asked the President of the Board of Trade the percentage of exports of British and American manufactured goods, respectively, of their entire manufacturing outputs in 1929 and in 1913, respectively?

Particulars relating to the years specified in the question are not available for either this country or the United States. The figures stated in the reply which I gave on 17th December last to a question asked by the hon. and gallant Member for the Isle of Wight (Captain P. Macdonald) indicate that the

asked the President of the Board of Trade what were the values and the percentages of feeding-stuffs and of fertilisers imported into the United Kingdom in 1928 from British Empire countries and from foreign countries, respectively, and the totals?

The following table shows the total declared value of (a) feeding-stuffs for animals, and (b) fertilisers imported into Great Britain and Northern Ireland during the year 1928, distinguishing the amount and the proportion of the imports consigned from British countries and from foreign countries, respectively:—

asked the President of the Board of Trade the amount, in tons, of the imports into this country of hay and/or straw during the months of October, November and

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the Imperial Graves Commission maintains the cemetery at Tsingtao wherein are the graves of the South Wales Borderers who fell in the operations around the town in 1914; if not, by whom is it maintained; and why no control over the cemetery is carried out by the commission?

By an arrangement with the Imperial War Graves Commission, the cemetery at Tsingtao is maintained by a local committee, of which the British Consul is chairman. According to a recent report, the cemetery is in excellent order.

asked the Minister of Health the number of London County Council unoccupied houses at 1st December, 1929?

I am informed by the London County Council that the number of cottages and cottage flats on their estates on 1st December last was 37,353; 62 were unoccupied. Nearly all the unoccupied houses were in course of re-decoration for incoming tenants.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is

The following table shows the total weight of hay and of straw imported into Great Britain and Northern Ireland registered daring each of the months of October, November and December, 1928 and 1929:yet in a position to announce his decision with regard to the appointment of a residential surgeon for the Bignold and Dunbar hospitals in Caithness?

The question of assistance from the Highlands and Islands (Medical Service) Fund towards the appointment of a surgeon in Caithness was brought before the Department of Health for Scotland some time ago by the managers of the Dunbar Hospital, but, in the absence of any indication from the managers of the Bignold Hospital that they desire such an appointment, the Department, have not yet been able to deal with the matter. I can assure the hon. Baronet that any application that has the support of both bodies will receive the sympathetic consideration of the Department.

asked the Minister of Labour whether any application has yet been received from the Woolwich Borough Council to the Unemployment Grants Committee for any grant-in-aid for work for the unemployed in the borough and assisting others in the distressed areas?

No application involving the employment of a proportion of labour transferred from the depressed mining areas has yet been submitted by the Woolwich Borough Council to the Unemployment Grants Committee for a grant towards works for the relief of unemployment in Woolwich.

asked the Minister of Labour if she can estimate the increases or decreases in the live register attributable to legislative and administrative changes in unemployment insurance since 1924?

Estimates of the increases and decreases in the live register attributable to legislative and administrative changes in unemployment insurance from 1924 to 1928 were published in the issue of the Ministry of Labour Gazette for February, 1929, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy. It is estimated that the administrative changes introduced since June, 1929, under which certain classes of applications for benefit have been referred to boards of assessors, had caused by 16th December an addition to the live register of approximately 5,000.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what is the total number of persons in Great Britain on the latest date for which figures are available who were maintained by the unemployment insurance fund as unemployed persons or as dependants on such; and the total number of able-bodied persons who were maintained by the Poor Law, deduction being made for those persons who were in receipt of allowances from both sources so far as known?

I have been asked to reply. In November, 1929, the latest period for which figures in respect of Poor Law relief are available, the average weekly payments of benefit to insured persons from the unemployment insurance fund numbered 999,908. The claims on which dependants benefit was authorised for payment at 18th November numbered 437,394 (in respect of 1,066,827 dependants). The figures relating to payments include cases in which outstanding benefit was paid in respect of previous weeks, but are exclusive of cases in which benefit due in respect of the current week had not been drawn. In England and Wales the average numbers of persons ordinarily engaged in some regular occupation, exclusive of dependants, who were in receipt of out door Poor Law relief during November, 1929, were as follow:

asked the Lord Privy Seal how many men have been found employment on State-aided relief schemes in the County of Midlothian since 1st June, 1929?

Since 1st June, 1929, the Unemployment Grants Committee have approved schemes submitted by local authorities in the County of Midlothian estimated to provide direct employment equivalent to a year's work for about 925 men. In addition, it is understood that the Midlothian County Council are preparing a programme of road works for submission to the Ministry of Transport.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what plans, if any, have been submitted by the Bexley Council, or the Dartford Urban Council, or the Kent County Council, for relief of unemployment?

The Dartford Urban District Council submitted on 31st December, a scheme estimated to cost £6,500, which is under consideration by the Un employment Grants Committee. The Kent County Council propose to carry out under the Trunk Road programme new road construction and improvement works estimated to cost £345,200. Surveys are now in progress with a view to the preparation and submission of the plans and other details. The Kent County Council have also submitted a programme of works of improvement, and new construction on classified roads, consisting of nine schemes, estimated to cost £2,740,000. This includes the construction of the Kent Coastal road estimated to cost £604,000 in respect of which works estimated to cost £218,000 have already been approved fox-grant. It is understood that details of the remainder of the schemes are in course of preparation. I cannot trace that any schemes have been submitted by the Bexley Urban District Council.

asked the Lord Privy Seal when the suggested Purfleet-Dartford tunnel was recommended for construction; how much preliminary examination had taken place preceding 1st June, and how many county or local authorities had been approached to co-operate in the essential engineering inquiry preceding such construction; and the amount expended prior to 1st June, 1929?

I have been asked to reply. As a result of representations received from several local authorities a report was obtained from consulting engineers by my Department in 1924 as to the feasibility of a tunnel under the Thames at Tilbury. After careful investigation the engineers reported that the most suitable line for a tunnel would be one from Dartford to Purfleet. In 1927 the London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee made a favourable recommendation regarding the suggested line for the tunnel, and steps were taken to secure certain lands that would be required for approaches. In July last, I approached the County Councils of Essex and Kent in order to solicit their collaboration in a review of the consulting engineers' report, the preparation of a Bill for the construction of a tunnel and the allocation of the cost thereof. Substantial agreement has been reached with the Councils upon most of these points and a Bill is being promoted during the present Session Up to 1st June last, the amount expended was approximately £8,000.

asked the Minister of Labour what were the average net earnings for all railway workers in Great Britain for the years ended 30th September, 1925, 1928, and 1929, respectively?

I have been asked to reply. The information for which the hon. and gallant Member asks is not available, but he will find particulars of the average payments to certain sections of the male adult staff in the weeks ended 28th March, 1925, 10th March, 1928, and 9th March, 1929, respectively, in the Returns of Railway Companies Staffs for those periods. These Returns are issued annually by my Department and published by the Stationery Office.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has received a copy of a resolution passed by the Public Works, Roads, and Transport Congress, recently held, in favour of a national road research laboratory; and whether he proposes to take any action in the matter?

I have not yet received a copy of the resolution, but I am glad to inform the right hon. Gentleman that a laboratory forms part of the Experimental Road Station which has been established by my Department on the Colnbrook by-pass in Middlesex.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether satisfactory arrangements have now been made for the British officials in the Iraqi railway service; and whether these officials have complained to him of their contracts of service?

As regards the first part of the question, I have nothing to add to the reply given to the hon. Member for Melton (Mr. Everard) on 20th November last. The reply to the second part of the question is in the affirmative. I can only say that every effort will be made to ensure that satisfactory contracts are granted to the officials concerned.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps have been taken to improve the inter-islands communication in the Solomon Islands; and can he make a statement thereon?

The Protectorate Administration has been prevented by financial stringency from effecting any considerable improvements in inter-island communications. A special vessel for the use of a travelling medical officer was acquired in 1927. Other schemes which are at present under discussion are (a) the replacement of the Government vessel "Ranadi" by a more modern vessel, and (b) the establishment of a chain of wireless stations within the group.

asked the Secretary for Mines the number of mines that have been closed in England and Wales for the 12 months ended to the last convenient date, and how many persons were affected by those closings?

During the 12 months ended 11th January, 1930, 262 pits in England and Wales, employing 14,400 wage-earners, have closed and not reopened. Nearly 200 of these pits were very small, employing less than 20 men each. There was, however, a net increase of nearly 40,000 in the total number of wage-earners employed in the coal mining industry in England and Wales during the same period.

asked the Secretary of State for India the total contraction of currency by the Government of India against sterling securities that has taken place during the present financial year; and if he will give figures showing the total contraction of the currency against sterling securities in each year since 1926?

The net withdrawals of sterling securities from the Paper Currency Reserve in each of the financial years since 1926–27 were as follow. I give the figures in millions of pounds sterling:

asked the Secretary of State for India the number and locality of the landing grounds in India that can be used throughout the wet season; and what steps are being taken, or are proposed, to increase the number of landing grounds available all the year round?

The following civil landing grounds on air routes across India are normally fit for use throughout wet seasons: Karachi, Jodhpur, Delhi, Allahabad, Gaya, Dum Dum. In addition there are approximately 40 Royal Air Eorce and Army Department landing grounds in various parts of India available for civil use under certain conditions which are normally fit. Government are working to a considered programme of progressive development of civil landing grounds on Indian routes as speedily as the funds available will permit.

asked the Secretary of State for India the number of persons in India holding air-pilot's licences granted by the Government of India; and the number of such licences granted by the Government of India during last year?

The number of persons holding air pilot's licences in India is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for India the amount contributed in each of the last five years by the Government of India to the Air Ministry on account of recruitment and training of personnel of the Royal Air Service, and the total cost to Indian revenues in

The following figures, which are those of the Budget Estimates, are the latest available: