asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is, approximately, the proportion of tramway streets to non-tramway streets in the Metropolitan area; and what was the proportion of street accidents, fatal and otherwise,, in these two types of streets, respectively?

asked the Home Secretary whether he can give comparable statistics of accidents in tramway streets and streets with flexible traffic only?

All available figures are contained in Tables 16 and 17 of the London Traffic Committee's Report on Street Accidents in Greater London published in March, 1927. I am sending copies of these tables to my hon. Friends. I have no information as to accidents in tramway streets outside the Metropolitan area.

With regard to the accidents in the streets in the Metropolitan area, is it not a fact that those in the tramway streets are out of all proportion to and enormously greater than those in non-tramway streets?

No doubt they are considerably greater, but my hon. Friend must remember that, obviously, the tramway streets are those streets which are most used.

Do I understand that the Minister does not consider that the first and second parts of this question have necessarily any relation to each other?

Can my right hon. and gallant Friend say whether any streets in London are more used, for instance, than the Strand and Piccadilly, which are non-tramway streets?

In the majority of cases tramway streets are more used than other streets.

asked the Prime Minister whether his attention has been drawn to the cost of the proceedings in connection with the Joint Committee on the Railway Bills; and, having regard to the fact that all the charges will ultimately fall on the community, whether the Government will consider legislation simplifying the procedure?

The Government have no present intention of introducing legislation on the subject. I would remind my hon. and gallant Friend that procedure on Private Bills by way of a Joint Committee is less expensive than if the Bills were considered by separate Committees of each House.

While recognising that economy is effected by a Joint Committee, is it not possible to alter the system whereby two sets of lawyers are employed at vast expense, cancelling each other out?

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will lay upon the Table a White Paper containing the Report of the London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee upon the five Railway (Road Transport) Bills, together with his Report to the Joint Committee to which the Bills have been referred?

I do not propose to lay a White Paper. It is not the practice to publish Reports and representations relating to private Bills.

Seeing the public interests involved, cannot the right hon. Gentleman indicate in some way what evidence was given, in view of the decision not to submit it to the Committee upstairs?

No; I think it would be unwise to depart from the usual practice.

Is it not unfair, after all the trouble taken by this Committee and the evidence obtained, and in view of the fact that the public have a great interest in the subject to which it relates, that the Report should not be forthcoming? What is the use of having a Committee?

The responsibility for the advice tendered to the Committee must rest with the Minister, and no one else.

Does the right hon. Gentleman think it is quite proper to use the precedent of a private Bill in the case of Bills with such far-reaching effects?

The Bills under discussion by the Joint Committee are private Bills.

Are we to understand that there is going to be no Report at all, and that it will be impossible for Members to get this information through the ordinary channels?

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is examining into the question of the increased speed of large passenger motor coaches, especially on the country roads; whether special warnings are issued to the companies concerned against arranging a programme of journeys which practically compel the drivers to proceed at excessive speed; and whether his attention has been called to the advertised list of journeys, mileage, and times, as for example, London to Norwich 4½ hours, London to Southampton 3½ hours, and London to Newcastle in 12 hours, the latter journey including time to stop for meals?

I have been asked to reply to this question. The responsibility for enforcing the law as to the speed of motor vehicles rests in each area on the chief officer of police; in the Metropolitan Police district special attention is being given to the speed of these large vehicles. I have seen advertisements of the kind to which the hon. Member refers, hut apart from specific action taken in regard to vehicles found to be proceeding at excessive speeds the police have no power to control the programme of journeys which may be advertised by the companies concerned.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that one of the dangers is the strain on the drivers proceeding on these long journeys at high speeds, and is it not obvious that the law must be broken for a motor omnibus to go from London to Newcastle in 12 hours?

With regard to the first point, that is a matter with which the police cannot deal. As far as the second point is concerned, the police must have evidence that at some particular part of the journey the speed of 12 miles an hour has been exceeded. All I can say is that, with regard to traffic of this advertised character, the police are well aware by now of the speeds advertised, and if they succeed in obtaining sufficient evidence that the speed at any part of the journey is grossly excessive, I have no doubt they will take the necessary steps.

Is this not driving a motor coach through an Act of Parliament?

Will my right hon. Friend consider the advisability of setting some of his well-known police traps for these vehicles?

That is only putting in a little more curt form what I was endeavouring to explain to the hon. and gallant Member for Central Hull (Lieut.-Commander Kenworthy).

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that these men are compelled by their employers to do these journeys, otherwise their services are dispensed with, and will he not consider whether some steps cannot be taken against the employers?

I am advised that in cases of this kind, if evidence is given that the men were compelled or induced by their employers to break the law in this manner, the employers might be found to be equally guilty.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that these bills advertising the journey, say, from Glasgow to Liverpool advertise a time that cannot be done without breaking the law, and that the bill itself, advertised by the employers, is a direct incitement to the employés to break the law? Cannot he take action against employers for inciting their employés to break the law?

I have tried to explain to the hon. and gallant Member for Central Hull that the police must have evidence before they can go into a court of law and prosecute either driver or owner for a criminal offence; and after attention has been called to this matter to-day I am quite satisfied that efforts will be made in different parts of the country where the speed is grossly excessive to get legal evidence of it, and proceedings will follow.

Is there any legal limit to the number of hours or the number of miles which any one driver can drive these big, fast vehicles in any one day?

No, I think there is no legal limit.

Can my right hon. Friend say whether the law is only 12 miles an hour, and whether that is not much too low and ought to be extended to 20 miles an hour?

That would be a matter for legislation, which could only be done by this House.

What is the law at present?

Twelve miles an hour for heavy vehicles.

asked the Minister of Transport how many complaints, official and unofficial, regarding increases in passenger fares he has forwarded to the companies concerned for their observations?

I have received representations on this subject from five local councils and four associations and have in each case forwarded a copy to the companies concerned.

Has the right hon. Gentleman received a reply in any special case, and, if so, will he publish it?

No, because my communications to them are so recent.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that some weeks ago he stated that he had forwarded a communication to one of the omnibus companies? Has he received any reply to that communication?

If the hon. and gallant Member will put down another question giving me definitely the name of the company to which he refers, I will give him an answer.

asked the Minister of Transport what was the total amount derived from the motor tax receipts for each of the years 1926 and 1927; showing the number of light cars, commercial vehicles, omnibuses, and motor bicycles separately, together with the sum of money collected from the owners of these types of vehicles?

I am sending the hon. Member two statements giving the information asked for.

asked the Home Secretary how many charges under the Motor Car Acts were brought in 1922, 1925, and 1927, respectively?

I can give certain figures for 1922, 1925 and 1926. Those for 1927 are not yet available. In the three years first mentioned, the numbers of persons prosecuted for offences against the Motor Car Acts in England and Wales were 82,321, 150,762 and 163,344. Offences of drunkenness while in charge of motor vehicles and revenue offences committed by motorists are not included.

Are the charges of drunkenness while in charge available separately?

Yes, I think I can get them.

asked the President of the Board of Education what views he has formed regarding the most immediate needs of Welsh education as a result of his visit to South Wales; and what action he proposes to take?

I think the hon. Member is under some misapprehension as to the purpose of my right hon. Friend's recent visit to South Wales. In any case, I am afraid that I could not undertake to survey the whole field of Welsh education within the narrow limits of an answer to a Question.

Can the Noble Lady say whether the right hon. Gentleman's visit was not an official one and will she say for what purpose it was undertaken?

I am afraid I must ask for notice of that question.

I put down the question to the Minister, and may I very respectfully point out that he should be, here to answer it.

Is it not the duty of the President of the Board of Education in turn to visit all parts of the country as long as he is the Minister of Education?

asked the President of the Board of Education the cost of the school medical services classified under medical officers, nurses, school clinics and treatment by dentists and oculists, for the last three years, respectively?

I am afraid that the returns made by Local Authorities do not enable me to analyse the expenditure under the heads named in the question, but I will circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT, for my hon. Friend's information, the total cost of the school medical services for the last three years for which returns are available.

asked the President of the Boarl of Education (1), the expenditure on old school buildings during the last three years for which statistics are available to bring them to a condition suitable for modern requirements, the amount paid locally and nationally for this purpose, and the number of schools so treated; (2), the expenditure on new school buildings during the last three years for which statistics are available, the amount paid locally and nationally towards this expenditure, and the average cost per place provided for scholars?

My right hon. Friend is afraid that the returns made to the Board by the Local Authorities do not enable him to give a complete answer to these questions, but he will send my hon. Friend such information as can be derived from an analysis of the returns.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether, in view of the recent accidents in schools, he will take steps to have the existing law amended in order to give local authorities the unfettered right to satisfy themselves that the educational well-being and the personal safety of all children in their area are insured either in institutions provided by them or in other institutions, so that they may not only satisfy themselves as to their condition, but be empowered to require suitable minimum provisions?

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which was given him in reply to a similar question on the 2nd April as to the powers of local authorities in these matters. My right hon. Friend cannot undertake to introduce legislation for the purpose of enlarging these powers at the present time.

asked the President of the Board of Education what are the recommendations of his Department to local education authorities with regard to the closing of elementary and secondary schools where children are suffering from infectious disease?

I would refer the hon. Member to the Memorandum on Closure of and Exclusion from School, issued jointly by the Ministry of Health and the Board of Education, a copy of which I am sending him.

asked the President of the Board of Education what is the estimated cost per child in the public elementary schools (leaving out of account all payments in respect of teachers' pensions) for the year 1928–29; and what was the corresponding figure for 1927–28?

My right hon. Friend thinks that an attempt to name a figure for average per capita expenditure in advance would be misleading. The actual expenditure per child in 1926–27 (the last year for which actual figures are available) was 236s. 8d., and the Board's estimates for 1928–29 are sufficient to provide for a somewhat higher figure.

asked the President of the Board of Education if any local authorities have recently submitted plans for elementary schools showing class-rooms 12 feet in height or higher; and in how many cases has it been suggested to the local education authority that the height should be reduced below 12 feet?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. The right hon. Member will be aware that the Building Regulations issued in 1914 provided for the reduction below 12 feet of the height of rooms under certain conditions, and it has since been the practice of the Board to suggest a reduction in the height in cases where those conditions exist, and they are satisfied that adequate ventilation and lighting can be secured. My right hon. Friend has no record of the number of cases in which this suggestion has been made.

asked the President of the Board of Education how many of the public elementary schools of the County of Nottingham, reported in 1925 as having no water supply at all, are still without a supply; what steps are being taken to make those schools comply with the Board's regulations in respect of a water supply and at what date the provision of a water supply to these schools may be expected?

My right hon. Friend has no particulars which would enable him to give a detailed reply to this question, but if the hon. Member will inform him of the name of any school at which he has reason to believe that there is no adequate water supply, my right hon. Friend would be glad to make inquiries.

Is the Noble Lady aware that the medical officer of health reported that there were 51 schools with- out water supply, and what steps have the Board taken to get a water supply for those 51 schools?

I think I must ask the hon. Member to put down a question in that form.

asked the Minister of Health whether county associations, corresponding to those for the blind, are being formed to deal with persons over school age suffering from deaf-dumbness or acquired deafness, in order to reduce the social and industrial hardships of their affliction and to ensure that previous public expenditure on their education may become economically remunerative; and whether he will take steps to enable local authorities, such as boards of guardians and education committees, to pay affiliation fees to these associations and the expenses of delegates who may attend the occasional conferences of these bodies?

I understand that there is a movement on foot for the establishment of county associations of this kind, and I have already intimated to those who are moving in the matter that, while I am prepared sympathetically to consider applications made by boards of guardians for my approval of the payment of subscriptions to associations for aiding the deaf and dumb. I see at present no sufficient ground for sanctioning the other payments which are suggested.

asked the Minister of Health what is the longest period for which a patient has been kept under detention by prolongation of a stated term of leave of absence under Section 55 of the Lunacy Act, 1890; in how many instances during the last three years have patients been kept for a year and upwards in this condition, which precludes any assurance of freedom and leaves them liable to be sent back to the detention from which their friends wished to release them; and, in view of the de- pressing effect of such a practice upon those subjected to it, will he take steps to secure its discontinuance?

The information asked for by the hon. Member in regard to the practice of granting leave of absence on trial under Section 55 of the Lunacy Act, 1890, can only be obtained by an examination of the records of all institutions for the insane, and I do not feel justified in calling for this. If, however, the hon. Member is aware of any particular case in which it is thought hardship has resulted from an unduly prolonged period of leave, and will supply me with details, I will have inquiry made.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that, according to a recent ruling of the Board of Control, the procedure under Section 49 of the Lunacy Act of 1890, for the examination of a certified person by two doctors with a view to discharge, is now held to require that the two doctors, instead of visiting once each with an interval of seven days and giving an indepedent opinion, should visit the patient together on two separate occasions with a like interval of seven days; and, in view of the fact that the Royal Commission recommended equality of opportunity for rich and poor and that the fees now required, as a result of this ruling, for four medical visits are, in most cases, prohibitive, will he introduce legislation at an early date to simplify and facilitate the procedure so as to place the opportunity for discharge conferred by this Section within reasonable reach of the poor?

The ruling of the Board of Control referred to was given after full consideration of the terms of the Section. The point raised by the hon. Member has been noted for consideration in the event of any fresh legislation being introduced.

Does not the right hon. Gentleman recognise that there is a hardship upon the poor as against the rich by this practice?

It is because I recognise that fact that I gave this answer.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is now able to announce the names of the special Committee he proposes to appoint on maternal mortality; and the terms of reference?

No, Sir. I am not yet in a position to do so.

Will the Committee have power to inquire into additional financial assistance?

The hon. Member had better await the terms of reference.

asked the Minister of Health what is the number of public baths, both covered and open, in the Metropolitan area; and what number of these have been added during the past five years?

The swimming baths in the Administrative County of London provided by public authorities are: covered, 101, open, 19; seven of these have been provided during the last five years, two of them being in place of old baths.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether the special additional facilities for sun ray treatment which are available in public baths on the Continent are being used in baths in London?

I am not aware of that fact.

asked the Minister of Health when the Report of the Departmental Committee on Vaccination will be published?

This Report is now being printed and will be published at an early date.

asked the Minister of Health the total sum expended during the past financial year upon sanatorium treatment for tuberculosis by the Exchequer and by local authorities, respectively; and the average cost of treatment per patient?

The total sum expended in any financial year upon sanatorium treatment proper is not separable from the amount spent on other forms of treatment of tuberculosis, and the information asked for in the first part of the question is, therefore, not available. The average cost of residential treatment during 1926–27 was 49s. 3½d. per patient per week.

Is it possible for my right hon. Friend so to alter the accounts that in future years we shall be able to get the cost of sanatorium treatment?

I think it is rather difficult to separate sanatorium treatment from other treatment in residential institutions.

asked the Minister of Health whether any, and, if so, how many, local authorities have adopted any system of observation of patients who have been discharged from tuberculosis sanatoria; and the percentage of such patients who are permanently cured of tuberculosis?

The tuberculosis schemes of all local authorities provide for the continued observation of patients discharged from sanatoria. I have, however, no figures which would enable me to answer the second part of the question.

asked the Minister of Health if he has any information as to the use of substitutes for cream by bakers and confectioners involving the breach of the Milk and Dairies Act; and what steps are being taken to circumvent this?

It is a well-known fact that substitutes for cream are commonly used by bakers and confectioners, but so long as these substitutes are not injurious to health and the articles in which they are used are not incorrectly described, there is no offence in regard to which statutory proceedings could be taken. It is not a matter to which the Milk and Dairies Acts apply.

Is the right hon. Gentleman sure that the British public are adequately protected from various foreign substitutes which come in to displace the much purer British cream?

The question I have to consider is whether the substitutes are injurious to health or whether, alternatively, the articles are correctly described. So long as they do not transgress either of those conditions, we cannot take statutory action.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that, as the result of the prohibition of preservatives in cream, confectioners are almost entirely using synthetic cream?

No, Sir. I am not aware of that fact.

It is a fact.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that all substitutes used by confectioners are not of foreign manufacture?

asked the Minister of Health the amount of grant given towards the treatment of venereal disease in the years 1921 and 1927, and the amount which local authorities have been informed is the maximum they will receive for the year 1927–28; whether he will give the number of treatment centres for venereal disease in England in 1921 and at the present time; and the number of health authorities where no such centres are provide?

The grants paid to local authorities for this purpose amounted to £421,687 and £272,921 during the financial years 1921–22 and 1927–28, respectively. The maximum grant payable to these authorities in respect of the financial year 1927–28 is £286,763. There are at the present time 177 treatment centres in England, compared with 184 in 1921, the reduction being due mainly to the policy adopted in some large towns of concentrating the work of two or more centres in one centre at which extended facilities for treatment have been provided. Facilities for the treatment of venereal disease have been provided by all the local authorities responsible for this work, but in a few cases the treatment centres are outside the administrative areas of the authorities.

Are we to understand from the right hon. Gentleman that the actual expenditure has been reduced by 50 per cent.?

No, not by 50 per cent., but by £150,000.

asked the Minister of Health whether he can state the rents charged, exclusive of rates, for houses built with State assistance, under the Housing Act, which contain three rooms or more, and are controlled by either the London County Council, the Middlesex Council, the Essex County Council, or the Surrey County Council?

The rents (exclusive of rates) charged by the London County Council for houses containing three rooms or more vary from 8s. 6d. to 21s. 3d. a week according to the accommodation provided and the situation of the houses. County councils other than the London County Council do not provide houses except for persons in their own employment. The rents charged for such houses by the three councils named are as follow:

Can the right hon. Gentleman say what accommodation there is in a house rented at 21s. 3d.?

I must have notice of that question.

asked the Minister of Health the number of cases with more than one family to a house in the urban district of Halesowen, and the number for the same area in 1923?

I regret that the figures asked for by the hon. Member are not available.

asked the Minister of Health if he will cite examples of the highest and lowest prices now being paid for non-parlour type houses by local authorities under the Acts of 1923 and 1924; and if he can give reasons for the differences?

The prices of non-parlour houses included in contracts let by local authorities during the month of March last ranged from £263 to £459; in the most extreme cases, although the bulk of the houses in question came within a comparatively narrow range of prices grouped round the average of £365. The differences in prices may be due to several factors, chief of which are variations in size of houses, and in building costs in different areas; nature of site; and standard of construction and amenity. Prices are also influenced by the extent of the demand on the building industry in any area.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has established officers in his own Department capable of performing the duties now being discharged by officers on loan from other Government Departments?

The answer is in the affirmative, but I must make it clear that the abnormal, though temporary, volume of work under the Contributory Pensions Act during 1927–28 necessitated adding to the numbers of the Executive grade by obtaining the services of experienced officers of this grade on loan from other Departments for a limited period. As this work is now approaching normality, some of these officers have already returned, and others will shortly be released.

asked the Minister of Health how many new entrant permanent officers he has employed in the Department since the decision of the Government was announced last year to restrict the employment of new entrants to the Civil Service?

The number of new entrants to the Civil Service who have been engaged on a permanent basis in my Department since 11th April, 1927, is 187.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the large number of new-entrant permanent writing assistants engaged by his Department during 1927, he proposes to carry out the specific clause of the pledge, dated 1st January, 1926, which states that if the engagement of new-entrant writing assistants causes redundancy among the women temporary staff recourse shall be had by dismissing the least efficient of the temporary staff; and why he has issued notices only to ex-service temporary clerks?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. and gallant Member for Carnarvon (Major Owen) on 22nd March last.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury (1) the total number of staff in Departments of His Majesty's Government, other than those specified in the White Paper, dated 24th April, 1928, giving the particulars on 1st April, 1914, 1st April, 1925, 1st April, 1927, and 1st January, 1928;

(2) the number of the staff employed by Departments in the following Estimate classes on 1st April, 1914: Central Government and Finance; Imperial and Foreign; Home Office Legal Departments, etc.; Education, Museums, etc.; Health, Labour, Insurance, and Pensions; Trade and Industry; and Common Services, respectively;

(3) if he will explain in detail the note on page 4 of the White Paper dated 24th April, 1928, stating that the increase of 300 in Group III is accounted for by the addition of staffs not included in the staff returns for earlier years; will he explain, in view of the above note, the decrease of 38, 1st April, 1925, to 1st April, 1926, followed the next year by an increase of 131; and the increase of 211 in the nine months 1st April, 1927, to 1st January, 1928?

As the replies to these questions contain a number of figures, I propose, with my hon. and gallant Friend's permission to circulate them in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of ex-service men engaged as temporary clerks in the Civil Service and the respective numbers in each Department?

The total number of ex-service men, employed as temporary clerks in Government Departments on let April last, was approximately 5,400. With the hon. Member's permission, I will circulate the particulars as to the numbers in each Department in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has now completed his investigations in respect to the child, Mary Race, who died in the isolation hospital, Chester-le-Street, on 24th March, in view of the doctor's report that the child was emaciated and debilitated, and had not the resisting strength of a child of its years when it entered the hospital; and whether his investigations have established any connection between the condition of this child and the fact that only £1 a week was granted to the six members of the Race family by the appointed guardians of Chester-le-Street?

My present information does not support the suggestion made in the last part of the question, but my enquiries are not yet complete.

When will the right hon. Gentleman be able to give me an answer? It is a fortnight since I called attention to the matter.

Yes, that is so, and I am trying to get complete information, and, as soon as I get it, I shall be able to answer the hon. Member's question.

Has the right hon. Gentleman an independent investigator there, apart from the appointed guardians?

I am trying to get information through my own officers.

Does that mean through a member of his own Department or through the appointed guardians?

I mean the officers of my own Department and not the appointed guardians.

Could not this matter be dealt with between the hon. Member and the Minister, without wasting the time of the House?

That is not a proper question.

Is the hon. Member for the Moseley Division (Mr. Hannon) aware that there is involved in this question, on the statement of a doctor, a charge of starving a child by the appointed guardians?

Does the right hon. Gentleman really think that there is need for an inquiry into this case? Does anybody consider that it is possible for six people to be kept on £1 a week and the rent to be paid out of it? Is there need for an inquiry?

The Minister has already stated that he is making an inquiry.

asked the Minister of Health what arrangements have been made with regard to the accommodation for casuals travelling east and west in North Yorkshire, in view of the decision to close the casual ward at Reeth, Swaledale, Yorkshire?

On the closure of the casual ward at Reeth, the Sedbergh Casual Ward, which had previously been closed, has been opened.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there are special circumstances in connection with this casual ward, and that the closing of it will involve great hardship to the unemployed who are travelling east and west, seeing that it is in a district which enjoys three months summer and nine months of bad weather?

I am not personally aware of the geographical conditions, but I am advised that the opening of the ward I hare mentioned will obviate any hardship.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if the extension of Income Tax relief proposed in the Budget on account of children will be applicable in respect of all children who survive their birth, however short the period?

Yes, Sir.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that inquiries are being made of banks by His Majesty's inspectors of taxes as to the amount of customers' stock sold, the date of sale, and particulars of how the capital is re-invested; whether such inquisition is being made by his authority or by the authority of his Department; and if he has any statement to make upon the matter?

I am not aware of the matter to which my hon. Friend refers, but if he will give me particulars of any case of the kind which he has in mind, I will cause inquiry to be made and communicate the result to him in due course.

I shall be pleased to supply to the hon. Gentleman particulars of the case which has been reported to me.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the total amount of Treasury Bills issued for each of the two years 1926–27 and 1927–28, and the amount of money allowed in discount in these bills for the same periods?

The amount of Treasury Bills issued in the financial year 1926 was £2,540 millions and in 1927, £2,417 millions. The discount in 1926 was £28,020.000 and in 1927, £25,281,000.