asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he can state in regard to the Bahamas and for the years 1922, 1923, and 1924, respectively, the value of imports from the United Kingdom, from the Colonies, and from elsewhere, respectively; and what were the principal imports from elsewhere?

The value of imports into the Bahamas from the United Kingdom, from the rest of the Empire, and from foreign countries, respectively, during 1922, 1923, and 1924, was as follows: — 1922. 1923. 1924. £ £ £ United Kingdom 672,785 758,041 507,459 Rest of the Empire. 63,651 189,095 204,263 Foreign countries 1,226,488 1,173,000 841,172

The principal imports from foreign countries were whisky, foodstuffs, and manufactured goods.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the average rate of import duty in the United States on fully-manufactured goods imported from Great Britain?

I am afraid that it is not possible to give a satisfactory figure which will adequately represent the average effect of the whole tariff. My hon. and gallant Friend will, however, find on pages 542–5 of the volume entitled "Survey of Overseas Markets" some notes on the relative ad valorem incidence of Customs Tariffs (including that of the United States) on British goods in 1914 and 1924, based on an examination of the tariffs applied to certain selected staple British goods.

asked the Prime Minister whether the Research Committee has been considering the depressed state of the engineering industry; and whether any proposals to assist the engineering industry will be submitted to Parliament this Session?

The position of the engineering industry has not been considered by the Committee of Civil Research, except in so far as it is bound up with that of the iron and steel industry. Until the Committee has made its Report to the Cabinet, I am unable to make any statement.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the number of ex-enemy ships which are still for sale, the average tonnage per ship, and the price per ton which is being asked for them?

There are no ex-enemy ships remaining to be sold.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many ex-enemy ships sold to British shipowners have been resold to foreign owners; the price per ton received by the Government on the sale to British owners and the price per ton received by the British owners on the resale to foreign countries?

A return has already been laid on the Table giving the names of the firms by whom each of the ex-enemy ships was bought up to 27th March, 1923, and the prices paid. This return has been brought up to date and will shortly be laid on the Table but it is not possible to give the prices obtained in any cases of resale as these are not, known.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is aware that a promise was given in 1921 that the principle of equal pay for men and women in the Civil Service within three years; and whether he is prepared to appoint a Committee to inquire into the question?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given on the 5th March last by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the hon. and gallant Member for Hexham (Major Clifton Brown).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the total annual cost, including overhead charges, of the Passport Office; and what is the annual revenue derived from fees paid?

The total cost or the Passport Office establishment in the last completed year, 1924–25, was £73,700. The total amount received in respect of passport fees was £106,756.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the compulsory deliveries of German reparation coal to France are to come to an end in 1929, as provided in the Treaty of Versailles?

The Treaty of Versailles provision under which France can demand compulsory deliveries of coal by Germany at special prices expires on 9th January, 1930. Under Clause 2 ( d ) of the London Agreement of 9th August, 1924 (Command Paper 2259), deliveries of coal may be made on a commercial basis and not at Treaty prices if so arranged and if consistent with the total payments to be made by Germany under the Dawes plan. These deliveries are not compulsory except in the special contingency provided for in Clause 2 ( d ) (vi), i.e., if and to the extent that an Arbitral Commission of three independent arbitrators decides that there has been wilful discrimination or wilful obstruction on the part of the German Government or its nationals to the conclusion of ordinary commercial contracts.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is now in a position to state whether a British consul has been appointed in the Welsh colony in the Chubut Valley, Argentine, as suggested in the Report received by the Foreign Office in 1923; and, if not, will he give immediate consideration to the subject?

His Majesty's Minister at Buenos Aires has reported that the gentleman to whom it was proposed to offer the appointment has no immediate intention of returning to Patagonia, and he has suggested that the post should be left vacant as he is unable to suggest any other suitable candidate.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he proposes to take any steps to give effect to the recommendations of the International Labour Conference of 1924 (Cmd. 2292), relating to the utilisation of workers' spare time, that subventions should be granted to organisations concerned with the moral, intellectual, and physical development of the workers for the encouragement of poultry keeping, allotments, and gardens?

(for Sir A. STEEL-MAITLAND, MINISTER of LABOUR): I have been asked to reply. I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the reply given on Wednesday, 29th July, to a similar question asked by my hon. Friend, the Member for Wavertree (Mr. Tinne).

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether it is a condition of the grant of the sugar subsidy to sugar-beet factories that trade union rates of wages, in accordance with the Fair Wages Clause, shall be paid to workpeople employed in the factories and in their erection?

The provisions as to wages in sugar-beet factories receiving subsidy are laid down in Section 3 (1) of the British Sugar (Subsidy) Act, 1925 to which I would refer the hon. Gentleman.

asked the Minister of Health whether the findings of the Departmental Committee announced to be set up with regard to facilities to enable those migrating to the Dominions securing some return for their contributions under the Pensions Bill will be published and submitted to the House?

My hon. Friend may rest assured that His Majesty's Government will be prepared to furnish this House with the fullest possible information on this subject, but he will, I think, recognise that at the present moment, when the Committee has still to be appointed, it would be premature to give a pledge that its findings will be published.

asked the Minister of Health what is the cause of the delay in paying the mileage fees for doctors by the Gloucestershire Insurance Committee, seeing that the balance of such fees for 1924 is still unpaid and nothing has been received for such fees in respect of 1925?

I am informed that the calculations required for the distribution among insurance practitioners of the Gloucestershire Mileage Fund in accordance with the new scheme approved for 1924 have been greater than was anticipated. Payments have now begun to be made and the Committee expect to be able to complete them in the course of a few days. There is no apparent reason why advances should not be paid in respect of the current year, find I am so informing the Committee.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India how many employés are employed in the Income Tax Department in India whose remuneration is less than £4 per month, and the numbers and salaries of such employés?

The information required to answer the hon. Member's inquiry is not available in this country and my Noble Friend does not consider that any useful purpose would be served by asking the Government of India to collect it.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he will cause an inquiry to be held in the case of Mr. S. H. Counsell an ex-deputy magistrate and deputy collector in the province of Bengal, who was removed from his office without an inquiry and subsequently relegated to a subordinate clerkship from which he was compulsorily retired, before the full term of his service, on a small pension, although his earlier promotion was ordered on the ground of merit by the Judicial Secretary to the Government of Bengal?

The dismissal of a provincial service officer not appointed by the Secretary of State in Council is a matter within the power of the authorities in India and no appeal against their decision lies to the Secretary of State. This is not therefore a matter in which my Noble Friend would be prepared to intervene unless there has been some breach of the rules made by him under the Government of India Act. As regards the allegation that no inquiry was held in Mr. Counsell's case, the Government of India will be asked to report.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether it is proposed that in the event of a man at present in the Army being promoted he should be paid at a rate lower than the existing scales?

I have nothing to add at present to my reply to the hon. Member's questions on

Country. Year. Army Estimates. United Kingdom … … April, 1924—March, 1925 … £45,000,000 France … … January—December. 1924 … 4,331,570,000 francs. Germany … … April, 1924—March, 1925 … 315,302,000 gold marks Russia … … October, 1923—September, 1924 … 356,000,000 gold roubles. United States … … April, 1924—March, 1925 … 255,615,000 dollars.

I might add that the military budgets in foreign countries are not prepared in all cases on the same basis as the Army Estimates for the United Kingdom, and, therefore, great caution must be shown in any comparisons based upon these figures.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) if he is aware that 30 civilians have notice to leave the central tailors' shop, Aldershot; that three of the men concerned were transferred to that shop from the Royal Army Service Corps when the regimental shop was closed; and is it the intention to transfer those men back to that regiment now that each regiment is to do the work;

(2) if he will have an inquiry into the whole of the facts relating to the closing of the central tailors' shop, Aldershot, at

the 28th July regarding possible changes in the pay of the Army.

asked the Secretary of State for War from what date the reductions in the staff of the Corps of Military Accountants will take place; the total staff in officers and men after the reductions aforesaid; and the total saving to his Department?

I am unable at present to give any information on these matters, which are still under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for War the cost of maintaining armies in the following countries for the year 1924: Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia and the United States?

The figures are as follow: —

which the workmen will be allowed to give evidence: and has he received from the workmen any scheme for the better management of the central tailors' shop?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question on this subject on the 28th May last. The central tailors' shop at Aldershot is being closed in accordance with the decision to discontinue generally the central shops for the repair of clothing and boots which were instituted as an experimental measure in 1922. There is no purpose to be served by holding an inquiry such as the hon. Member suggests; the scheme of garrison shops has been abandoned, not because of any fault in the management of the shops, but because of the want of patronage by the soldiers which made it impossible for the shops to be run without serious loss. Repairs of clothing and boots will in future be carried out by local contracts arranged by each unit; the work will not be done by regimental personnel, and it is not, therefore, possible to retransfer to the Royal Army Service Corps the three men who served in that corps prior to being discharged and taken on as civilians at the Aldershot shop. I may add that it was made clear to all the men that the shop was an experiment and would have to be closed if it proved not to be successful.

asked the Secretary of State for War if his attention has been drawn to the alarm experienced by the civilian population at Aldershot owing to the heavy artillery firing which took place during recent manԓuvres there; and whether, with a view to the safety and peace of the civilian population, he will cause instructions to be issued so as to ensure adequate warning being given when artillery practice takes place?

No gunnery practice takes place in or near Aldershot. Blank ammunition is fired by light artillery in the ordinary course of training. I am informed that there has been no abnormal amount of such firing during recent training. The safety and peace of the civilian population has not been endangered in any way.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that the dockers at Avonmouth are compelled to register twice daily; that the majority journey daily from Bristol, at a train fare of 7½d., arrive at 7.30 a.m. and have to remain there until 12 noon for the employers' pleasure, and whether, in these circumstances, he will do away with the necessity for signing twice?

At Avonmouth dock workers are in general required to prove their unemployment twice daily, but the second attendance is frequently excused. Workers, who journey from Bristol to Avonmouth for the morning call, may if they choose return and attend the afternoon call and prove their unemployment at Bristol. If there is an afternoon call at Avonmouth, and they wait there for it, they can prove their unemployment at Avonmouth immediately thereafter, between the hours of 12 noon and 1 p.m. My right hon. Friend does not think that these requirements involve any hardship.

asked the Minister of Labour the total amount of contributions paid year by year by the State as State contributions in respect of workers coming under the Unemployment Insurance Acts from 1911 to 1924?

The amounts contributed by the Exchequer to the Unemployment Fund year by year since 1911, have been as follow:— Financial Year. Exchequer Contribution £ 1912–13 … … … 378,000 1913–14 … … … 602,000 1914–15 … … … 546,666 1915–16 … … … 538,863 1916–17 … … … 746,372 1917–18 … … … 1,007,541 1918–19 … … … 994,402 1919–20 … … … 912,700 1920–21 … … … 2,168,639 1921–22 … … … 8,123,429 1922–23 … … … 12,001,174 1923–24 … … … 12,811,207 1924–25 … … … 13,145,100

asked the Minister of Labour the amount of the remuneration of the Director of the Inter-national Labour Office; whether any sum is paid to him by way of allowance for travelling expenses or entertainment expenses what was the amount for last year; and whether any account is rendered by him of such expenses?

The salary of the Director of the International Labour Office is 90,000 Swiss francs per annum. In addition, travelling expenses are refunded to the Director, as to the rest of the staff, as and when they are necessarily incurred. The Director is paid an enter- tainment allowance which is shown each year in the published accounts; in 1924 the amount was 30,000 Swiss francs. So far as my right hon. Friend is aware, no detailed accounts of the expenses incurred by him in entertainment have been rendered to or asked for by the governing body.

asked the right hon. Member for Monmouth, as representing the Forestry Commissioners, what the scale of salaries for foresters, foremen, and workmen employed under the Forestry Commission was in 1921; and what increases and reductions in the pay of these classes has taken place since 1921?

The scales of salaries for the three grades of foresters employed under the Forestry Commission in 1921 varied from £l50–£350 per annum, and in consequence of the fall in the cost of living were reduced in 1922 to £l30–£290, and in 1924 to £l20–£270. At the last date all head foresters and Grade I foresters and 60 per cent. of Grade II were placed on an established basis, which entitles them to pensions. The salaries for foremen in 1921 were £130 per annum or 2s. above the minimum agricultural weekly wage (whichever was greater). In 1922 their salaries were reduced to 42s. up to 45s per week. Foresters and foremen are provided with free quarters, or in lieu thereof house allowance from 7s. 6d. to 10s. per week. The rates of wages for workmen employed on day work under the Forestry Commission vary with the local agricultural wage, which represents the minimum payable. A large proportion of work is done on piece work, which enables the workmen to earn considerably greater wages than day work rates.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether the Rodney Perpetual Pension has been commuted; if so, what was the amount paid; and what relationship to Lord Rodney is the recipient of the commutation?

The pension was commuted in January, 1925, for a payment of £42,000. The present Lord Rodney is a great-great-great-grandson of the distinguished admiral.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the number of private persons who received a loan for the erection of a house from the Public Works Loan Commissioners during the years 1919, 1920 and 1921, respectively?

The number of loans granted by the Public Works Loan Board to private individuals for the erection of houses in the years 1919, 1920 and 1921 was, respectively, 0, 2 and 1. In most cases during this period private individuals could receive subsidy payments from the Ministry of Health, and preferred this course.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has considered the desirability of making representations to the French Government on behalf of British holders of French Government stocks for compensation on the loss of capital following the depreciation in the value of the franc; and whether it is proposed to take any action in this direction?

I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply given to the hon. and gallant Member for the Eastern Division of Lewisham (Lieut.-Colonel Pownall) on the 20th July. The answer to the last part of the question is in the negative.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the costs incurred, for the latest date, for defence in Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, and also the cost in 1913?

(for Mr. CHURCHILL) in pursuance of his reply (OFFICIAL REPORT. 29 th July, 1925, Col. 434) supplied the following statement: DEFENCE EXPENDITURE. — Actual Expenditure 1913–14. Latest available Estimates. United Kingdom.* £81,961,000 £127,019,000(1925–26) Canada $11,916,000 $12,454,000(1925–26) Australia. £4,031,000 £5,263,000(1924–25) New Zealand. £560,000 £943,000(1924–25) South Africa. £1,280,000 £898,000(1925–26) * Net expenditure from Army, Navy and Air Votes, and Subheads A and D.1 of the Middle East Vote, together with the appropriate "Allied Services."

asked the Minister of Transport whether his attention has been directed to the increasing disregard of the law respecting the avoidance of emission of smoke by coal-using transport vehicles, and whether he will consider what steps can be taken to obtain greater compliance with the law in this respect?

I have been asked to reply. The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative, and I therefore do not think any action on the part of the Home Office is required.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is prepared to make a grant from the Road Fund towards the construction of a tunnel between Devonport and Torpoint for the use of vehicular traffic; and if he will grant financial assistance for preliminary investigations similar to that granted to the Liverpool and Tay schemes?

If the responsible local authorities desire to apply for a grant towards the objects referred to in my hon. Friend's question I will give their application careful consideration.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will give the figures showing the volume of passenger traffic on all British railways for the first half-year of 1924 and 1919, respectively?

During the first six months of 1924, 588 millions of passengers were carried on the standard gauge railways of Great Britain, exclusive of season ticket holders. Similar information for 1919 is not available. The hon. Member will find figures for the whole of each year in the published railway returns.

asked the Minister of Transport whether, in view of the increase in the number of road accidents, he has considered any special steps to ensure that his Department is supplied with the fullest information in each case in respect to the condition of the mechanical equipment; and what precautionary measures are taken by licensing authorities to see that periodical tests are made of passenger-carrying vehicles?

So far as the London traffic area is concerned, provision is made for inquiries into road accidents under Section 12 of the London Traffic Act, and the extension of somewhat similar powers to the rest of the country is under consideration. With regard to the last part of the question, the practice of licensing authorities varies widely, and, as the hon. Member is probably aware, I intend, as soon as possible, to introduce legislation for the better regulation of public service vehicles.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his attention has been called to the number of people who in recent accidents to public-service vehicles have been injured by broken glass; and whether he will consider the advisability of legislation to compel the various tramway and omnibus authorities to use a non-splinterable window?

I have no reason to believe that there has been any substantial increase in the proportion of accidents of this kind. I am anxious to encourage the use of some satisfactory form of non-splinterable glass in all passenger-carrying vehicles, but I am advised that, for reasons of cost, it would not be practicable to impose conditions regarding its use.

asked the Undersecretary of State for the Home Depart- ment, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether his attention has been drawn to the waste of electric light in the Palace of Westminster, particularly in Westminster Hall and entrances and passages; and if he will take steps to ensure that lights are turned off when not actually required for the purpose of illumination?

I only received notice of this question on Saturday, but I will make inquiries into the matter.