas of rural l district councils. From these returns it powers for dealing with sanitary defects appears that in the year ended 30th in houses, and he may rest assured that September, 1923, the number of small in framing their housing scheme the houses of the type described which were Government will give very full consider completed within the year was not less than 31,000.

asked the Minister of Health the number of municipal houses that have been built in Stoke Newington during the last five years?

During the last five years, the Stoke Newington Metropolitan Borough Council have erected a block containing 18 tenements.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been drawn to the case of Strickland v. Palmer, decided in the King's Bench Division last week, to the effect that the provisions of the Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (Restrictions) Act, 1920, gave the landlord the right to increase the rent to correspond with an increase of rates payable by a landlord in respect of a dwelling-house within the said Act, but that no provision existed to enable a tenant, on the happening of any contingency such as the reduction of rates, to go to the County Court and apply that the rent be reduced, or decrease the rent automatically with the fall in the rates, or determine the implied new tenancy created by the increase of rent permitted in respect of the increase of rates; and will he consider legislation immediately with a view to amending the law on the subject?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave on Thursday last to similar questions by the hon. Members for Hulrne (Sir J. Nall) and South Islington (Mr. Cluse).

asked the Minister of Health whether, when he outlines his housing scheme, he proposes to take into consideration the question of slum property and the serious lack of sanitary facilities in houses in rural areas such as the Parliamentary division of Barnard Castle, in the county of Durham?

As my hon. Friend is aware local authorities have very wide powers for dealing with sanitary defects in houses, and he may rest assured that in framing their housing scheme the Government will give very full consideration to the necessity of replacing unsatisfactory houses.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received a request from the Hastings Borough Council to sanction the raising of a loan of 267,000 for the part cost of a now music pavilion; whether he has received any resolutions of protest against this proposal on the ground that the local authority are neglecting their duty to provide houses in the area; whether he is aware that that local authority in question are only building 62 houses, for which there are 302 applicants: and whether, in the event of being satisfied that the proposal for a new pavilion is being put forward to the neglect. of local housing schemes, he will withhold his sanction to the proposed loan?

I am refusing sanction to a loan for this music pavilion on the ground that skilled building labour would be directed from more urgent work. Approval has been given to the erection of 62 houses by the Town Council.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received an application from the London County Council for permission to reduce the rents of their houses on the White Hart Lane Estate, Tottenham and, if not, having regard to the fact that the rents upon this estate are from 4s. 6d. to 5s. per week more than similar houses built in the same district at the same time, whether he will make representations `o the London County Council to reduce the rents to the same amount charged by other public authorities for houses of similar types?

No such application has been received from the London County Council. As my hon. Friend knows, the entire responsibility for the administration of the housing schemes rests with the Council, whose duty it is to select the tenants and to fix the rents in accordance with the rules laid down in the housing regulations. I do not think I could properly interfere in the manner suggested.

asked the Minister of Health whether the trade union rate of wage is being paid to all workers engaged in building under the Housing Act, 1993, in view of the fact that public money is being paid in the form of a subsidy?

Information on this point is not available, but I think my hon. Friend may fake it that it is the ordinary practice for local authorities' contracts to contain a fair wages clause.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of his Department's announcement that it is now unnecessary for local authorities to submit particulars of the density of houses qualifying for subsidy under the 1923 Housing Act, he will state what is there to prevent local authorities sanctioning 30 to 40 houses being built to the acre; and if he is prepared to allow public moneys to be used for houses erected under such conditions?

Quite apart from the lead given to local authorities by my Department in regard to the desirable standard of density of houses and apart from the improved public opinion on this point, I think that there can be no doubt that local authorities are very fully alive to the importance of avoiding excessive density, and that the hon. Member may rely on local authorities exercising their discretion reasonably and properly.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that clinker refuse from destructors and electric light works is worked up abroad successfully and cheaply into bricks for building; and whether he will consider this method of relieving the brick shortage and obtaining cheaper houses?

I am aware that good clinker may be used successfully as aggregate for concrete, though it is difficult to form a judgment of relative cheapness of the process without reference to local conditions in the particular case. I have every hope that the brick industry will succeeed in producing sufficient bricks to meet the housing needs, and I shall welcome all action to that end on the part of the industry. Attention will, of course, be given to all promising methods of alternative construction.

asked the Minister of Health the number of local authorities who have taken advantage of Part III of the Housing, etc., Act, 1923, amending the Small Dwellings Acquisition Act; what are their names and the total number of houses in each case affected; and whether the policy of the Ministry is to stimulate all local authorities to take further or similar action along the same lines?

Since the passing of the Housing, Etc., Act, 1923, loans have been sanctioned under the Small Dwellings Acquisition Act to 80 local authorities, to a total of £836,989. A list of these authorities is given below. Information is not available as to the number of houses in respect of which local authorities have advanced money under the Act. With regard to the last part of the question, my predecessor issued a circular letter to local authorities on the 17th ultimo urging upon them the importance of making the fullest possible use of their powers under the Act; and I shall be glad to give sympathetic consideration to any proposals of this kind made by local authorities.The following is the list of authorities:—Abersychan Urban District Council.Aldershot Town Council.Ashford Urban District Council.Barking Urban District Council.Barnet Urban District Council.Barry Urban District Council.Beckenham Urban District Council.Beddington and Wallington Urban District Council.Biggleswade Urban District Council.Blaenavon Urban District Council.Bognor Urban District Council.Bolton County Borough Council.Brentford Urban District Council.Caerphilly Urban District Council.Cardiff County Borough Council.Cardiff Rural District Council.Carlton Urban District Council.Carmarthenshire County Council.Carshalton Urban District Council.Chepping Wycombe Town Council.

asked the Minister of Health the number of occupied houses which medical officers have reported as at present unfit for human habitation; how many persons are living in such houses; and whether he can state the death-rate in regard to such houses?

According to statistics obtained from the reports of medical officers of health for the year 1922, 15,867 houses in England and Wales were found to he unfit for human habitation. Particulars are not available as to the number of persons living in these houses or the death-rate in regard to such houses.

asked the Minister of Health whether Sir Charles Ruthen is still honorary director of housing by whom and on what date he was appointed as such; what are the exact terms and duties of the appointment does he receive any emoluments by way of allowances for expenses or otherwise; and, if so, what is the total amount paid to him since his appointment?

the answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. Sir Charles Ruthen was appointed Director-General of Housing in a voluntary capacity by the then Minister of Health on 20th April, 1921. He receives an allowance of £500 a year to cover his out-of-pocket expenses while living in London and the cost of a season ticket between London and Swansea. The total amount so paid to him since his appointment is £1,796 15s. He is at present responsible for the general control of the arrangements for the approval of housing schemes carried out by local authorities and for advising the Minister on technical matters arising in connection with housing administration.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that a number of miners employed in East Lothian collieries have been seized with a disease diagnosed by a professor in the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary as spirochaetosis, a form of poison due to the presence of rats in the workings; and that all of them were seriously ill and several have died from its effects; and what steps is he taking to deal with the disease and the cause, which has created widespread alarm in the district?

The Scottish Board of Health are aware that an outbreak of infective jaundice has occurred in East and Mid Lothian; that the majority of those affected are miners; that within a year there have been fourteen known cases, four of which resulted fatally. The bodies of three rats have been proved to be affected by the Spirochketosis IcteroHæmorragica. By regulations of the Board, dated 4th instant, the disease has been made notifiable in the City of Edinburgh and in East and Mid Lothian, including the Burghs in these counties. The local authorities of the areas affected have the matter under observation and the Board of Health are in communication with the Board of Agriculture and the Mines Department Inspectorate.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether facilities will be given for the promotion of promising boy writers, Royal Navy, to the rank of paymaster cadet, as is done in the case of artificer and electrical apprentices?

There are at present no boy writers in the Navy. A scheme has recently been established under which a limited number of boys from Greenwich Hospital School will be sent periodically to the Boys' Training Establishment at Shotley for entry as boy writers. The scheme makes no provision for the promotion of boy writers to paymaster cadet and there is no intention of extending it in this direction.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether the post-war establishment of officers for the naval cookery officers has yet been settled; and, if so, what the establishment is?

The establishment has. been settled and is as follows:

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the present position with regard to Item 27 of the 1922 Welfare Conference; if any changes in the system of promotion to warrant rank have been decided upon; what branches are affected; when will the changes be promulgated to the men of the Fleet; if no changes have yet been decided upon, in what branches is the consideration of the subject most advanced; and when is it anticipated that the decision in regard to those branches will be announced in accordance with the promise given in A.F.O. 1703 of the 26th June, 1923?

Consideration of this complicated question, which affects all branches of warrant officers, is now practically completed, and a Fleet Order on the subject will shortly be issued.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty if he is aware that the percentage of disability assessed by a naval medical board in the case of men invalided through injuries sustained whilst on duty is final, whether such decision is eventually proved to be wrong or not; and whether he will amend this Regulation to permit of any invalided naval rating who is dissatisfied with his assessment being given the right of appeal to a medical referee?

It is not considered that any necessity arises for the appointment of a medical referee in the case of the permanent service, having regard to the stringent medical examination applied to all new entries. The existing rights of post-War pensioners are held to be sufficiently safeguarded, as the decision of the Naval Medical (Surveying) Board is always subject to consideration by the medical authorities of the Admiralty and the percentage of disability is not finally assessed at the time of invaliding, if the disability is not in a final stationary condition.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the. Admiralty whether, inasmuch as the question has been under consideration for a very long time, he is now in a position to say what further promotions to senior master, Royal Navy, will be made?

Of the War and pre-War schoolmasters who are the only officers qualified by service for advancement, all those considered to possess undoubted claims to promotion have gained it. Of tile remainder of these schoolmasters there are a certain number who may possess the necessary qualifications but whose claims have not yet been proved. Consequently, before making further promotions from this group, it has been decided to put those who have been recommended as suitable through an advanced course, as originally provided for in the Regulations. All who qualify in this course will he promoted to senior master.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether the compilation of an instructional library for petty officers and men, referred to in Item 54 of the 1922 Welfare Conference, has been completed; if so, when distribution of the books will commence; and whether the men will have free and unrestricted access to the books?

This question is still under consideration.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the result of the inquiry into unhealthy conditions of offices in certain of His Majesty's ships put forward in Item 4, Group II, of the 1922 Welfare Conference; and what steps have been taken to improve existing accommodation, especially with regard to ventilation and lighting?

Enquiries have been made in a considerable number of cases and the results obtained, and the action taken thereon, naturally vary from ship to ship according to circumstances. in every case all steps which are reasonably possible have been taken to remedy any defects in such matters as ventilation and lighting.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether Lieut.-Colonel Pigott, A.P.D., who was wounded in Egypt while engaged on duty with his unit on the 15th July, 1922, has received the same wound gratuity as he would have received if be had been wounded in action; and, if not, why this has been refused?

The Noble Lord seems to be under the misapprehension that wound gratuities are still existent. This is not the case, as gratuities have been abolished for all wounds, whether received in action or not. When, however, the wounded officer retires from the Army, the disability resulting from the wound is taken into account. in assessing his retired pay, under the Regulations governing the issue of disability retired pay. This rule applies equally to all wounds incurred on duty, and Lieut.-Colonel Pigott will, therefore, receive the same treatment as if he had been wounded in action.

asked the Secretary of State for War why the military authorities have refused to discharge Private James Cairney, No. 2,924,971, Cameron Highlanders, in spite of the fact that his mother has submitted to them the boy's birth certificate, showing him to have been 17 when he enlisted and that he will not attain the enlistment, age of 18 until 11th July, 1924?

The circumstances of this case are unknown at the War Office, but inquiries are being made. The dis- charge of a soldier between the ages of 17 and 18 years, who misstated his age on enlistment, is only granted where compassionate grounds exist. While full consideration is always given to cases of this nature, it should be understood that discharge cannot be claimed as a right.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether a decision has yet been arrived at in the case of secretaries of Territorial associations for reassessment of pension under Army Order No. 325 of 1919; and, if so, whether he will state it?

I have been asked to reply. The hon. Member is no doubt aware that the contention of these secretaries that, their pension should be reassessed under Army Order No. 325 of 1919 was submitted to arbitration by agreement. Lord Desart's award, dated 3rd December, 1923, was in favour of the War Office and against the secretaries.