asked the Minister of Labour the number of unemployed males and females from January, 1926, to the

The following statement gives such particulars as are available:end of April, 1927, and also for the last available date for May and June for Port Talpot, Neath, and Pontardawe Employment Exchanges?

The following table gives the information required

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that the representatives on the wage earners' side of the general purposes sub-committee of the East Ham local employment committee have refused to function; and can he state the reasons?

Yes, Sir; the workpeople's representatives on this sub-committee recently refused to continue to deal with claims for benefit as they disagreed with the Department's decisions on certain recommendations.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of unemployed who are in receipt of relief from the parish councils in Lanarkshire?

According to returns received by the Scottish Board of Health, the number of destitute able-bodied unemployed persons in receipt of relief from parish councils in the County of Lanark at 15th May last was 21,920, with 45,328 dependants.

asked the Secretary for Mines if the Mines Department have stopped issuing the quarterly White Paper?

No, Sir. I propose to resume it as from the beginning of this year, and also to publish certain particulars for the period May to December, 1926. But for these periods I cannot rely, as I ordinarily do, on returns made for wages-ascertainments, and special returns are necessary. I regret to say that I have not yet been able to obtain the necessary particulars in this way in sufficient volume to justify publication, and I am bringing pressure to bear on the undertakings that have failed to make the returns asked for.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the position with regard to a grant for Scotland in connection with the training of midwives?

I have come to be of opinion that there is a need for further trained women in midwifery in Scotland, and it has been arranged to offer a training grant, not exceeding £20 per head, for nurses who have taken a full nursing training to the satisfaction of the Scottish Board of Health, and who are now prepared to take the Central Midwives Board qualification and give an undertaking thereafter to give two years' service in Scotland. The total grant for the current financial year is limited to £2,000.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of shares and the amount of money the Government have invested in British Celanese, Limited; and whether the value of the shares has increased or decreased?

As has frequently been explained, the Government in 1920 took 1,450,000 7½ per cent. Cumulative Participating Preference Shares of £1 as payment for the war indebtedness of the company on debenture and mortgage. 750,000 of these shares were surrendered in 1922 on a reconstruction to obviate liquidation, and 200,000 were sold later in the same year at 7s. The balance of 500,000 shares was placed in 1923 in the hands of trustees for realisation and have recently been sold at 20s. net. His Majesty's Government's participation in the affairs of the company will consequently cease.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any steps are being taken to organise a defence force in any of the Crown Colonies?

Yes, Sir. Local defence forces have been in existence for many years in the majority of Colonies and other Dependencies. As a matter of general policy, Colonial Governments are given every encouragement to provide for their local defence arrangements.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies (1) whether he has received from the Anti-conscription Committee of Kenya a memorandum setting out an alternative scheme of defence based on voluntary service;(2) if he has received from the Anti-conscription Committee in Kenya a memorandum giving the history of the Defence Force Bills from 1891 onwards, and a discussion of the objects of the present Bill.

I have not received either of the memoranda mentioned in the hon. Member's two questions.

asked the Minister of Transport if he is aware that rural workers have been dismissed from their employment of repairing roads in rural districts owing to the fact that no funds are now available from the Road Fund; how many such men have been dismissed; and what steps it is proposed to take?

I have no record of the number of men employed by highway authorities throughout the country. Having regard to the increasingly large sums allocated from the Road Fund for the maintenance of roads in rural areas, I should be surprised to learn that the aggregate number of men employed in maintaining and repairing roads in such areas has undergone reduction, but, even if this be the case, it must be for some reason other than that suggested in my hon. Friend's question.

asked the Minister of Transport what is the amount of grant to be apportioned from the Road Fund for the year 1927–28 under the following heads: Class 1 roads, bridges on Class 1 roads, Class 2 roads, bridges on Class 2 roads, and scheduled roads in rural district council areas; what amounts are deducted from the gross total of about £21,810,000 collected from all motor licences during 1926–27 for statutory charges under Section 3 (4) of the Roads Act, 1920, payment to the Exchequer under Section 42 of the Finance Act, 1926, and for any other purposes; and what is the estimated cost of raising the percentage of maintenance grants for all roads that received such grants during 1926–27, with the exception of Class 1 roads, from 25 to 33⅓ per cent. during 1927–28?

The following statement shows the appropriation of the receipts from motor taxation during the present financial year. The amounts deducted from the receipts during 1926–27 for statutory charges under Section 3 (4) of the Roads Act, 1920, and payments to the Exchequer under Section 42 of the Finance Act, 1926, were £600,000 and about £3,620,000 respectively.With regard to the last part of the question, I estimate the cost of raising the maintenance grants to Class 2 roads from 25 per cent. to 33⅓ per cent., and to scheduled roads in rural areas from 20 per cent. to 33⅓ per cent. at about £1,500,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what instructions have been issued to His Majesty's diplomatic representatives in those countries which have diplomatic relations with the Soviet Government as to the attitude to be adopted towards the question of maintaining friendly relations between such countries and the Soviet Government?

No instructions on the matter have been issued by His Majesty's Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, seeing that an application was recently granted to a troop of boy scouts to visit Germany, he will state on what grounds applications for passports made out by the parents of five British children to travel on the Continent under the guidance and guardianships of Messrs. McIlhone and Gallacher were refused?

The children were being taken to Russia for purposes of Communist propaganda. This was held to be contrary to the public interest.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the position of people desiring the issue of a passport to visit the territory of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics for the purpose of business, health, education, or holiday now that relations have been broken off between the Government of that country and His Majesty's Government?

Since His Majesty's Government are no longer in relations with the Soviet Union Government, British passports are not endorsed as valid for entry into Soviet territory.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether his attention has been called to the statement of the Soviet Government that, in the summer of 1925, a certain merchant, carrying a Soviet passport with the name of Steinberg, was wounded and arrested by the frontier guards while illegally crossing the Finnish frontiers, and that this individual subsequently declared that his name was Sidney George Riley, an English spy, who had been employed by Mr. Lockhart, the British representative in Russia in 1918, and who, by the sentence of a Soviet tribunal on 3rd December, 1918, was declared what is called under the Soviet law an outlaw; if he can state whether a captain named Sidney George Riley, or Reilly, was in the employ of Mr. Lockhart in 1918; whether there is any information as to whether this person attempted to enter Russia illegally in 1925; if so, whether he did so with the approval of the Foreign Office; and whether he is in a position to state his whereabouts at the present moment?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative, and to the second, fourth and fifth parts in the negative. I have no information regarding Mr. Reilly's alleged entry into Russia in 1925 beyond what has already appeared in the Press.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has any statement to make on the notification by the Persian Government to the Powers enjoying special jurisdictional privileges that such privileges will be abolished on 10th May, 1928?

I am not prepared to make any statement at present beyond saying that a notification of the nature indicated in the question was made to the members of the Diplomatic Corps in Tehran on the 10th May last.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he can now give further details as to the action taken by the Government in carrying out its promise to effect a marked contraction in the number of new entrants into the Civil Service for the remaining years of this Parliament?

Every Government Department is fully aware of the decision referred to in the hon. Member's Question, and a conference of permanent heads of Departments has been held with the express object of devising ways and means of giving effect to it. The hon. Member may be sure that no opportunity will be lost of securing a reduction in the number of new entrants.