asked the Minister of Pensions what is the reason why wounded ex-soldiers who are still receiving hospital treatment are kept in hospitals which are located far from their homes; and whether he will consider the desirability of transferring at least a considerable number of such cases to hospitals as near their homes as possible?

It is the policy of the Ministry to provide treatment, wherever it can suitably be arranged, as near as possible to the man's home. A large proportion of the cases, however, are of varied types of disease or injury requiring special modes of treatment which are not always available in the patient's immediate neighbourhood. For these cases it has necessarily been impracticable to provide more than a limited number of special hospitals, compatibly with the standard of accommodation, equipment and staff necessary for their economical working and the interests of efficient treatment.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether any decision has been reached with regard to the closing of the clinic at Cedar View, Camberwell; and, if not, will he give consideration to the inconvenience to which many partially-disabled men working or residing in the Deptford, Bermondsey, and Lewisham area would be put through having to attend for treatment at Bulinga Street, Westminster?

The closing of the clinic at Camberwell is not in contemplation. Consideration is, as far as possible, always given to the convenience of patients when referring them to a clinic. The clinic at Bulinga Street has, however, special facilities for surgical treatment not available elsewhere, and on this account, in their own interests, certain cases living in the districts referred to, as well as in other parts of London, have, on occasion, to be summoned to it.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will obtain and place in the Library the Report of the American commission on the use of ethyl in motor spirit?

Yes, Sir, I will obtain a copy of the Report, and place it in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether there has been any considerable extension of the movement of troops around Canton during the month of March; and whether the Nanking negotiations have been resumed?

I have no official information of any considerable troop movements in the Canton neighbourhood during March. As regards the second part of the question, I would refer the hon. Member to the replies given to-day to the hon. Members for Northampton (Mr. Malone) and Bridgeton (Mr. Maxton).

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he has received any representations from the Egyptian Government with reference to British interference in the internal affairs of Egypt; and if he is taking steps to meet the wishes of the Egptian people in this respect?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to-day to the hon. Members for Northampton (Mr. Malone) and North Battersea (Mr. Saklatvala).

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs the nature of the communications made by the Government to the Dominion Governments and the answers received on the subject of the proposed Anglo-Egyptian Treaty?

I have been asked to answer this question. The Dominion Governments were kept informed of every stage in the negotiations with Egypt and, as soon as the text of a treaty had been agreed with Sarwat Pasha, its terms were communicated to the Dominion Governments by telegraph and their concurrence was sought in the proposal to present it to the Egyptian Government. The replies to this telegram made it clear that the policy of His Majesty's Government in Great Britain was satisfactory to all the Dominion Governments.

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs whether the Government have accepted the proposals of the Canadian Government as to the settlement of 20,000 British families near railways, and with free supervision for a year?

I have been asked to answer this question. My Noble Friend has no doubt been misled by a misprint or error in transmission in a Press telegram regarding a Pioneer Scheme now under negotiation for 2,000 (not 20,000) families in Northern Saskatchewan and British Columbia.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he has now received a verbatim Report of the speeches made at the extraordinary meeting of the Commonwealth Trust; and if he can make a statement as to the allegations made concerning the action of his Department?

I have been asked to answer this question. My right hon. Friend has requested the Trust to furnish him, if possible, with a verbatim or, at any rate, fuller report of the speeches, but there has not been time for a reply to reach him. As he informed the right hon. and gallant Member on Monday, he hopes to give an account of the matter in due course and in doing so he will, if required, answer the allegations referred to. My right hon. Friend does not consider that it is opportune to discuss the matter while negotiations are still in progress.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether paragraph (2) of the Second Report of the Select Committee on Estimates, 1927, as regards recruitment to the permanent Civil Service, has been accepted by His Majesty's Government; and, if so, what steps are being taken as vacancies arise to resume the system of open competition as recommended by the Committee?

Yes, Sir, His Majesty's Government is fully alive to the importance of the considerations urged by the Committee. An open competitive examination for the general clerical and Departmental clerical classes has recently been held and the Civil Service Commissioners have been authorised to hold a similar examination for situations in the executive classes in the autumn of this year. Open competition for the administrative and certain professional scientific and technical classes has now been resumed for some years past.

asked the Minister of Health how many members of his staff are now engaged on overtime duties?

140 members of the staff of my Department are at present employed on overtime, of whom 53 are typists or messengers, 68 are employed in regional and provincial offices, and 19 at headquarters.

asked the Minister of Health what were the terms of employment of the temporary women staff engaged for work in connection with the central index committee; and on how many occasions has their period of employment been extended?

The women staff employed on central index work were engaged in a temporary capacity, subject, in the case of 105 officers, to a week's notice on either side, and in the case of three officers to a month's notice. There has been no variation of the terms of employment, and no question of extension has arisen.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has received the accredited representatives of the ex-service temporary clerks employed in his Department who are liable to a week's notice terminating their employment; and, if not, whether he will consent to receive a deputation in order that he may hear the men's side of the case as well as the official side?

The accredited representatives of the ex-service temporary clerks employed in my Department were received by one of my officers in December last, when all relevant circumstances were fully discussed and reported to me, before any notices were issued. Since that date the Association have made further representations to me in writing to which I replied in detail after close personal consideration. I am, therefore, fully aware of the views of the men concerned, and I do not consider that any useful purpose would be served by my receiving a deputation.

asked the Minister of Health why, in view of the pledge dated 1st January, 1926, to the temporary women staffs, ex-service temporary clerks are being dismissed from the Civil Service whilst temporary women clerks not employed on hardship grounds are retained in the same Department?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. and gallant Member for Carnarvonshire (Major Owen) on the 22nd ultimo.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will give the specific date on which he first gave a decision that the women temporary clerical staff employed in his Department were to be regarded as non-substitutable by ex-service men?

The Association of Ex-Service Civil Servants were first informed on 28th July, 1926, that the work upon which the temporary women staff were employed in my Department was regarded as ordinarily not substitutable by men.

asked the Minister of Health what local authorities collect rates, other than compounded, by weekly or monthly instalments; and in which cases permission has been given to collect by means of stamps?

The collection of rates by instalments is within the discretion of local authorities and I have no information as to the number who do so. Assent has been given to the collection of rates by means of stamps by the authorities of the following boroughs and urban districts — Barrow-in-Furness, Bootle, Darlington, Grimsby; Folkestone, Pembroke, Port Talbot, Cleethorpes, Walton-le-Dale and Biddulph.

asked the Minister of Health what is the average period between a widow's application for a pension and the date of the issue of the award; and the number of applications received prior to 31st December, 1927, where the widow is still without pension?

The average number of days elapsing in England between the receipt of the application for a widow's pension and the issue of the award is 34.1. There are now in hand in England and Wales 396 cases of claims made before the 31st December, 1927, in which proof that the statutory conditions are satisfied has not yet been obtained.

asked the Minister of Health the number of houses (authorised but not completed) under construction and not started, respectively, on 31st March, 1927, and on 31st March, 1928; and the total number of houses authorised at those two dates?

Statistics of the progress of house-building up to the end of March, 1928, are not yet available. At the end of February, 1927, 102,864 houses were under construction, and a further 126,611 had been authorised but not started in connection with subsidy schemes, under the Housing Acts of 1923 and 1924. The corresponding numbers at the end of February, 1928, were 51,306 and 93,186 respectively. The total numbers of houses authorised under the two Acts at the dates above mentioned were 546,776 and 647,402 respectively.

asked the Minister of Health the number of houses which have been completed under the various Housing Acts by local authorities and by private enterprise, respectively, during the periods; end of the War to 31st December, 1922, the calendar years 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, and the first quarter of 1928; and the number of houses which have been completed without the aid of subsidy during each of the same periods?

The following statement gives the information desired by the hon. Member as far as it is available:

asked the Minister of Health the number of houses that have been built in the London area; the number under construction; and the number at present occupied that have been built during the last five years under the various building schemes?

The number of houses completed with State assistance under the Housing Acts in the London area (approximately the Metropolitan Police District) between the 1st January, 1919, and the 1st March, 1928, was 95,014. The number of such houses under construction at the latter date was 11,199. In addition, 89,069 houses were completed between the 1st October, 1922, and the 30th September, 1927, without State assistance. Some 68,000 houses were completed in the London area during the past five years, but I have no information as to the occupancy of these houses.

asked the Minister of Health how many statutory joint vagrancy committees have been set up in England and Wales; how many of these have been established during the past 12 months; and whether in practice they have been found to give beneficial results?

Sixteen statutory vagrancy committees covering 29 administrative counties in England and Wales have already been set up; two of these were constituted in 1927, and proposals to form two more are now under consideration; the work carried out by these committees is of great assistance in securing an improved standard in the administration of relief to casuals.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been called to the report of the Amersham Board of Guardians with regard to the overcrowding of the infirmary, in which it is stated that the conditions in the wards are very undesirable; that there is no possibility of separating unpleasant and contagious cases from ordinary patients; that two cases at least amongst the men should be in a separate small ward, one being a cancer case; that a case of phthisis in the women's ward is in a very infectious state; that patients who are able to get up have to take their meals in close proximity to dying patients and others who are helpless, and from the nature of their illness very unpleasant in their habits and conditions; and whether he will immediately take steps to put an end to these conditions?

My right hon. Friend has received a copy of the report made by a committee of the Amersham Board of Guardians containing the statements to which reference is made in the question. The committee was one appointed by the guardians to consider the arrangements to be made to deal with the overcrowding at the infirmary. It is reported that arrangements were at once made to alleviate some of the matters referred to, and others will receive the early consideration of the newly-elected board of guardians. My right hon. Friend has no reason to suppose that further necessary action will not be taken at the earliest possible date, and he proposes to keep in touch with the matter.

asked the Minister of Health (1) whether his attention has been drawn to the report made by the master of the workhouse at Tendring with regard to the inadequacy of his casual wards, in view of the great increase of vagrants applying for accommodation, 18 having to be taken in on the night of 20th February while there was only accommodation for four; and whether he will take steps to see that the neighbouring ward of Tattingstone shall be reopened or else that the ward at Tendring shall be enlarged;(2) whether his attention has been called to the complaint made by the master of the workhouse at Tendring with regard to the closing of the casual ward at Tattingstone and the consequent necessity for casuals to walk to Tendring; and whether he can state the distance between the various casual wards that are still open in that district since the closing of the Tattingstone ward?

My right hon. Friend has not received the detailed representations referred to, but has had a letter from the guardians saying that, owing to the closing of several wards, a considerable number of casuals have applied for relief at Tendring. My right hon. Friend is, on his present information, unable to accept the views advanced by the guardians, and I am sending the hon. Member a copy of a letter which my right hon. Friend has addressed to them, and will supply the detailed particulars for which the hon. Member has asked as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, seeing that an extensive mileage is flown in America without subsidy, and in view of the increased profits during the last financial year of Imperial Airways at the rate of £10,000 per month, any steps are to be taken towards altering the subsidy system?

I have been asked to reply. My hon. and gallant Friend is apparently misinformed. The net profit disclosed by the profit and loss account of the last published balance sheet of Imperial Airways, Limited, was £11,461 for the year (after the subsidies had been credited) and not £10,000 per month. This profit shows an improvement on the results of previous years, when losses of larger amounts were recorded, but it is clear that at present the company cannot continue to operate without financial assistance. I would remind my hon. and gallant Friend that aircraft-operating companies in America receive financial assistance by means of postal contracts and considerable additional assistance in the shape of the provision of free ground organisation. The conditions prevailing in America are entirely different from those prevailing in the Eastern Hemisphere.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is the intention of the Food Council to hold an inquiry into the prices charged for market garden produce; and, if so, what methods will be adopted by them to find out the reasons for the difference in retail shop prices and the prices paid to the growers?

I have just received a report on this subject, from the Food Council, which I propose to communicate to the Press.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he is aware that, according to the statement of classes recruited for the fighting arms of the Indian Army included as Appendix XIV of the Recruiting Regulations of the Indian Army, no Hindu who is not a member of the Rajput, Brahmana, Jat, Ahir, or Gujar castes is eligible for recruitment for the Indian Army in the Punjab, Bombay, Bengal, United Provinces, Bihar and Orissa, Gujrat, Sindh, and the North-West Frontier Province; that amongst Brahmanas only certain sub-castes are eligible and then only for the artillery; that only Sikhs, Dogras, Rajputs, and Jats are eligible for recruitment for the cavalry; and whether this statement in Appendix XIV still regulates recruitment for the Indian Army?

The existing class composition of the Indian Army does not correspond in every respect with the statement to which the hon. Member refers. If he wishes, inquiries will be made as to what are the latest regulations that have been issued on the subject.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether he is aware that 71 elementary schools in Wales, accommodating an aggregate of 16,890 pupils, have been condemned as insanitary; and what action does he propose to take to provide alternative accommodation within reasonable distance of the children's homes?

I am aware that there are at present 71 elementary schools in Wales in category A of the Black List. This does not, however, mean that all these schools are "insanitary" or that they have been "condemned." The Board are in constant communication with the local authorities and, in the case of voluntary schools, the school managers, in regard to individual cases, and, while the rate at which the schools can be replaced is conditioned by the particular circumstances of the individual areas concerned, I think that, generally speaking, reasonable progress is being maintained.

asked the hon. Member for Monmouth, as representing the Forestry Commissioners, whether he is aware that the sheep pastures in Glenshiel have been taken over by the Forestry Commissioners for tree planting, and that sheep have been driven off the grazings by the Commissioners' representative and have been driven back again by their owners; and how many acres of land, apart from those sheep grazings, are still available for afforestation and not yet planted by the Commissioners?

A certain extent of grazing land together with a larger area of deer forest has been acquired by the Forestry Commission in Glenshiel Parish. With regard to the second part of the question, I am aware of only one incident of the kind in which case 14 sheep were driven out of the Commission's fenced area in the Deer Forest of Kintail, which had been acquired clear of all grazings rights. With regard to the last part of the question, the Commission have clear entry to over 4,000 acres of afforestable land still unplanted.

asked the hon. Member for Monmouth, as representing the Forestry Commissioners, when the Forestry Commissioners decided to take over sheep farms for the purpose of afforestation, and to leave adjoining deer forests which are suitable for afforestation?

The Commissioners have adopted no such principle.

asked the hon. Member for Monmouth, as representing the Forestry Commissioners, if he can give an estimate of the income anticipated by the Commissioners from land already planted and in their possession during the next 10 years?

The income from timber sales by the Forestry Commissioners during the next 10 years is estimated at approximately £550,000. The amount depends on a number of factors, such as timber prices, which cannot be accurately forecast.

asked the Minister of Labour the hours of labour of cotton operatives in this country in comparison with such other countries where the cotton industry is of relative importance?

I will have this matter looked into and communicate with my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will bring in legislation to consolidate in one Act of Parliament the Unemployment Insurance Acts passed in the years 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924–25, and 1927, as referred to in the Fourth Schedule of the Unemployment Insurance Act of 1927, in view of the difficulty of workmen understanding this legislation by reference?

I cannot say more than that the question of consolidation of the Unemployment Insurance Acts is under consideration.

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been called to the case of Mr. Thomas Paterson, Craigneuk (reference No. E.D. 44,780/1927), who was in receipt of compensation for accident from December, 1922, but whose compensation was reduced in amount in July last on the ground that he was fit for light work; whether he is aware that thereafter the local employment committee, judging by his appearance, decided that he was unlikely to obtain further insurable employment other perhaps than work of an occasional, exceptional, or intermittent character, and accordingly recommended that his claim be disallowed on the ground that he had not shown that in normal times insurable employment suitable to his capacities would be likely to be available for him; that this claim was further ruled out on the ground that the applicant had not shown that he was making every reasonable effort to obtain suitable employment; and whether, in view of the conflicting nature of these decisions, he will have this case reinvestigated?

The inquiries which are in progress in connection with this case are not yet complete, but I will let

asked the Minister of Labour the number of either wholly unemployed or temporarily stopped persons who signed on at the Walworth Road, Borough, Employment Exchange at the

asked the Minister of Labour whether Irishmen are permitted to enter England, Scotland and Wales and obtain casual employment, and when they become unemployed to remain on

asked the Minister of Labour the number of persons, specifying men, women, boys, and girls, on the Devonport Employment Exchange for the month of March, 1928?

The following table shows the number of persons on the registers of the Devonport Employment Exchange on each Monday of March, 1928:last convenient date, giving comparable figures for 1926 and 1927?

The following table shows the numbers on the registers of the Borough Employment Exchange at the end of March in each of the years 1926–1928:the live registers for employment without restriction provided they have once obtained work for the required number of weeks; and whether there is any means of indicating the place of origin of persons whose names are on the register of Employment Exchanges?

Any British subject may, without restriction, enter Great Britain to seek casual or other employment and register for employment at an Employment Exchange. Information as to the place of birth of applicants for employment other than aliens is not usually obtained by the Employment Exchanges.

asked the Postmaster-General the income from telegrams which passed through the Glasgow post offices during the period 1st November, 1925, to 31st October, 1926, and during the period 1st November, 1926, to 31st October, 1927, respectively?

The revenue from telegrams (excluding Press) handed in at the head office, branch offices and town sub-offices in Glasgow is roughly estimated at £96,000 for each of the periods specified.

asked the Postmaster-General what proportion of telegrams are sent from telegraph offices in the form of telephone messages; and what was the total number of telegraph instruments in use in post offices in 1913 and to-day, excluding those at district offices and telegraph offices in towns of over 100,000 inhabitants?

Precise details are not available, but it is roughly estimated that the proportion of telegrams forwarded from one office to another by telephone is about 18 per cent. The second part of the question cannot be answered without a special return, which would entail a great deal of work.

asked the Postmaster-General whether any special effort is being made to repair the cable broken during a storm in December last between Guernsey and Sark and Guernsey and Alderney; when the telegraph service between these islands is likely to be renewed; and, in view of the inconvenience to the inhabitants, whether he will consider the advisability of using the regular daily service of motor boats to replace the bi-weekly delivery of telegrams which is at present in operation?

The cable between Guernsey and Sark will be repaired as soon as the cable ship has finished the repairs to cables in the North of Scotland on which she is at present engaged. There is no interruption of communication between Guernsey and Alderney. Inquiry is being made as to the practicability of using the service of motor boats referred to by my hon. Friend.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has any statistics that will show the number of on-licences and off-licences which at present exist in England and Wales?

Full particulars as to all licences for the sale of intoxicating liquor in England and Wales are given in the Annual Volumes of Licensing Statistics.

asked the Home Secretary if he proposes to introduce legislation to prevent the use of obstacles in steeplechases which involve cruelty to the animals taking part in such races?

No, Sir. Cruelty to animals can be dealt with under the existing law when it occurs.

asked the Home Secretary if his attention has been drawn to the case of a player who was injured at the Army Rugby football match at Twickenham on the 24th March and lay unconscious in the dressing-room until after the end of the match because of the difficulty in obtaining an ambulance; and if he will endeavour to arrange that on all future occasions such as this an ambulance shall be in attendance?

I have been asked to reply. A doctor was in attendance from the time of the accident until the removal of the patient to hospital. In cases of injury such as this, it is advisable to let the patient rest quite quiet for some time. In the meantime a military ambulance was obtained as it was considered advisable to convey him to the military hospital at Millbank, Inquiries have been made from the Rugby Football Union, and it is understood that, in cases of urgency, an ambulance can be obtained at short notice from the Twickenham police.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department as representing the First Commissioner of Works, what precautions are being taken to prevent the further displacements and movements of the quay wall and the Salt Tower of the Tower of London; and whether it has now been found necessary to fit crack micrometers?

Cracks in the quay wall and in various towers have been under observation since 1913, and since that date, the National Physical Laboratory have taken readings of the movements by means of micrometers. I am happy to be able to assure the hon. Member that the movements discovered are of very small dimensions and that there is, at the present time, no cause for alarm.

asked the Home Secretary how many constables of the Metropolitan police are employed on point duty; what is the total sum paid to such officers; what proportion of the total cost of the Metropolitan police is so expended; and what proportion of the total force is so employed?

Assuming that my hon. Friend refers to the men employed on traffic duty, the figures as to number and total cost are approximately 1,300 and £420,000 per annum, and they represent about 6 per cent. of the total net cost and of the total force.

asked the Minister of Transport if the experiments carried out with the electric traffic signals which are now in use at Arlington Street, St. James's Street and Berkeley Street, Piccadilly, have been successful; and, if so, whether it is intended to extend this system further in the London area?

These signals were specially designed to meet the particular traffic conditions in this area. It, is not proposed to extend the use of this particular system at present, but the desirability of making other experiments in traffic control by light signals is under consideration.

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been drawn to the provision in certain road long-distance motor coaches of closet seats for the use of passengers; whether he has received any reports on the matter from the sanitary officers of local authorities through whose areas these vehicles pass; and what action he proposes to take?

The answer to the first two parts of the question is in the negative. I am not aware of any grounds for taking action.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he has received any application from the Meat Traders' Association asking that meat traders who have carcases condemned on account of foot-and-mouth disease should receive compensation from the State on the same conditions as that paid to owners of beasts ordered by the Ministry of Agriculture to be destroyed on account of foot-and-mouth disease; and whether he is prepared to grant this?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. The Diseases of Animals Acts contain no authority for the payment of compensation for carcases condemned on account of foot-and-mouth disease. The authority is limited to payment for live animals which the Ministry considers it necessary to slaughter in order to pre- vent the spread of disease. The answer to the second part of the question is therefore in the negative.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the amount paid as compensation for stock destroyed under foot-and-mouth disease orders for the six months ended 24th March in the years 1926 and 1927?

The amounts paid as compensation for stock destroyed under foot-and-mouth disease orders for the six months ended 24th March in the years 1926 and 1927 were £269,228 and £68,921, respectively.

asked the Minister of Agriculture particulars of the manner in which condemned stock destroyed under the foot-and-mouth disease orders are disposed of?

The carcases of animals condemned in connection with foot-and-mouth disease are usually disposed of by cremation, but where this method is found to be impracticable burial is adopted.

asked the Minister of Agriculture particulars from which fund the sum of £151,437 was paid for compensation in respect of the stock destroyed under the foot-and-mouth disease orders for the six months ended to the 24th March, 1928?

The cost of the Ministry's operations against foot-and-mouth disease in the financial year 1927–28 (including the sum of £151,437 referred to in the question) was met from the Cattle Pleuro-Pneumonia Account for Great Britain in pursuance of the Diseases of Animals Act, 1894. The statutory maximum annual grant of £140,000 in aid of the account was provided by Parliament for 1927–28 as part of the Ministry's Vote for that year. This grant of £140,000 proved insufficient to meet the payments falling to be made from the account in the year and the balance of the sum required was provided by advances from the Local Taxation Accounts for England and Scotland in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

asked the Minister of Agriculture when he expects the two new research ships will be ready for their work; what are the names of the ships; and what are the amounts being spent on each ship to fit them out for their research work?

The two ships chartered by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research for the researches on fish are the commercial steam trawlers "Cicely Blanche" of Milford Haven and "Ben Meidie" of Aberdeen. They are expected to be ready to commence work about the end of May. The expenditure on experimental plant will be approximately £1,500 for each ship.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether any and, if so, what assistance is being given by the Empire Marketing Board for the purpose of research work into the preservation and curing of herrings, as recommended by the Report of the Imperial Economic Committee?

The Empire Marketing Board has placed £18,500 at the disposal of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research for the period ending on 31st March, 1929, for research on fish; no part of this sum is specifically earmarked for research on the preservation and curing of herrings. A preliminary scientific survey of the herring industry has been carried out by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what was the total value of fish brought into the United Kingdom in 1926 and 1927; what proportion of that total was of British catching; as to the balance, what proportion consisted of foreign landings direct from the fishing; and what amount was brought as cargo from other parts of the Empire and from foreign countries, respectively?

The information desired by my hon. Friend will be found in the following table:

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that no representative of the Royal Army Service Corps (Mechanical Transport Section) has been included in the appointments to the Mechanical Advisory Board, recently set up by his Department; and whether he will consider the addition of an officer of the Mechanical Transport Section, Royal Army Service Corps, having regard to the fact that the mechanical transport work of the Army was organised and effectually maintained by them throughout the War?

My hon. and gallant Friend is under a misapprehension. There are, in fact, four officers of the Royal Army Service Corps (Mechanical Transport) on the Mechanical Warfare Board.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether any serviceable accoutrements of a character likely to be needed on mobilisation have recently been sold or offered for sale from Army stocks; if so, the grounds upon which such sales or offers for sale have taken place; whether the oldest and most worn goods only have been sold and offered for sale; what prices, in relation to War Office vocabulary prices for serviceable articles, the War Office have realised or expressed a willingness to accept for such accoutrements; and whether, pend- ing further consideration on the subject, he can see his way to give instructions that such sales shall cease?

There has recently been a sale of a small number of serviceable accoutrements, which on the latest review were found to be surplus to Army mobilisation requirements. It would be contrary to established practice to disclose the prices at which they were sold. I see no reason for discontinuing the disposal of such stores as are in excess of probable Army needs.

asked the Secretary of State for War what principle is followed in disposing of stores surplus to the requirements of the Army; whether and by what means the public as a whole is accorded facilities for knowing what public property surplus to Army needs is available for sale and of making competitive offers to purchase such property; whether any sales, or negotiations for sales, upon conditions at variance with the approved principle have recently taken place; and, if so, upon whose authority, and upon what grounds such departures have been permitted?

It is the general practice of the War Department to dispose of surplus stores by public auction or by competitive tender. The former sales are invariably advertised, and in the case of the latter invitations to tender are issued to firms or individuals on the Department's classified lists, which are extensive. Every year the fact that surplus stores are available for sale from time to time is widely advertised and applications are invited from anyone desirous of being noted for the purchase of surplus stores. In certain cases where it is considered that advantage would result, specific sales by tender are also advertised. In addition to these methods, individual inquiries are from time to time received for stores of Army pattern, and occasionally, after negotiation, sales ensue. As the surplus stores to be disposed of are frequently of a kind for which there is only a very limited or occasional market, this channel of disposal cannot be neglected, but when it is resorted to, care is taken as far as possible to ensure that the prices obtained are favourable to the public having regard to (1) cost price, and (2) price obtained for previous sales by competition for similar stores. I am not aware of any sales at variance with these approved principles having recently taken place.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, seeing that nearly 10 years have elapsed since the Armistice, final decisions have now been reached as to what Vote 8 stores held by or for the Army are surplus to present or prospective needs of the Army; if not, how soon it is expected that such final decisions will be reached; and what are the cir- cumstances that have caused delay, or are still causing delay, in reaching such decisions?

The stocks of Vote 8 (and other) stores are determined, not by final decision, but by periodical review of requirements, in the light of changes in the size, organisation and military obligations of the Army, and the stocks held at any time are those considered likely to be required to meet present or prospective needs.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of tons of white sugar of all lower, grades, i.e., raws or yellows, of molasses, of dried pulp, and beets sliced made in Scotland, 1927–28?

The figures supplied by the two beet sugar manufacturing companies are as follow: