asked the Minister of Agric Attire what is the number and total acreage of small holdings above one acre and under 50 acres in the County of Worcester; what number and acreage are on land belonging to the county council; how many approved applicants for holdings are there; how many applicants are still awaiting interview; and what capital per acre is regarded as the minimum necessary for approval of any applicant?

The number of agricultural holdings above one acre and not exceeding 50 acres in Worcestershire, as recorded in the Acricultural Returns for 1026, was 6,015. The acreage of approximately the same number of holdings in 1924 was 71460 acres, which is the latest available figure. The county council have provided 1,085 holdings on an area of 5,095 acres either purchased or leased by them. All approved applicants under the Land Settlement Scheme have been supplied with holdings. Out of 20 fresh applicants, 11 have been satisfied and nine remain to be dealt with. No rule has been laid down by the council as to the amount of capital to be held by applicants, each case being dealt with on its merits.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is aware of the difficulties which have arisen in conection with the numerous loans raised for varying periods by local authorities for small holdings purposes; and whether he is prepared to confer with the county council association with a view to consolidating them?

I am aware of the difficulties, but there are objections to consolidation of loans with different periods. I propose to confer with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Health on the subject, and will afterwards communicate with my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Transport if his attention has been drawn to the many accidents that have been caused during the last three months by omnibuses and motor lorries skidding on hills or through defective brakes; and will he consider the introduction of legislation to compel all heavy vehicles in the future to be fitted with front-wheel brakes?

I am aware of the progress which has been made in the development of front-wheel brakes, but I am not satisfied that sufficient experience has yet been possible to justify a Regulation making their use compulsory.

asked the Postmaster-General the number of telegrams that were sent over the telephone for the 12 months ended to the last convenient date?

During the year ended 31st March, 1926, about 9,000,000 telegrams were dictated by the public over the telephone for onward transmission, and about 7,000,000 telegrams were delivered by the Post Office by telephone.

asked the Postmaster-General the total number of male established clerical officers employed in the Post Office Savings Bank Department, West Kensington; at what point in the seniority list of that class the first ex-service Lytton entrant appears; whether non-service clerical officers appointed from 1918 and onwards have priority over ex-service Lytton and Southborough officers in matters of annual leave and similar privileges; and whether any consideration in respect of previous employment upon clerical-class duties in a temporary capacity plus military service will be given to the Lytton and Southborough men in the Savings Bank Department when deciding future promotions, in order that these men of mature years and experience may compete on an equal footing, that is, on merit, with the junior non-service clerical officers?

The number of male established clerical officers in the Savings Bank Department is 802, and the first ex-service Lytton entrant is 369th on the list. It is the normal practice to count an officer's seniority as from the date of his appointment, subject to the condition that officers appointed from the same examination rank among themselves according to their order in the examination. The seniority of the clerical officers to whom my hon. and gallant Friend refers has been arranged on this basis with the Agreement of the Departmental Whitley Council, and I see no reason to depart from it. As regards their prospects of promotion, the qualifications of each officer who le within range of promotion to perform the duties of the higher grade are fully considered when the selections for promotion are made, and in so far as the previous experience of the officers referred to has improved their qualifications for a supervising position the point raised will be met.

asked the PoetmasterGeneral (1) how many male clerical officers and female clerical officers, respectively, have been promoted to the higher clerical officer grade in the Savings Bank Department since the 1st January, 1925; how many years' service has the most junior officer in each group; and what steps are being taken to equalise the opportunities of advancement of the two sexes;(2) what is the number of male clerical officers on the establishment of the Savings Bank Department; how many superior posts are there earmarked for the male staff to which they are eligible for promotion; what is the number of women clerical officers on the establishment; and what is the number of superior posts earmarked for women to which they are eligible for promotion?

There are 842 male clerical officers in the Savings Bank Department and 313 superior posts. On the female side there are 1,451 clerical officers, and 124 higher posts. The numbers of promotions are 17 and 13 respectively; and the established service of the most junior officer in each ease was 15 and 26 years respectively. The male and female establishments are separate, each sex having its own line of advancement; the nature and requirements of the work are different on the two sides of the establishment, and in the circumstances it is not practicable to equalise the opportunities of promotion.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he has received a resolution from the Beddington and Wallington Urban District Council with regard to the postal services in that district; whether he is aware that, following the resumption of the Wednesday evening deliveries, the postmen's weekly half-holiday has been stopped; and whether arrangements can be made to restore the half-holiday without curtailing the service to the public?

:I have received the resolution to which my hon. Friend refers. I am aware that the resumption of the Wednesday evening delivery at Wallington at the request of the urban district council in 1925 necessitated the withdrawal of the local postmen's weekly half-holiday; and I regret that it is not possible to restore it 'without curtailing the service to the public.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of London and provincial telephone directories issued for the 12 months ended to the last convenient date, and the cost of the same?

The figures desired by the hon. Member are as follow:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is aware of any decision on the part of the London, Midland, and Scottish Railway Company to close the railway from Connell Ferry to Ballachulish and to lift the track; and whether, in view of the inconvenience to this district which such a course would cause, he will make the necessary representations to this company?

I have been asked to reply. I have made some inquiries and am informed by the railway company that their local officials are considering various ideas for reducing the working costs of this section of line, but that no definite conclusion has yet been reached.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when the deer forest of Rum was established; how many farms were occupied prior to its establishment and how many were given up; and the total acreage of those farms and how many of the 19,661 acres under 1,000 feet are suitable for cultivation?

I am not in possession of the information asked for. In the absence of any demand for small holdings in the island which on the information before me does not appear to be a suitable subject for small holdings, I do not consider that a special survey for the purpose of ascertaining how much of the land is suitable for cultivation would be justified.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the amounts of the fines, the names of the offenders, and the places where the offences were committed, in each conviction for illegal trawling in Scottish waters for the year 1926?

The particulars are as follow:

asked the Secretary of State for War what proportion of the grounds of the Chelsea Hospital, excluding Ranelagh Gardens, are reserved for the use of the officers of the hospital; what proportion of the cubic contents of the hospital buildings, including the chapel, great hall, and sick quarters, is reserved for the use of the officers and pensioners, respectively; what is the total expenditure of the Chelsea. Commissioners under heads and distinguishing between sums paid directly to the officers and the pensioners; who are the existing officers with their duties and salaries; what is the number of the existing pensioners what is the annual expenditure of the hospital on books and periodicals for the pensioners; and what arrangements are made to assure the fullest possible use of Ranelagh Gardens by the public?

No part of the hospital grounds is reserved for the officers. A strip of ground along the South-East front of the building giving access to the various quarters is, closed to the public, who are however admitted to the rest of the grounds. Information is not available as to the exact division of the cubic contents of the buildings between the officers and pensioners, and could not be obtained without a survey. The officers have no accommodation apart from their private quarters.The total expenditure of the Commissioners, both from public and private funds, is detailed on pages 215–247 Army Estimates, 1927.The existing officers are shown on page 245, Army Estimates, with their present salaries. Their duties are indicated by the appointments held, apart from the Captains of Invalids, who are in charge of the various companies of pensioners. Full particulars of the duties are contained in the Royal Warrant for Chelsea Hospital dated 27th February, 1926, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy.There are at present 508 in-pensioners at the hospital and 18 more are being admitted shortly.About£165 year is spent on books and periodicals for the pensioners.The Ranelagh Gardens are open to the public.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware of the desire among all ranks of those cavalry regiments which are designated by hyphenated numerals that the second number shall henceforth be dropped and will he comply with that wish?

I am not aware of any such general desire, but one particular request is at present under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has recently made any representations to the German Government or to any other European Governments on the subject of Anglo-Russian relations or on the relations of other States with Russia?

No, Sir.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will make inquiries through His Majesty's Ambassador in Rome as to the liability of foreign newspaper correspondents in Italy to punishment for sending abroad news or opinions which would be punishable if published in Italy?

No, Sir. My right hon. Friend is not disposed to take the suggested action by the right hon. and gallant Gentleman. The recent Italian law for the defence of the State which he no doubt has in mind is public property, and its terms are, of course, binding on foreign newspaper correspondents to the same extent as on other foreign residents in Italy.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has caused any inquiry to be made into the circumstances of the dismissal from the service of the Sudan Government in 1922 of Mr. F. H. Sunderland?

Mr. Sunderland's appointment in the Sudan was subject to three months' notice, and in the early part of 1923 the Sudan Government decided to dispense with his services for reasons which they considered good and sufficient. As the result of repeated representations by Mr. Sunderland his ease was personally considered by my two predecessors in office and by myself; it was also examined by the late Sir Lee Stack and by Sir Geoffrey Archer. The conciusion reached by all of us was that there existed no grounds whatever to call in question the decision of the Sudan Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the number of British nationals that have departed from Great Britain during the 12 months ended to the last convenient date?

The British subjects recorded as leaving per manent residence in Great Britain to take up permanent residence in non-European countries, numbered 153,757 during the 12 months ended 31st December, 1926.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the British Minister at Pekin has been requested to take any steps to secure the liberation of Madame Borodin?

The reports which I have received from Sir M. Lampson contain no indication that any such request has been addressed to or received by him.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the representative of His Majesty's Government at Pekin has at any time during the past three years invited the co-operation of the. Russian diplomatic representative in Pekin or the representatives of other Powers in an effort to secure a peaceful settlement, of all outstanding questions between the Chinese nation and foreign Powers?

His Majesty's Government have consistently carried out the obligation of full and frank consultation accepted by the parties to the Washington Treaty on 6th February, 1022, by Article VII of that Treaty, and on l8th December made to those Powers definite proposals as to the course to be adopted to secure a settlement of outstanding questions. These proposals were published in the Press on 26th December. The Soviet. Government is not a party to the Washington Treaty and the Soviet representative was consequently not approached.

asked the President of the Board of Education the number of children attending infant schools under the control of the London Education Authority in each of the 28 London boroughs during any week in April, 1914, 1920, 1925, and 1926?

asked the President of the Board of Education when it is proposed to close the condemned school known as High Street, Bromley, school and erect a new one in its place; and has he taken any steps to 'hurry up the work of building a new school to replace this school, which the inspector of his Department some years ago condemned as unsuitable and insanitary?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend gave him yesterday.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty the number of

The following are the figures for the nearest date for which returns were made in each year:established industrial civil servants who are granted leave with pay, and the cost of doing this; the additional cost which would be incurred by granting one week's leave with pay per annum to the industrial civil servants employed in His Majesty's dockyards; and the reason why civil servants of the industrial grades employed in His Majesty's dockyards are not allowed leave with pay, comparable with the industrial grades employed by other Departments of the State?

The reply to the first part of the question is about 2,000, and the cost about £10,000 a year; to the second part, about £200,000 a year; the last part does not arise, since employés of the industrial grades in the service of other Departments of State are not in general allowed leave with pay.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty why naval officers' pensions are not paid for fractional parts of a year's service; and whether he will consider the assessment of these pensions at one-twelfth for each completed month's service in the incompleted year?

The practice of determining the amount of a naval officer's retired pay with reference to complete years of service, and ignoring fractional parts of a year's service, is similar to that which prevails in all branches of the public service. In these circumstances, I regret that I cannot hold out any hope of any departure from present practice.

asked the President of the Board of Trade in which countries a Government subsidy is now paid, or has recently been paid, to aid shipbuilding?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the memorandum on pages 619 to 628 of the volume. "Survey of Overseas Markets" issued by the Committee on Industry and Trade last, year, which I think sets out at length the information he desires.

asked the Minister of Health the total amount of the sums expended during the year ending 31st December last in respect of tuberculosis research work?

The sum of £4,846 was expended by the Medical Research Council during the 12 months to 31st December, 1926, on research work upon specific problems of tuberculosis. This excludes the cost of research into fundamental problems of which the bearing upon tuberculosis cannot be calculated and also the cost, not separately estimated, of work in this subject by members of the council's own staff in the National Institute for Medical Research.

asked the Minister of Health when he will be in a position to announce the policy of the Government on the extension of the Rent Restrictions Act?

My right hon. Friend regrets that he is not yet in a position to say when an announcement will be made on the subject in question.

asked the Minister of Health if he has received a letter of protest from the Birmingham and District Tenants' Federation in connection with the Rent Restrictions Act, 1923; if he is aware that 36,000 families in Birmingham require house accommodation: and whether the Government have decided to renew the Act?

I have received the letter to which the hon. Member refers. I am aware that there is still a large unsatisfied need for houses in Birmingham, but I must not be taken as accepting the particular figure stated by the hon. Member. With regard to the question of the continuance of the Rent Restriction Act, I may draw the attention of the hon. Member to the answer which I gave to the hon. Member for Smethwick (Mr. Mosley) on the 17th ultimo.

asked the Minister of Health (1) whether he will consider the introduction of legislation to limit the use of chemicals in flour, as recommended in the report of the departmental committee;(2) whether he will consider the introduction of legislation to enable purchasers of flour to ascertain whether they are being supplied with treated or untreated flour?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer given yesterday to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Lewes (Rear-Admiral Beamish).

asked the Home Secretary if, in order to avoid misunderstanding, he will say what instructions he has issued for the guidance of the police authorities defining the meaning of the term subversive propaganda?

If the hon. Member refers to the statement I made on Thursday last about the expulsion from this country of aliens who engage in subversive propaganda, I would point out that the expulsion of aliens is a matter for ins, and not for the police authorities.

asked the Secretary for Mines whether any of the men who lost their lives in the pit-shaft disaster at Bilsthorpe Colliery were wearing any type of safety belt; and, if not, whether the Government will conduct a special inquiry into the possibility of the compulsory use of safety devices in work of this character?

At the moment of the accident, no work necessitating the use of safety belts was in progress. None was in use, and no lives could have been saved by them. All but two of the men were either working at the bottom of the shaft or riding down in the hoppit. But safety belts were provided, and I am informed were used whenever necessary to prevent danger. The second part of the question does not, therefore, arise.

asked the Prime Minister whether the proceedings at the National Whitley Council for the Civil Service of the 12th May, 1920, were reported to the Cabinet in accordance with the constitution of the Whitley Council: whether the agreements then made are operative; and, if not, when they were revised?

I assume that the hon. Member refers to the Report of the Cost of Living Committee which was adopted at the Sixth Meeting of the National Whitley Council for the Administrative and Legal Departments of the Civil Service on the 12th May, 1920. The agreement made between official and staff sides as to cost-of-living bonus related to officers with salaries not exceeding £500 per annum. This agreement was arrived at with the sanction of His Majesty's Government and is still operative, except as regards the method of including bonus in the calculation of the retiring allowances and gratuities granted to established civil servants and their representatives, which was revised as from 21st February, 1922.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that 140 candidates in the shorthand-typist examination, held in December, 1926, received no marks for shorthand; that a large number of the girls concerned are expert shorthand-typists, performing identical work with that of established shorthand-typists in the various Departments, and that some had qualified in previous shorthand examinations or taken good shorthand marks in previous tests; and whether he can give any indication as to the reason why, in spite of the transcription of a greater part of the matter dictated, so many women have received no marks at all?

An investigation recently carried out by the Civil Service Commissioners into the recruitment of shorthand-typists showed the necessity of an improved standard of qualification. The standard was accordingly raised in the examination of December, 1926. In the Commissioners' opinion, no candidate who has not passed the examination is an expert shorthand-typist. The Commissioners do not, as is assumed in the question, give marks in proportion to the amount of work correctly done. They make deductions for errors and a certain number of errors cancels all credit for a passage.