asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether in view of the fact that the Dominions Royal Commission in 1917 and the Imperial Shipping Committee in February, 1921, unanimously reported that uniform legislation on the subject of bills of lading should be adopted throughout the Empire, and that such last-named Report was adopted at the Imperial Conference hold in June, 1921, he will urge the self-governing Dominions and the Crown Colonies to follow the example of the Commonwealth of Australia in passing legislation identical with the British Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 1924?

I have been asked to answer this question. I shall be glad to take my hon. Friend's suggestion into consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many of the Governments of the 24 maritime countries, whose delegates at Brussels in October, 1922, signed the Convention embodying The Hague Rules for bills of lading, and who again reaffirmed them at Brussels in 1922, have ratified this Convention; and whether, in view of the necessity from the point of view, both of shipowners and merchants, of securing uniformity in commercial law, His Majesty's Government will urge the Governments which have not yet ratified the Convention to do so immediately?

I have been asked to reply to this question. The protocol of signature of the draft Convention, respecting bills of lading, was opened at Brussels in August last, to remain open for a year, after which time the Belgian Government will, if sufficient signatures are received to convert the draft into a Convention, invite the Governments represented at the International Maritime Conference of 1922 to ratify the Convention. I will inquire how many signatures have been received to the Protocol, which is still open. I do not think representations to foreign Governments would serve a useful purpose.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is his intention to summon a conference of the representatives of the employers and employed in the iron and steel trade?

No action of the kind suggested is at present contemplated.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, seeing that our export trade with the British Dominions has increased during the past 12 months as against a decrease in our trade with Europe, special efforts are being made for the still further development of our trade with the different sections of the British Empire?

Every effort is being made by my Department with the assistance of the Trade Commissioner Service to secure to British export trade the greatest possible measure of increase throughout the Empire.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether he is aware that the sheriff substitute, in Glasgow Small Debt Court, on 1st July intimated that an agreement had been come to among the sheriffs of Glasgow not to authorise in future the payment of rent arrears by instalments; if he is aware of the hard ships likely to result from this decision; and if he can take any steps in the matter?

I am making inquiry, and will communicate with the hon. Member as soon as I am in a position to reply.

asked the Prime Minister when the Second Reading of the Education (Scotland) (Superannuation) Bill will be taken?

I am not at present able to name a date, but I hope to be in a position to do so shortly.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India, with reference to those men who were at one time employed in His Majesty's dockyards in England and were pensionable servants under the Admiralty, and later entered into an agreement with the Secretary of State for India for permanent and pensionable service in the Royal Indian Marine Dockyard, Bombay, and with reference to the recommendations of the Inchcape Committee concerning the retrenchment of civilian officers, whether he is aware that some anxiety prevails in the dockyards amongst those who have not yet completed their minimum service qualifying for a pension; and whether he can state that these civilians employed in the Bombay dockyard will not be deprived of their pensionable security of tenure?

In the event of such reductions occurring, employés who are neither eligible to return to employment under the Admiralty nor qualified for pension will, in accordance with the conditions of their tenure, receive gratuities based on the length of their service under Government.

asked the Undersecretary of State for India whether the Viceroy of India has approved the action of the British political resident of Udaipur in giving approval to the recommendation of a non-judicial commission ordering Mr. B. S. Pathik, president of the Servants of Rajputana Society, to be confined for a further period of five years in the solitary fort of Kumbalgarh on a charge of sedi- tion; and will he state for how long a period up to the present time has this man been detained?

Mr. Pathik is reported to have been arrested by the Udaipur State authorities in September, 1923. I have at present no information on the other points raised in the question.

asked the Undersecretary of State for India whether the Government of India has approved the order issued against Mr. R. N. Chandhary, secretary of. the Servants of Rajputana Society and editor of its vernacular paper, the Tarun Rajasthan, of Ajmir, by the State Cabinet of Jaipur, at present ruled by a regency council responsible to the Government of India, under which Mr. Chandhary has been directed to remove himself from the territories of Jaipur State within 12 hours, and is prohibited from entering any. portion of this territory in the future?

I have at present no information on this subject.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether galvanised corrugated iron sheets are subject to an import duty into India at the present time; if so, whether this duty has been imposed for revenue purposes or with the object of providing protection for the Indian industry; and, if the latter, whether there is, in fact, any company which at the present time produces those sheets in the country?

The reply to the first part of the question is in the affirmative; the object of the duty is protective. The Indian Tariff Board in recommending this duty, reported that the Tata Iron and Steel Company proposed to manufacture such sheets, but I am not aware whether they have actually commenced production.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if civilian engineers serving under the ordnance department in India are covered by the Report of the Lee Commission?

The question of granting to these officers concessions of a similar character to those recommended in the Lee Commission Report is under consideration.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he will state what right of appeal is possessed by employés in the Government service in India who, having presented their case for redress of their conditions in the proper form provided, find themselves informed that no action outside official channels is permitted; whether this applies to the Indian Civil Service; if so, what action is taken against those civil servants who do not conform to such Regulations; why, in the case of other European employés, there is no attempt to enforce the doctrine that these men have no right whatever to make any anneal through affiliated societies in Great Britain to the Indian Government: and, if so, what redress they have?

Indian Service Regulations contain provision for the submission to higher authority of any representations which Government servants in India may wish to make on their conditions of service. The principle therein embodied that such representations can be considered only if made through certain prescribed official channels applies to members of the Indian Civil Service in common with all other Government servants. The disciplinary action to be taken in the event of an attempt to make representations through irregular channels is for the consideration in each case of the authority under which the Government servant is employed. As regards the last part of the question, my Noble Friend is satisfied that the existing rules afford adequate facilities for the ventilation and redress of legitimate grievances

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the great importance attaching to the questions dealt with in the Muddiman Report on the working of the Indian Reform Acts, he will give Members of the House a special opportunity of discussing that Report and its findings, apart from the day allotted to the discussion of the Indian Budget?

Owing to the state of public business it will not be possible to give a special day for this discussion apart from the India Office Vote.

asked the Prime Minister whether the proposed Committee of the Cabinet to inquire into Departmental expenditure has yet been set up; and, if so, what progress is being made with its investigations?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the answer which I gave on the 15th June, in reply to a question by the hon. Member for Cardigan (Mr. Morris).

asked the Prime Minister what steps have been taken, and are being taken, in regard to reducing, simplifying and effecting substantial economies in the machinery of Government Departments, as recommended by the Haldane Committee?

It would not be possible within the limits of Question and Answer to describe in detail the various changes in the machinery of Government that have been made since the Committee referred to presented its Report. I might, however, mention, as important instances in which effect has been given to the. Committee's general recommendations, the amalgamation of the Local Government Board and the National Health Insurance Commission, the concentration in one Department of all land transport questions, the recent establishment of the Civil Research Committee, and the strengthening of the machinery for the improvement of organisation and office methods in the public service. My hon. and gallant Friend may rest assured that the task of securing every possible economy in administration, whether by concentration or absorption of functions or otherwise, is one that is receiving the unremitting attention of His Majesty's Government.

asked the Undersecretary of State for the Home Department, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, if he can arrange for a telephone box to be installed in each Division Lobby?

I have looked carefully into this proposal, but fear that, even were there a demand for further telephone boxes, there is no available space for them in the Division Lobbies.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that a person charged at a Petty Sessional Court with living on the immoral earnings of women can only be sentenced to a term of hard labour not exceeding six months; is he aware of the comment made by Sir Charles Biron, the Bow Street Magistrate, when sentencing such a person to the maximum term of imprisonment on the 20th June; and will he consider legislation with a view to the maximum sentence for this offence being increased?

There are very few cases in which a Court of summary jurisdiction is empowered to pass a sentence of more than six months, and I do not think it advisable to add to the number. But I may point out that on indictment a sentence of two years' hard labour may be imposed, and in the case of a second conviction, the Court may also order a whipping.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he will consider reissuing to county councils the circulars of September, 1920, which informs smallholders how they can become owners of statutory small holdings, with a view to their distribution?

I will certainly consider my hon. and gallant Friend's suggestion; but while I fully share his desire to extend ownership among statutory smallholders, I am not satisfied that any useful purpose would be served at the present moment by a further distribution of the leaflet referred to, which was extensively circulated in 1920.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, before deciding the application which he has received from the Porthcawl Rural District Council to transfer the charity land of the labouring poor, he intends to hold a public inquiry; and, if so, where and when such inquiry will be held?

Yes, Sir. I propose to arrange for a public inquiry in Porthcawl, but pending the completion of certain preliminary investigations, I am unable to state the date. Due notice will, however, be published locally.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he will give the latest available figures of the amount of tithe redeemed and the price of redemption?

The total amount of tithe-rent-charge redeemed under the Tithe Acts up to the 30th June, 1925, was £446,585, and the consideration money paid in respect of such redemption was approximately £8,354,600. In addition, about £190,000 of tithe rent-charge has been extinguished by declaration of merger.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will explain why John Livingstone, Alexander Cameron, Robert Cameron, Allan Cameron, John Mackinnon, John L. Campbell, Duncan Cameron, John Cameron and Hugh McColl, of Fasendale, Kilchoan, Oban, Argyll, who are engaged for periods of from 16 to 24 weeks, at least, in Ardnamurchan salmon fishing, who are levied upon for unemployment benefit, and who when the salmon fishing stops are at times able to find employment in agricultural labour, are yet in times of unemployment persistently refused unemployment benefit, although they have paid into the unemployment fund for all the weeks that they are employed at the salmon fishing; and whether, if such refusal be persisted in, they may be relieved from the obligation of paying unemployment contributions while engaged at the salmon fishing?

From the particulars given in the question it has been possible to trace only six of the nine cases mentioned. The men are seasonal workers, and the Umpire has ruled generally in such cases that, in order to satisfy the statutory conditions for the receipt of unemployment benefit during the "off-season" they must show to the satisfaction of the statutory authorities, namely, the insurance officer, the Court of Referees and the Umpire, that during that period they normally engage in some other occupation. I understand that the claims were disallowed by the chief insurance officer. The men appealed to the Court of Referees, who upheld the

asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he can state, in respect of the years 1933–24 and 1924–25, and excluding the Royal Air Force in India, the average number of personnel employed, military and civilian; the average number of qualified pilots; the average number of pilots under training; the average number of qualified pilots of the rant of squadron leader or lower rank; the average number of machines employed in

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he will state the aggregate sum expended by the State on drainage schemes for the relief of unemployment in rural areas; the number of men employed; and the area of land improved?

The figures are as follow:units; the machine hours flown; the number of machines written off charge; and the total expenditure (excluding civil aviation and capital charges other than replacement of material written off)?

The answer to the various parts of the question is as follows:(1) Average number of personnel:

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that the Southern Railway Company has spent large sums of money on the electrification of its suburban services between Thornton Heath and Victoria, as a result of which the journey has been accelerated, and that owing to the bad traffic arrangements the acceleration which has been secured is nullified by the practice of discharging the passengers at the Grosvenor Road end of the station from which a long walk is involved before Victoria Street is reached; and whether he will advise the company to make the. necessary adjustment?

The point raised has not previously been brought to my notice, but I will make inquiries, and let the hon. Member know the result.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware of the inconvenience which is caused by the method of running the service of trains on the Inner Circle on Sunday mornings between 8 and 9 a.m.; whether he is aware that at this time passengers from Victoria to Paddington have to change at South Kensington and that, after a long wait at Victoria, it frequently happens that the Inner Circle train leaves as the connecting train enters South Kensington station; and whether he will make the necessary representations to the company?

My attention has not previously been, drawn to this matter, but I will communicate with the railway company, and let the hon. Member know the result.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, seeing that the fuel and light allowances for the single officer, class 1, daily rates are winter 6s. 7d. and summer 3s. 3d., he will consider raising the billeting allowance for lodging and attendance above 3s. a day?

The rates of fuel and light allowance quoted are those laid down for officers holding the highest appointments in the Army, and are based on the cost of the fuel and light required in the residences of such officers; they obviously bear no relation to the cost to an innkeeper of the billeted officer's lodging and attendance. As I have already informed the hon. Member, the present billeting rates are considered sufficient.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the annual salary paid to a director, Grade A, at the War Office if married, and the pay if single; whether any emoluments are drawn in addition to the pay; and, if so, the annual value of same in each case?

The total emoluments of directors, Grade A, married and single, are shown in detail on page 263 of Army Estimates, 1925–26.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the evidence or proofs of the responsibility of the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics for the. disorders in China, or any part of such disorders, can be communicated to Parliament; and whether any Note on the matter is being addressed to the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics?

The speeches of the Soviet Ambassador at Peking are sufficient ground for my statement as to Soviet influence in fomenting the troubles. But we have other evidence which I consider it inexpedient to publish. As regards the last part of the question, I have nothing to add to the reply returned on the 29th of June to a question by the hon. and gallant Member for Wycombe (Sir A. Knox).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the instances and circumstances of the failure of Germany to comply with the requirements of the Versailles Treaty?

For the more important infraction, I would refer my hon. Friend to the Note addressed by the Allied Governments to the German Government on the 2nd of June which has already been presented to Parliament.

asked the Minister of Health the amount of the various loans that have been lent to the West Ham Board of Guardians; the rate of interest charged for each loan; and the amount of principal and interest due to be paid for each year?

The information asked for by the hon. Member is as follow:

asked the Minister of Health if he is prepared to issue a statement showing the amount of loans lent to the various boards of guardians by the negotiating committee in all parts of the country; the rate of interest charged for each loan; and the amount of principal and interest payable for each year?

The information asked by the hon. Member is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that British citizens entering Germany are still charged a visa fee of £2, and that special measures have been taken by the German Government whereby Americans entering Germany through one of the German ports and remaining in Germany not longer than four weeks may secure a visa for 50 cents; and whether he proposes to make any representations to the German Government with a view to obtaining equality of treatment as between American and British citizens?

The scale of fees charged by the German authorities in the case of British subjects entering Germany varies in accordance with the period of validity of the visa, the fee of £2 being for a visa valid for any number of journeys for a period of six months. I am not aware that there is any different scale of fees for German visas for United States citizens.