asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many of our diplomatic representatives are provided with cars or are authorised to purchase them out of public funds; and whether all those cars are of British manufacture?

Forty-two diplomatic representatives are provided with cars from public funds; 33 of these cars are of British manufacture. I may add that wherever it is feasible British cars are supplied when old ones have to be replaced.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty the number of civil servants employed on the staff of the Admiralty for the year ended 31st December, 1913, and for the year ended 31st December, 1926?

The number of civil servants employed during any year varies from date to date. The numbers actually employed at Admiralty Headquarters on the 31st December, 1913, and the 31st December, 1926, were 1,910 and 2,941, respectively.

Can the hon. and gallant Gentleman say why there has been such a very large increase, considering that the Forces have been reduced?

Various reasons have already been given to the House on different occasions. The subject is continually under review, and is under review again at the present time.

asked the Prime Minister whether he proposes, before the House rises, to state the policy of the Government with respect to the future of the Ministry of Transport, Department of Mines, and Department of Overseas Trade, respectively?

Sir; the policy of the Government is, as was announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Budget speech, to effect a contraction by every possible means in the administrative structure of the State. The proposed abolition as separate Departments of the Department of Overseas Trade, the Ministry of Transport and the Mines Department cannot be effected without legislation, except in the case of the Department of Overseas Trade. Since the intention to abolish these Departments was made public the Government have received a continuous series of representations from traders, from transport organisations, from miners and other interests concerned in their activities, as well as from a large number of Members of this House. In these circumstances it is evident that the necessary legislation will be controversial. It must therefore be considered in relation to the time of the House likely to be available next Session and to the general state of Parliamentary business. It would not be right to make demands upon Parliamentary time out of all proportion to the actual savings likely to be effected.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say if the actual effect of that reply means that the Departments will go on as usual until the Government can find time for legislation?

That seems to be a reasonable deduction.

In view of the fact that the Secretary for Mines is going to India, who is going to take charge of the Mines Department in his absence?

Well, I think that must rest with the head of the Government who will attend to that particular duty of his in due time.

Do we understand from the answer that the Ministers in charge of these Departments are to retain their jobs?

That is, of course, one way of putting it. I think I would rather say that for the time being they will carry on.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that Mr. Ethelbert William Fawcett, late British Vice-Consul at Helsingfors, Finland, was illegally arrested by the Germans in March, 1918, while acting as consular officer; that he was subsequently held as a common prisoner in Germany; and that only £59 has been paid by the Reparation Claims Department; and what further steps can be taken to compensate Mr. Fawcett?

I am aware of the facts stated by my hon. and galland Friend. So far as the Foreign Office is concerned, however, no further payment is due to Mr. Fawcett, who received from this Department his salary and maintenance expenses during the period of his internment in Germany.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that Mr. Fawcett was nine months in prison, and under the possibility of death at any moment; whether he was not the servant of the Foreign Office; and whether he thinks that £59 is sufficient compensation?

I have already told my hon. and gallant Friend that this official has had all the money due to him from the Foreign Office. The question of compensation does not come under the Foreign Office, but it is settled by another Department. I understand that my hon. and gallant Friend has already addressed a question to that Department.

What was the total amount of the compensation?

I cannot say.

Then he got nothing.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that on the 12th instant a cargo of British goods of the value of $420,000 (Mexican) was detained at Lintsing, in the province of Shantung, whilst in transit from Tientsin on the pretext of the demand for the payment of a hitherto unknown likin; that the owner of the goods arranged for payment of the likin under protest, but that Chang Tsung, the Tupan of Shantung, over-ruled the arrangement and confiscated the goods, and has given orders that they should be sold; and whether he will take steps to secure the release of the goods forthwith?

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is aware of the disregard of reasonable security for trade shown by some of the Northern Chinese leaders, and especially by the military governor of Shantung, in whose territory open confiscation of valuable British merchandise has recently occurred; and will he make representations on this matter?

On the 15th December, His Majesty's Minister at Peking reported that the Shantung authorities were threatening the confiscation of a consignment of goods valued at some $400,000 (£40,000) belonging to a British company. These goods were being conveyed in boats on the Grand Canal from Tientsin to Southern Chihli. The route took them through Lintsing, in a corner of Shantung, where they were held up for the enforcement of various irregular taxes. The company agreed to pay these taxes; in spite of this, orders were given for the confiscation of the goods. It is alleged that these orders emanated from Chang Tsung-chang, the Military Governor of Shantung. In any case, the action of the Shantung authorities appears to be pure robbery.

On the Minister's instructions His Majesty's Consul-General at Tsinanfu, the capital of Shantung, made protests locally; Sir M. Lampson also made the strongest possible verbal representations to the Minister for Foreign Affairs in Peking, who promised to do his best. He assured Sir M. Lampson that he had already, in response to a written communication from His Majesty's Legation, telegraphed to Shantung, and that he would now take up the matter with the Premier and with Marshal Chang Tsolin's headquarters. He confessed, however, that he himself had no authority in Shantung.

His Majesty's Government cannot overlook this gross violation of the elementary rights of British merchants, and they count on Marshal Chang Tso-lin, who claims to control the province of Shantung, to take steps to secure the release of these goods.

On the facts stated, may I ask what action the Government propose to take?

I have told the hon. Member what action we have taken. With regard to the future, I think that I had better say nothing.

Is it right to say that these are the antiNationalist forces in Northern China?

I hope my hon. and gallant Friend will not ask me to classify every faction in China.

Is Chang Tsung-chang not one of those upon whom favours have been showered by the British Government?

I am not aware that any favours have been showered by the British Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the value of the leases in Chinese treaty ports which were conceded to Great Britain by the Chinese Government between 1851 and 1861, and which are now to be given up; whether the interests in question were acquired by purchase; if so, on what terms; how many separate properties are affected; whether all of these are now in the hands of British subjects; whether the terms of surrender will provide for the properties not being disposed of in any way that might be detrimental to British interests; and whether other foreign Powers are adopting a similar policy in this matter?

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, as representing the First Commissioner of Works what Crown property he holds on Chinese territory; what is the total estimated value at present prices of this property; whether it is being disposed of; if so, at what price; and what is the reason for this sale, surrender, or gift of national property?

Most of the information asked for will be found in the Treasury Minute dated the 7th December, which has been presented to the House. The value of the leases cannot be accurately assessed at the present moment; but, according to a valuation made in 1922, previous to the outbreak of the anti-foreign agitations in China, the worth of the reversionary interest in the land and buildings held under leases with an unexpired term of approximately 30 years was £730,000; at a later date it was anticipated that these reversionary interests might have realised about £400,000. The position in China, however, renders it impossible to proceed with the scheme for the sale of these interests without guarantees of tenure which would be wholly inconsistent with the policy of His Majesty's Government. The land was acquired under perpetual lease from the Chinese Government, to whom a fixed ground rent continues to be paid, and concurrently by purchase from the actual Chinese owners. The concession areas are situated at Tientsin, Hankow, Kiukiang, Chinkiang, Amoy and Canton; they consist of a total of 232 acres divided into 234 lots. These properties are chiefly in British but partly in other hands. They are to be transferred to the present lot-holders without payment and unconditionally except for the proviso that the lot-holders shall bear any expenses arising from the assignments. As regards future ownership, I have no reason to anticipate any change likely to be detrimental to British interests, but I must remind the hon. and gallant Members that it is the policy of His Majesty's Government to relax rather than to extend British control in the administration of these municipal areas. Other foreign Powers had immediately transferred their perpetual leases to their respective lot-holders; and in no other case was a foreign Government ground landlord of any similar area in Chinese territory.

Do I understand that we are getting no return from these tenants for the giving up of Crown property worth £400,000?

I should be very sorry to assess the value of the property to be transferred at £400,000, or anything like that figure, to-day. You cannot sell a property unless you are prepared to give a good title, and, as we are not prepared to guarantee the future of these properties, their value in the market is practically nil. It is really not possible that His Majesty's Govern- ment should, in the altered conditions, remain ground landlords in Chinese territory.

Will it not make it more difficult in the future, if we give us this property to the tenants, to negotiate with the Chinese authorities?

No, I think not; I think the contrary will be the case.

Am I right in assuming that no ground rent is being paid to the Chinese authorities, seeing that we have not possession?

I think I told my hon. and gallant Friend—

You said it had been paid.

I said:

"to whom a fixed ground rent continues to be paid."

A ground rent will be payable by the lot-holders to whom the property is transferred.

Is it equitable that ground rents should still be paid, and yet at the same time the lease-holders of the properties may have no value in them at all?

My hon. and gallant Friend is mistaken in saying that the property has no value to them. It has not a marketable value which we could sell in the present circumstances, but, of course, it has a value to the lot-holder.

Arising out of the original answer, is the Foreign Secretary aware that the same kind of negotiation that is now being carried through with this company in China was going on during the Labour Government's tenure of office, and that the Labour Government turned it down, the reason being that we have no claim on this land at all, and yet, if anything happens in China, our Forces will be sent out to defend this land, which is not ours at all, but which belongs to the Chinese. [HON. MEMBERS: "Speech!"] I would like a reply.

I do not know whether this is the proper time for a Debate; I must not make a speech in answer to the one which the hon. Gentle- man has just delivered. I do not know to what he is referring when he talks about "this company." It is for the very reason that we are not prepared to employ our Forces in guarding this property that we are unable to sell it with a marketable title.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman two questions? In the first place, why are we not having a continuous policy in this matter; and, secondly, is it not the fact that these leaseholders have bought and sold their title to the land for a long period of years, always subject to the British Government's right of reversion? Has not this right of reversion entered into every transaction concerning this land, and why are we now surrendering it?

We are surrendering the right of reversion because His Majesty's Government feel that it is incompatible with the newer conditions in China that we should continue to occupy the position of ground landlords in that country.

rose—

We must not continue to debate the matter.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can now make any statement about the negotiations with the royal Abyssinian Government regarding the proposed Blue Nile barrage?

Since the negotiations are still in progress, I regret that I am unable at this stage to add anything to the reply which was given on the 22nd of November last.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the conclusion arrived at by the Court of Arbitration on the attack made by Abyssinian soldiers last June on a British camel caravan?

The Court fixed the damages at $25,000 (about £3,600), and this sum has duly been paid by the Abyssinian Government. It also recommended the removal of the Abyssinian officer chiefly responsible, and he has accordingly been dismissed from his post by the Abyssinian Government. The findings of the Court thus bear out the view of this outrage which I expressed in my reply to the hon. Member for Central Southwark (Colonel Day) on the 25th of July last.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has any report to make to this House as to the result of his conversation with M. Litvinoff at Geneva?

The communiqué which M. Litvinoff issued to the Press immediately after the interview said all that there was to say, and I undertook to give no further details.

Is there any hope of these conversations being resumed?

No, Sir. I cannot see any reason for resuming them until the circumstances change.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the attitude of His Majesty's Government towards the Anglo-Portuguese alliance has been in any way modified in respect of the Portuguese colonies in Africa?

The answer is in the negative. I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving me the opportunity of stating publicly that His Majesty's Government on their side have every intention of maintaining in force the ancient alliance between this country and Portugal which, of course, covers the Portuguese Colonies in Africa.

Is there any truth in the statement that these Portuguese Colonies are involved in any system of exchanges in connection with Mandates?

Certainly there is no truth whatever in that statement.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty when the new examinations for promotion in His Majesty's Dockyards will take place?

Examinations for certain grades of professional subordinate officer will, it is expected, be held in the course of the coming year, probably in the second half of the year.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty, with reference to the last batch of 800 discharges from His Majesty's Dockyards, whether, seeing that the Admiralty stated that the reason for making these discharges was that the re-tubing of boilers in His Majesty's ships was not undertaken in accordance with the plans formulated because it was found that the life of the tubes was longer than anticipated, he will say when the survey was made which induced the Admiralty to come to the conclusion that these tubes had a longer life than previously estimated?

The surveys were made between November, 1926, and January, 1927. As the hon. Member is no doubt aware, the dockyard programme which is prepared in the Autumn for the ensuing year must necessarily be of a somewhat tentative nature, and subject to subsequent additions and omissions.

If these surveys were held as far back as November, 1926, and January, 1927, can the hon. and gallant Gentleman say why it is that no announcement was made indicating that there would be any discharges until August of this year?

The surveys took place between the dates that I have mentioned, but the final decision regarding what was going to be done on these surveys was not made until later, in March or April. The dockyard authorities postponed discharges as long as possible, in the hope of additional work becoming available, including repayment work. Actually, as the hon. Member knows, it was only possible to secure additional repayment work sufficient to employ 200 men, and 800 men were, therefore, discharged. Obviously, we are as anxious as we can be not to discharge men unless it is absolutely necessary, and that is the reason why the delay has taken place.

Does not the hon. and gallant Gentleman see how serious the position is, when it was only stated in August that the work which a few months before was estimated to be required would not be undertaken?

I have tried to give the hon. Member the reason that we had in view, which was, if possible, not to discharge so many men.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty what facilities in Devonport Dockyard are given to outside contractors; and what sums are charged for these facilities by the Admiralty?

Outside contractors are given certain workshop accommodation in the yard. Charges are made for the supply of power, electric light, gas, water, etc., the sums charged being dependent upon the amount consumed. Facilities are also given to contractors to have work undertaken by the yard on their behalf.

On a point of Order. I submit to you, Mr. Speaker, that this question is not in order. As I understand it, the American naval programme referred to is contingent upon approval by the American Senate and the American House of Representatives. As that approval has not been given, I sub- mit that the question is based on a contingency, and, therefore, out of order.

Although I have not the facts in my mind at the moment, I think that that answer has been given by the Government. Questions of this kind have been allowed before, relating to naval programmes in different countries, and I do not think it is out of order.

Until much more detailed information is available in regard to the particulars of the projected United States naval programme and the dates on which it is proposed to lay down the ships included in the programme, no comparison of the probable relative strength of the British and United States Navies five years hence is possible.

Is it not a little difficult for our Admiralty to take into consideration the desire of the Government and reduce their building programme when other countries adopt a policy of continually increasing their navies?

Can the Parliamentary Secretary give us an assurance that neither the Admiralty nor the Government are going to be stampeded into any panic-building programme in competition with America?

asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he is now in a position to state the amount of damage done to Sir Alan Cobham's machine during its landing at the seaplane base at Malta on Tuesday, 29th November?

A pair of wing tip floats was carried away by the swell during landing and the port elevator and lower port plane were damaged by heavy sea whilst the machine was being beached. These parts are being renewed with as little delay as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Air the total number of machines designed and constructed for the Schneider Cup, 1927; and for what purpose will they now be used?

Seven high-speed air craft were built this year, and six of these were made available for the Schneider Cup race. They were constructed for the purpose of carrying out an important programme of research into the problems of high-speed flight and they are being used for that purpose. I may add that valuable data bearing on the problem of improving the speed of air craft have already been secured with these machines.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he can give the total expense incurred by the Air Ministry in connection with the race for the Schneider Cup, 1927, including the cost of the machines and all operational expenses, the charge for pilots and mechanics during the whole period, and the outgoings in respect of travelling, hotel and housing expenses, and the other charges incidental to the race?

The cost incurred for transportation, travelling, subsistence allowances, oil, etc., in connection with the race is estimated at approximately £3,000, but all the accounts have not as yet come to hand and this figure is therefore provisional. The cost of the machines made available for the Schneider Trophy race cannot legitimately be reckoned as part of the expense incurred. The machines were constructed under a programme of development work on high-speed aircraft, and experimental machines for this purpose would still have been necessary even if there had been no contest for the Schneider Trophy.

Is it not right that we should not forget the wholehearted hospitality of the Italian Government to the entire team during their stay there?

Was not the expenditure on these aeroplanes well worth it in view of the impetus given to British trade?

Yes.

Has the Department received any protest from the Conservative Economy Committee on the matter?

asked the Secretary of State for Air the total structural weight, with the proposed passenger accommodation, of the airship R 100; how this weight compares with the maximum weight allowed in the contract for this airship; if the scheme of factors for safety as laid down in the Report of the Airworthiness of Airships Panel has been closely adhered to in the design of this airship; if the two scientists who have been examining the plans of the two airships have concluded their examination of the R 100; and if formal approval has been given to the design of this airship?

I am reluctant at this stage to give estimated figures, which may subsequently have to be modified; but on the information supplied to me by the company it does not appear likely that the total fixed weights of R 100, including passenger car and fittings, will exceed the contract figure of 90 tons. The two scientists who are investigating the airworthiness of the two airships cannot complete their investigation of R 100 for some months, but so far it appears that the factors of safety laid down in the Report of the Airworthiness of Airships Panel have been fully adhered to.

Cannot the hon. Baronet give us an answer to that part of the question which asks for the proposed passenger accommodation?

I said the total fixed weights including passenger car and fittings.

Cannot the hon. Baronet say what equipment that will be for passengers?

I am afraid that I could not say without notice.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether he is aware that a request has been made that employés in the building maintenance section of the Office of Works should be paid for the bank holiday, 27th December, in common with those who are direct employés; that the request has been refused on the ground that the Department has no authority to make this payment to those who are not direct employés; and whether, in view of the fact that many of these indirect employés have been under the Department for many years, that they were paid for the holiday on the occasion of the last coronation, and that those who gave military service during the War received identical treatment with those who were direct employés, he will have the matter reconsidered?

(for the FIRST COMMISSIONER of WORKS): The men in question are employed by a contractor, and the conditions of their employment are in no way different from those of the many thousands of men employed by contractors on Government work all over the country. My Noble Friend feels, therefore, that this is not an occasion similar to those mentioned by the hon. Member and that he would not be justified in this case in extending to the men in question the privileges enjoyed by the direct employés of the Department.

Is the hon. and gallant Gentleman not aware that the engineering and gas industries have already granted these concessions, and would it not be a right and proper thing for the Government to carry out similar concessions, especially in view of peace in industry in our time?

I am afraid I have nothing to add to the answer.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of insured persons aged 65 or over, giving the separate figures for men and women, who will cease to be eligible for unemployment insurance benefit after 2nd January, 1928?

It is estimated that approximately 342,000 persons aged 65 and over, including about 319,000 men and 23,000 women, who are now insured under the Unemployment Insurance Acts, will cease to be insured as from 2nd January, 1928, under the provisions of the Widows', Orphans', and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act, 1925.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will furnish a Return showing, for the last convenient date, the highest and lowest percentage of unemployment by localities corresponding to the statistics given in his answer to a similar question on 23rd November, 1926?

The information desired is being tabulated, and as soon as the work is completed I will circulate a statement in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will state the number of persons on the live register of the Stratford, Canning Town, and Leyton Exchanges for 1st November, 1924, 1925, 1926 and 1927?

The total number of persons on the registers of these three Exchanges on the first Monday in November of the years in question were as follows: 1924, 27,110; 1925, 22,906; 1926, 19,997; and 1927, 15,541.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will furnish a Return showing, for the year 1926–27, the aggregate amounts paid in unemployment benefit and received in contributions from the workers, the employers, and the State, respectively, comparable with the Return given on 17th November, 1926; and will he give the revised figures for the year 1925–26?

As the reply involves a statement in tabular form, I will, with the hon. Member's permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will, in the event of the Unemployment Insurance Bill of this Session becoming law, prepare and issue a White Paper setting out in the plainest and simplest terms possible the statute law of unemployment insurance so far as regards contributions, benefits, conditions, appeals, and the like, so that Members of Parliament, local administrators and others specially concerned may have this information without having to trace back through the statute book the results of legislation by reference?

In accordance with the usual practice, it is proposed to set out the principal provisions of the amended unemployment insurance scheme in a set of explanatory leaflets which will be available to the public. I will consider in what form the information in these leaflets can be made available to the Members of the House.

Has not the right hon. Gentleman misapprehended the question? I was not asking whether he proposes to issue some document which will explain the changes that have been made. I was asking him whether he proposes to issue some document which

I think that is the meaning of my answer, the words of which were that it is proposed to set out the principal provisions of the amended unemployment insurance scheme. That is intended to convey the state of the law as it will be under the amended unemployment insurance scheme.

Does that mean that the right hon. Gentleman knows what the Bill really means and is going to explain it?

Will the right hon. Gentleman include with the leaflets circulated the written answer he gave to the hon. Member for Shrewsbury (Viscount Sandon) yesterday explaining the effect and cost of the Amendments made during the passage of the Bill through Parliament?

I will consider anything, but on the spur of the moment, that does not seem to me to be a matter of the effect of the amendment of the law, but rather a statement of what would be simply concessions.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there was issued to members of local committees a codified form of the Regulations now operating, and would he consider issuing the same type of book after the passing of the new Act in the same language, explaining the full provisions, together with the amended as well as the old provisions?

I am certainly going to consider the best and most handy form in which the informa- tion can be conveyed to local persons interested. Naturally, it will not be in the same words, but in a form in which it makes the substance of the changes most easily intelligible.

Is the right hon. Gentleman considering whether the documents he is referring to will be documents which will be available to Members of the House of Commons, because they will be Parliamentary papers and which they can ask for on the pink slip if they like?

I will consider that. I have not as yet made any decision about it. In any case, I can undertake that copies of any communication shall be put in the Library, but I will consider the further point so as to meet the convenience of Members of the House as best I can.

Can the right hon. Gentleman not give an undertaking that he will send a copy to every Member of Parliament?

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been called to the shortage of labour in the Scottish tweed trade and of female labour in the boot trade in the Northampton district; and whether steps can be taken to direct unemployed labour to these industries?

I am having inquiries made and will communicate with my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been called to the remarks made by the registrar at Clerkenwell Police Court in a case which came before him on 12th December, in which a machinist named Miss Olive Skellitt sued Albert Moont, a tailor, for wages; and whether the rate of wages which it transpired during the hearing of the case is being paid by this firm to young girls who work for them has been approved by a Trade Board?

I have seen a report of this case and have had an inspection made of the establishment concerned. The rates of wages paid to all the workers, including the female workers, were found to be at or above the appropriate minimum rates fixed by the Trade Board. Miss Skellitt was in receipt of net earnings on piece work averaging more than 30s. for the eight weeks of her employment preceding her last week, in respect of which the employer is stated to have withheld payment of wages after she had left without notice.

Is not this an object lesson for those who are desirous of allowing aliens to come into this country?

asked the Minister of Agriculture what has been to date the total sum paid as compensation by the Government to the owners of animals slaughtered as a result of foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks since 1918; what is the wage paid to the slaughterers; and whether, in view of the cost to the taxpayer, he will consider offering a reward of at least £20,000 sterling to any scientist who will produce an effective remedy or preventive of this disease?

I have been asked to reply. The total sum paid in compensation since 1918 to the 15th December, 1927, amounts to £5,186,833, but £877,037 has been received from the sale of carcases of animals slaughtered. The wages paid to slaughtermen vary according to the district and the special circumstances of the case, but are generally about 1s. 6d. per head for cattle and 1s. per head for pigs and sheep. The discovery of an effective remedy or preventive of the disease is more likely to be made by the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Research Committee which has been at work since 1924 than by the offer of a monetary reward.

Will my hon. and gallant Friend convey to the Minister the request that he will find out what steps are being taken not only by that Committee but by other countries, and that if there were such a reward you would have the whole world working to try to get a solution of this problem which you will not get by confining it solely to this country?

Can the hon. and gallant Gentleman say what amount of compensation has been paid to farm labourers who have lost their employment through the slaughter of these animals?

I should require notice of that question.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in order to assist agriculture, he will take steps to ensure that we receive our due share, in accordance with the agreement, of Nauru Ocean phosphate rock and so provide a high-grade fertiliser at a reasonable price?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the answer given by the Prime Minister to a similar question put to him by my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Kettering (Sir M. Manningham-Buller) on the 14th December.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he has any further statement to make as to the marking of eggs under the Merchandise Marks Act?

My right hon. Friend has nothing to add to the statement made in reply to a question put to him on the 15th of December by my hon. and gallant Friend, the Member for Tiverton (Lieut.-Colonel Acland-Troyte).

Is not the principal difficulty here the fact that the Danish farmers were preparing to mark their eggs "Danish eggs are the best?"

I am not aware of that fact.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that Clause 29 (3) of the Regulations for the preparation of town-planning schemes, which requires that alterations in the scheme should be advertised and objections heard, has not been complied with by the Hendon Rural District Council in the case of Stanmore; and if he will withhold his approval of the revised scheme until the residents who object to the erection of shops in a residential zone are given an opportunity of stating their case to the local authority?

The Clause to which the hon. Member refers is one of the Model Clauses and has no application to schemes in course of preparation. In answer to the last part of the question I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given on Thursday last to questions by the hon. Members for Blackpool (Sir Walter de Frece) and Islington East (Mr. Tasker).

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has promised to make any grant from the Road Fund towards the widening of Church Road, Stanmore; and, if so, whether he will accompany such grant with a proviso that nothing shall be done to spoil the beauties of the village by the erection of shops on the village green?

My Department has not been consulted regarding the proposed widening of this road, and no application has been made to me for assistance from the Road Fund. Should any such application be made to my Department, I will bear in mind the points raised by the hon. Member but I have no jurisdiction over the type of buildings erected along road frontages.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his attention has been drawn to the decision of the Housing Committee in the upper ward of Renfrewshire to proceed no further with their housing scheme owing to the difficulty of having the scheme completed by 1st October, 1928; and whether he can give any indication that in such circumstances a period of grace after 1st October, 1928, will be allowed for completion without loss of subsidy?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. As regards the second part this matter will receive the consideration of the Government but I am not at present in a position to make a statement.

If I can supply the right hon. Gentleman with Press reports which would justify the facts stated in the question, will he reconsider his decision and make some public statement which will reassure this housing committee?

I desire to reassure any housing committee, but I am not in a position to make a statement at the present time.

asked the Minister of Health the number of families at present on outdoor relief in the West Ham Poor Law Union and the total number of such families who are to-day in receipt of an allowance for coal, and showing each district separately?

My right hon. Friend will make inquiries of the guardians, and will communicate with the hon. Member in due course.

asked the Minister of health if he has yet received any reply from the Manchester Board of Guardians to the report submitted to them by his inspector relative to the payment of relief, or if he has been informed that the report has been considered by the board?

No, Sir.

Has the hon. Gentleman no answer to give to the latter part of the question?

No, Sir.

Has the right hon. Gentleman the Minister any power to force boards of guardians to consider the report of the inspector in full, as in this case the board have never yet considered it, although the scales of relief have been reduced?

I have not seen the replies of my Department in this matter, but I have reason to think that this report will be considered, and I understand that an inquiry will be made into certain aspects contained in the report.

Will the hon. Gentleman ask the board, or make representations to the board, that it is desirable in the public interest that the full board should consider this report and not a subcommittee?

I will consider that point if necessary.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that in the County of Nottingham, during the year 1924, 43 samples of milk were analysed, of which 97.7 per cent. were adulterated; during the year 1925, 73 samples of which 60.2 per cent. were adulterated; and during the year 1926, 62 samples of which 54.8 per cent. were adulterated; what action, if any, has been taken to bring the attention of the competent authorities to this adulteration of the food of infants; and will he impress upon these authorities that for the sake of the health and welfare of their infant population they should institute a vigorous campaign against these food adulterators by analysing yearly a much larger number of samples?

According to my right hon. Friend's information, it is the practice of the inspectors in the County of Nottingham to take a large number of samples of milk informally, and to carry out rough sorting tests themselves with a view to ascertaining the places at which adulterated milk is being sold. Formal samples are then taken at those places for submission to the Public Analyst. As the published returns relate only to samples submitted to the Public Analysts, the natural result of this practice is that a very high proportion of the samples recorded in those returns are adulterated samples.

Is it not a new departure that informal samples should be taken by local authorities, and, if so, is it not also the fact that the reports from all the other authorities in the country show very much less milk adulteration than the County of Nottingham?

This particular authority has adopted a new method. The answer which I have given to the hon. Gentleman accounts for the situation set forth in this question.

asked the Minister of Health if, in his next Annual Report of the Ministry of Health he will draw attention to the advisability of seeing that analyses, under the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts, should primarily be for the purpose of detecting adulteration in the common articles of diet amongst the poor, and that, where past experience shows an adulteration of over 5 per cent. of the samples analysed of these articles of diet, it would be of advantage to the public health if a larger number of samples were analysed

My right hon. Friend will consider whether any advice can usefully be given in this matter.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the usual procedure with unvaccinated prisoners in regard to vaccination in normal times and during the presence of small-pox in the district or prison?

In normal times no special steps are taken except as regards convicts sentenced to penal servitude, who, unless they present good vaccination marks, are vaccinated before removal to the convict prison. During an outbreak of small-pox in the area in which a prison, whether a local prison or a convict prison, is situated, or in areas from which prisoners are received, it is the practice to vaccinate all prisoners who have not been previously vaccinated within recent years.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether the prisoners have any choice in this matter as to whether or not they will be vaccinated?

I have never heard any complaints from them.

asked the Prime Minister if he will consider the appointment next Session of a Select Committee of this House to inquire and report on the advisability or otherwise of raising money for national purposes by the issue of premium bonds?

I am not disposed to think that the re-appointment of a Select Committee to examine this question would serve any useful purpose.

asked the Secretary for Mines if he will state any details as to the eight amalgamations which have taken place since the passing of the Mining Industry Act, 1926; and where the 70 collieries involved are situated?

I have been asked to reply. Of the 70 collieries referred to, 43 are in South Wales, 24 in South Yorkshire, two in West Yorkshire, and one in North Wales. But it is impossible within the limits of an answer to a question to give any full account of these amalgamations, and my right hon. and gallant Friend must emphasise again that this list is not exhaustive. A full report will be made to Parliament in due course.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his attention has been called to the construction of a new generating station at Little Barford, as proposed by the Electricity Commissioners; whether he is aware that it will not be in proximity to any load and that the needs of the area could be better met by the inter-connection of the Peterborough, Luton, and Bedford stations; and whether he will state the present position of the scheme?

The present position of this scheme is that the Electricity Commissioners, as the result of a local inquiry, have made an Order authorising the compulsory acquisition of lands for the purpose of constructing a generating station at Little Barford. This Order has now been submitted to me for confirmation, and before confirming it it will be my duty to consider any objections that may be made in accordance with the prescribed procedure.

Can my right hon. and gallant Friend say, if it be found that the needs can be met by local stations, whether he will hold a further inquiry?

No, Sir. I will, if necessary, hold an inquiry while the Order is before me for confirmation.

asked the Secreretary of State for Scotland whether he is aware of the indignation in the island of Barra over the proposals he has announced for the future of the steamer service to the island; that Barra is not one of the inner isles; that frequently the steamer via Coll and Tiree is unable to face the Minch; that sometimes passengers for Barra have been put ashore at Tobermory and compelled to get a passage home on a trawler; and that the route from Tiree to Barra is the most dangerous in the western seas; and whether he can take steps to ensure that the pre-war direct service from Tobermory to Barra will be resumed?

I have received no communication from Barra, but I am aware that some dissatisfaction has been expressed. The present service gives a connection both with Oban and Mallaig, which was desired by the islanders, and the traffic does not warrant separate services to Coll and Tiree and to Barra. I am informed that only on 11 occasions during the last 2½ years has the steamer been unable to cross the Minch. I have no information as to the utilisation of trawlers on any of these occasions. The crossing is undoubtedly exposed, but the service has been well maintained, and it is not apparent that the exclusion of Coll and Tiree from the itinerary would obviate the difficulty which is experienced in stormy weather. In the circumstances I can see no good reason for an alteration of this service, beyond the arrangements for replacing the present boat to which reference was made in the statement submitted to the House on the 1st instant.

Will the right hon. Gentleman give the House an opportunity of discussing this revised contract before it is finally completed, and is he aware that in the contract as he has announced it, there is to be no reduction of freights on exported goods, and that frequently goods have been allowed to lie rotting on the pier for days together?

I understand that the contract will in due course come before the House.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware that in the proposed agreement between the Scottish Education Department and the Glasgow authority no provision is made for any new schools in the Gorbals area; that this is the only division so treated; that this is the most thickly populated part of Glasgow; and if he will take steps to have the subject reconsidered?

My reply of 15th November to the hon. Member made it clear that no agreement of the nature which he describes is contemplated, and a reference to the tabular statement of the authority's programme which I gave him last week will show that he is under a misapprehension in supposing that Gorbals is the only division in which no provision is made for new schools. With reference to the latter part of the question, I am aware that the Gorbals area is thickly populated, but I am advised that the school accommodation is sufficient and I see no reason for reconsidering the subject.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the only Parliamentary division in which there is not to be a new school is Gorbals, and is he aware that in his own Parliamentary division three new schools are to be built? Will he take steps to see that the divisions of other hon. Members in this House are at least equally treated with his own?

This is a matter which must be dealt with not on the question of particular areas, but on the facts as to the necessity for schools. It is not correct to say that the hon. Member's division is the only one which is being so treated.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman if it is not a fact that in the tabulated statement issued, the only Parliamentary division treated in this way is Gorbals? Is he aware that the new schools proposed to be built are to be built in areas where people are already getting the subsidy for their houses, and that they are to have the further privilege of being the only people who are to get new schools? Is the right hon. Gentleman not going to consider the poor districts where the schools are antiquated?

Yes, Sir. Full consideration is being given to every district upon its merits, and I would remind the hon. Member that in the Calton and the Camlachie districts no provision is being made in addition to that already existing.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that I am dealing with Parliamentary divisions, and that the Camlachie division is to have a new school, while Gorbals is not to have a new school? Why cannot I get the same treatment for my division that other divisions get?

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware that a boy, Thomas Lennie, residing at 16, Salisbury Street, Glasgow, was at the Glasgow Sheriff Court in August sentenced to six stripes of the birch rod for stealing pigeons, having previously been in similar trouble; that the boy was under the care of the Glasgow Education Authority doctor previously; that he was minus a leg, lost a year before; and that since then he has been removed to Rushill Hospital, due to illness partly caused by the birch; and whether the proper medical examination took place before the punishment was applied?

Thomas Lennie was charged, along with another boy, at Glasgow Sheriff Court on 31st August, 1927, with breaking into three stables and stealing various articles and seven pigeons. Lennie, who had twice previously been convicted of theft, pled guilty and was sentenced to six stripes of the birch rod. Lennie was medically examined on attending the school clinic in February, 1927, but further medical attention was precluded by his failure to return to the clinic. I am informed that Lennie lost a leg some years ago. Lennie was admitted to Rushill Sanatorium Hospital on the 16th October, and I am satisfied that the suspected illness had no connection with the punishment imposed by the Court in August. The answer to the last part of the question is in the affirmative.

Was this boy medically examined apart from the question of his failure to turn up? Is it not a duty imposed by Act of Parliament that he should be medically examined before they start to apply the birch to a young boy?

I have already answered the hon. Member. All the proper steps were taken.

Does the right hon. Gentleman think that it can be defended that a boy, not 16 years of age, who lost a leg a year ago, should be birched in a Glasgow Court? I beg to give notice that I intend to raise this question at the earliest possible moment.

asked the Lord Advocate whether the proceedings against Ewen McLennan and Neil McDonald, of Scarristaveg, Harris, for breach of interdict were taken with the concurrence of the procurator fiscal for the Long Island district of Invernessshire; whether he is aware that these men were arrested and conveyed to Lochmaddy, 50 miles away, when they were ordered to lodge written answers by 5th January and then released; and why they were not ordered to lodge the written answers without the indignity of arrest as common criminals?

The facts are as stated in the first two parts of the hon. Member's question, except that the distance between Scarristaveg and Lochmaddy is under 25 miles. With regard to the last part of the question, I would point out that it is the usual practice for the Court to require the personal presence of the respondent in a petition and complaint for breach of interdict, and that, where a citation to appear is not complied with and no reasonable excuse for non-compliance is tendered, the proper course is to grant warrant to apprehend. I see no reason to suppose that there was any departure from the normal procedure in the present case. I would remind the hon. Member that the concurrence of the procurator fiscal in such proceedings is given in ordinary course, where he is satisfied that there is a prima facie case, and that I have no responsibility for the citation or subsequent proceedings.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that, in response to a question which I put in this House a week ago, concurrence on the part of the Department officials was denied? In view of these circumstances, can he take no steps to see that the law is operated with some degree of humanity and justice?

I am not aware of any such statement.

In view of the answer given on behalf of the Government, I beg to give notice that I will raise this question on the Adjournment to-night.

rose—

Notice has been given that the matter is to be raised in Debate.

asked the Postmaster-General what is being done to increase the number of telephone call boxes in villages and railway stations in North-east Lincolnshire which have none installed; and how many railway stations and villages of over 200 inhabitants are still without these facilities?

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to my right hon. Friend's statement in the House on the 31st March last about the development of the telephone system in rural areas generally and to the replies to questions by the hon. Member for Gainsborough (Captain Crookshank) on the 17th and 28th November about call offices at rural railway stations. As regards the last part of the question, I regret that statistics in the form desired are not available.

Is the Noble Lord aware that there is great dissatisfaction in the country districts owing to the slowness with which the telephone and telegraph services are provided, especially in areas where the people have to go a long distance to obtain the services of a doctor.

I am aware of that, but it is a question of expense.

asked the Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department if he is aware that the tender board of the South African Government railways are about to place orders for one million pounds' worth of locomotives, the bulk of the orders to go to German firms, and whether his Department will bring to the notice of the South African Government the superior construction and running powers of British-built engines, with a view to British firms securing a higher proportion of this work?

I am aware that the South African railway authorities have called for and received tenders for locomotives to the value of the amount stated in the question. I have no official information as to where the orders have been placed, but it is reported in the Press that over £500,000 worth have been placed in Germany. The South African Railway Board received tenders from the United Kingdom, and must be well aware of the nature and quality of the work which British locomotive manufacturers would be prepared to supply.

Having regard to the preference which we give to South Africa, does not the hon. Member consider that his Department is entitled to make some representation upon this matter?

I do not see how the British Government can make repre- sentations to the South African Government on a matter which is entirely their own affair.

asked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that a performance has been staged at the Grand Theatre, Gravesend, in the course of which Mr. John Ellis, the former executioner, appears as a hangman, and performs all the processes of pinioning and hanging an actor representing Charles Peace, the notorious criminal, a real gallows being erected on the stage for the purpose; and whether he will make it a condition in the future for the appointment of an executioner that he shall give an undertaking not to engage in a public performance in such a role?

Yes, but executioners are employed by sheriffs. I have no power to impose the condition suggested and, if I had, I do not know how it could be enforced after the executioner retired.

Will the right hon. Gentleman make representations to the sheriffs that it is against public policy to have these scenes exhibited? After all Parliament has had a great deal to do with the abolition of public exhibitions of executions.

Cannot this well be left to public opinion and the Press?

The hon. Member knows my view, which I am sure is the view of the House, that these exhibitions are not seemly.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether the position of public executioner is pensionable? Is he in receipt of a pension?

Nothing of the kind. The public executioner is employed and paid by the sheriffs.