asked the Secretary of State for India what is the total new mileage added to Indian railways in the year 1929; and what is the contemplated programme of new mileage for 1930?

The total new mileage added to Indian railways in the year 1929 was 1,058. In 1930 it is expected that 809 will be added.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he has been in communication with the Government of India regarding the proposed conference of the Indian princes and people; whether he is in a position to inform the House about the constitution and terms of reference of this conference; whether his attention has been drawn to the Muslim demand in India that no particular view should be given prepondering representation; and whether he can give any assurance that all parties, groups, and interests, including minorities, will be adequately represented at the conference?

As to the conference, I fear I can add nothing at present to the terms of the Viceroy's proclamation.

asked the President of the Board of Education the names of the local education authorities, and their associations from whom he has received communications urging the importance of passing the Education (School Attendance) Bill as soon as possible?

I have received representations to this effect from the County Councils' Association and from the Association of Municipal Corporations. To compile a list of names of local education authorities, such as is suggested, would involve a special scrutiny of large numbers of communications received from those authorities.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether he intends to make any provision for holiday camps for boys and girls in his education programme; and whether any of the camps will be co-educational?

Provision for holiday camps for school children is already made by some local education authorities, and I shall certainly consider sympathetically any further proposals of this kind which may be submitted. The decision on the point raised in the second part of the question rests with the local authority concerned in each case.

asked the President of the Board of Education what steps he has taken to further the establishment of nursery schools?

I would refer the hon. Member to the Circular recently issued by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Health and myself, on the subject of children under school age, of which I am sending him a copy. The matter is receiving my close attention in connection with the programmes which are now being submitted by local education authorities.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether it is his intention to increase the proportion of free places in secondary schools?

Yes, Sir. The regulations hitherto in force prescribe that, except with the Board's special approval, the total number of free places awarded in a school year must not exceed 40 per cent. of the total number of admissions in the previous year. I propose to raise the percentage to 50.

asked the Home Secretary if he can now make any further statement as to the steps being taken to secure the extradition of Gialdini?

My right hon. Friend regrets that he cannot make any further statement as to the course that this case is taking.

asked the Home Secretary the number of barmaids employed in this country aged over and under 21 years, respectively; and whether he intends to take any action to prevent such employment of young girls?

According to the figures of the census of 1921, the total number of persons classified as barmaids in Great Britain including those unemployed was 25,550, of whom 4,204 were under 20 years of age. No more recent figures are available. As regards the later part of the question, I do not appear to have received any representations in the direction suggested, and no such legislation is at present in contemplation.

asked the Home Secretary in how many cases, if any, during the last five years the administration of punishment by the eat has taken place in two or more stages?

In no case within the memory of present officers of the prison service has the administration of corporal punishment taken place in two or more stages. If the medical officer stops a flogging on medical grounds, that is final, and the flogging is never resumed at a later date.

asked the Home Secretary whether any means of adequately treating those who are defective mentally as a result of sleepy sickness, which may drive them into the commission of crime, now exists in this country; and, if so, whether he can give benches of magistrates any advice as to how to treat such cases which come before them?

I am advised by the Minister of Health that any persons who are mentally defective within the meaning of the Mental Deficiency Acts, 1913–27, whether or not they are suffering from the after-effects of sleepy sickness, can be dealt with in a certified institution willing to receive them, but that at present there is an insufficiency of institutional accommodation throughout the country, although if the persons concerned have dangerous and violent propensities the Board of Control have provided accommodation at the Rampton State Institution. I will consider, in consultation with the Minister of Health, whether there is any advice that can usefully be given to magistrates in the matter.

asked the Minister of Health if any examinations of samples of pasteurised milk by any public authorities have shown evidence of living germs of tuberculosis?

I understand that some samples of milk alleged to have been pasteurised have been found by local authorities to contain tubercle bacillus.

asked the Minister of Health what examinations, if any, have been taken of samples of certified and T.T. (Grade A) milks by public authorities; and if such samples have shown any evidence of living germs of tuberculosis?

These milks are not examined for tubercle bacillus, as a matter of routine, and I cannot say how many samples have been so examined. I have reports of a few instances in which tubercle bacillus has been found in the milks.

asked the Minister of Health if any examinations which have been made of tuberculous material showed the presence of bovine tubercle bacillus in children who have been brought up entirely on pasteurised milk?

I am not aware of any examinations which have shown the presence of bovine tubercle bacillus in such children.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will consider the desirability of issuing a circular to local authorities urging them to frame bylaws making the use of the humane killer for the slaughter of animals in their respective districts compulsory?

As my right hon. Friend promised when answering the same question put by the hon. Member last July, he has considered the suggestion, but does not consider the present time opportune for a circular.

asked the Minister of Health the total number of local authorities in England and Wales who have adopted the Ministry's model bylaw 9b, in regard to the humane slaughter of animals, up to 31st January?

The number is 349.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of local authorities in Scotland who have adopted the Ministry of Health's model bylaw 9b, in regard to the slaughter of pigs, up to 31st January?

Five Scottish local authorities have bylaws on the lines of the model bylaw referred to; in only one of these is there a specific reference to swine, the others applying to all animals slaughtered. Of these, two definitely require the use of a mechanically operated instrument and three make use of a slightly different form of words which in effect renders the use of a mechanically operated instrument obligatory. Other local authorities have bylaws specifying that animals shall be rendered unconscious in the most humane manner and by such means as the town council may from time to time prescribe. It is, therefore, possible that in such cases the use of a mechanically operated instrument is also required.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that the Metropolitan Water Board are desirous of making arrangements to grant retiring pensions to their employés; and whether, in the event of such an application being made to his Department by the Board, any objections would be made to sanction such a proposal?

The Metropolitan Water Board have already a superannuation scheme in operation, and my right hon. Friend is aware of their desire to extend this scheme. The Board have asked my right hon. Friend to receive a deputation on the subject, and he is prepared to consider this request on receiving a fuller note of the points which they desire to raise.

asked the Minister of Health how many applications he has received from widows under the new Pensions Act for allowances in respect of adopted children; how many of these have been refused on the ground that the child was only legally adopted after the death of the husband; and whether he will consider an amendment that allowances can be granted in respect of the adopted child if it can be proved that the child lived with both parents for a certain period?

As regares the first and second parts of the question, a record has not been kept of the number of applications for allowances in respect of adopted children or of the number of such cases in which the application was not successful; as regards the third part, I am afraid I cannot adopt the suggestion of the hon. Member.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his attention has been directed to the railway freights charged by the London and North Eastern Railway Company on potatoes and other agricultural produce consigned by Fife farmers over the Tay Bridge to Dundee for shipment there, which show a variation in the rate of from 2s. to 5s. a ton in excess of the freights charged over similar distances to Dundee from stations north of the Tay, and to the fact that the rate charged from Cupar to Dundee, a distance of 14 miles, is 6s. 7d. a ton as compared with 2s. 9d. a ton from Glencarse, in Forfarshire, to Dundee over a similar distance; that the freight charged from Auchtermuchty to Dundee, a distance of 25 miles, is 9s. 5d. a ton against 3s. 11d. from Luncarty, in Perthshire, to Dundee over a similar distance; and whether he will take action by bringing the matter before the Railway Rates Tribunal or otherwise to have the rates from Fife to Dundee revised so as to secure equal treatment for the Fife farmers and their produce to that accorded to the farmers north of the Tay?

My attention has not previously been drawn to this matter. It appears that my hon. Friend has omitted to take into consideration the fact that the railway company is empowered to charge for traffic passing over the Tay Bridge as for an additional mileage of 10 miles. I understand that this and the factor of competition account for the differences in the charges cited. The matter is not one in which I could intervene, but I may remind my hon. Friend that under the provisions of the Railway Act, 1921, the interested parties can apply to the Railway Bates Tribunal to fix new exceptional rates.

asked the Minister of Transport the numbers and names of arterial and bye-pass roads now in course of construction; whether British material is being used in every case; and, if not, what are the exceptions?

The expenditure of time and labour required to draw up a complete list of the scope desired by the hon. Member would not, I think, be justified, and I hope he wilt not press for an answer in this form. The Annual Report on the Road Fund contains particulars of some of the major schemes in course of execution. As regards the use of British materials, I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 12th February to a question by the hon. Member for the Hallam Division (Mr. Louis Smith), of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has given further consideration to the project of a high-level bridge at Woolwich; and whether he proposes to take any action in the matter?

The Royal Commission on Cross-River Traffic expressed the view that the scheme is not within the sphere of practical politics, but I should, of course, consider any further representations which might be made to me by the London County Council who are the responsible bridge authority in the event of their forming a different opinion.

asked the Minister of Transport what schemes have been submitted by the Electricity Commissioners to the Central 1929?

The North-East England Scheme and the South-West England and South Wales Scheme were transmitted by the Electricity Commissioners to the Central Electricity Board during 1929.

asked the Secretary of State for Air how many applications for enlistment in the Royal Air Force were made in 1929 and how many men were accepted?

6,918 effective applications were received from men and boys for enlistment in the Royal Air Force during 1929. The numbers attested were 2,121 men and 1,194 boys.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air whether he has received any representation from the Stores, Royal Air Force Department, at Kidbrooke, in relation to the new conditions concerning a week's holiday with pay; whether it is proposed to give employés remuneration for Easter Saturday, Easter Monday, and the King's birthday; and whether he can make a statement generally on the matter?

In connection with the grant for the first time of a week's paid leave to industrial employés, it was decided that only five paid public holidays should be allowed in future. This involved a reduction from eight to five in the number of paid public holidays allowed to Air Ministry employés. Representations have been received asking for the retention of the eight paid public holidays in addition to the week's paid leave, but it has not been possible to alter the decision, which is a general Government decision applicable to all Government industrial establishments alike. I would point out that under these decisions the employés in question now receive 11 days paid leave in comparison to the eight days which they previously enjoyed. The question of which should be the five authorised paid public holidays in future has been made the subject of discussion with the employés' representatives on the Whitley Committees, but, so far as Kidbrooke Depot is concerned, no decision has yet been reached.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the number and nominal capital of insurance companies which have defaulted on policies since the Assurance Companies Act, 1909. dividing them into the two categories of those which did and did not make deposits under the Act?

I regret that I have no official information on the subject.

asked the Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department whether he has taken steps to impress upon the Lincolnshire engineering industry the knowledge that the British Government, under the exports credits scheme, is guaranteeing against default the bills of exchange accepted by the Soviet Government's trading organisation for purchases of British productions; and, if he has done so, will he state, without giving figures or names, whether he has succeeded in inducing Lincolnshire firms to avail themselves of these facilities to cover fresh business of any considerable magnitude in aggregate?

I have reason to think that the Lincolnshire engineering industry is well aware of the fact that it is now possible to consider business with Russia under the Export Credits Guarantee Scheme. Negotiations with exporters who make proposals under the scheme are treated as strictly confidential. I do not, therefore, feel at liberty to reply to the second part of the question, as the number of engineering firms in Lincolnshire engaged in the export trade is so limited that their identity may be readily established.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been called to the importation from Russia of cotton cloth sold at prices about one-third of the cost of production in Lancashire; and, seeing that this transaction has not a commercial purpose but is calculated to intensify distress in Lancashire, if he is prepared to make representations to the Soviet Republic of Russia with a view to its discontinuance?

I have been asked to answer this question. As regards the first part, I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade on Thursday, 13th February, to the hon. Member for Chorley (Mr. Hacking), but I would add that my information does not confirm that the prices of the cloth in question are as low as mentioned. As regards the second part of the question, I have no information as to the motives which have induced the Russian authorities to make these particular trade offers, and I see no reason why representations should be made to the Soviet Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether any negotiations are proceeding with the Chinese Government; and whether he will give the name of any person who is engaged directly or indirectly on behalf of His Majesty's Government in connection therewith?

As I have already intimated to the House, negotiations are proceeding with the Chinese Government in regard to the remission of the Boxer Indemnity, the return of Wei-hai-wei and extra-territoriality. No person other than His Majesty's Minister is engaged directly or indirectly on behalf of His Majesty's Government in connection therewith.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the amount of money advanced for long and short terms, respectively, under the Agricultural Credits Act and the number of loans represented by these sums?

Applications for loans under Part I of the Agricultural Credits Act, 1928, received by the Agricultural Mortgage Corporation up to the close of business on Tuesday, 11th February, 1930, were as follow:

		£
Loans on Mortgage (2,399)	…	8,707,092
Improvement Loans (99)	…	113,832
		£8,820,924

These applications have been dealt with as follow:

		Loans Completed.
		£
Loans on Mortgage (1,221)	…	3,750,680
Improvement Loans (14)	…	6,735
		£3,763,415

In addition, the following have been approved by the directors of the Corporation subject to the satisfactory completion of the formalities:

		£
Loans on Mortgage (254)	…	1,302,950
Improvement Loans (22)	…	12,808
		£1,315,753

The number of agricultural charges created under Part II of the Act from 1st October, 1928, up to and including Saturday, 15th February, 1930, was 1,955, standing in the names of 2,329 farmers.

asked the Minister of Health, if, in view of the hardships imposed on farm servants by the tied-cottage system, he will indicate how and when he intends to deal with this matter?

As my right hon. Friend stated in reply to a previous question, he proposes to consider this matter in connection with legislation amending the Rent Restriction Acts. My right hon. Friend is not, however, in a position at present to say when it will be possible to introduce further legislation on this matter.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the total consumption of wheat in the United Kingdom during 1929, together with the proportions which were imported from Empire countries and foreign countries, and which were homegrown, respectively?

The gross imports of wheat and of wheat meal and flour—expressed in terms of wheat—into the United Kingdom in 1929 amounts to 6,262,000 tons. The home production of wheat in the United Kingdom in that year was 1,333,000 tons, making with the imports a total of 7,595,000 tons. Of this total home production represented 17.6 per cent. and imports from Empire and foreign countries 31.2 and 51.2 per cent. respectively. For information as to the average annual quantities of wheat used for human food and for other purposes in recent years, and also as to the proportions contributed by home production and Empire and foreign countries respectively, I would refer the hon. Member to the Report recently issued by my Department on the Agricultural Output and Food Supplies of Great Britain.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the number of outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease which occurred in Great Britain for the years 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, and 1926, respectively; whether a Departmental Committee has ever been appointed to inquire into the outbreaks; and, if so, what were the precautions recommended?

The number of outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain for the years 1922 to 1926 were as follow:

1922	…	…	…	…	1,140
1923	…	…	…	…	1,929
1924	…	…	…	…	1,440
1925	…	…	…	…	260
1926	…	…	…	…	204

asked the Minister of Agriculture when the Government will be able to declare its policy for dealing with the present position of agriculture?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave to a similar question by the hon. Member for Eye (Mr. Granville) on 16th December.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, in view of the fact that diseases known as struck and gangrene caused the loss of nearly 250,000 sheep in Romney Marsh and adjoining pastures, whether he will obtain adequate grants for purposes of research at Wye College for this particular purpose?

An application for a special research grant for an investigation into these diseases has been received from Wye College by the Ministry, and has been referred in the normal course to the Advisory Committee on Agricultural Science. The Report of the Committee is awaited.

asked the First Commissioner of Works if he will give a return stating how much private and spare-time work has been undertaken during the past five years by officials of his Department; and by how much their incomes have been augmented by such work?

Officials of my Department are at liberty to undertake private work in accordance with the regulations applicable to the Civil Service generally, which do not require the submission of such particulars as would enable me to give the return asked for, or to say what the remuneration has been. I regret, therefore, that I am unable to comply with the request.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he is aware that the office accommodation provided for His Majesty's inspector of taxes and staff at Bristol rural north district, 3, Unity Street, Bristol, is inadequate, with consequent overcrowding of staff and lack of privacy for callers; and whether it is proposed to secure alternative accommodation?

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he is aware that the office accommodation provided for His Majesty's inspector of taxes and staff at Bristol rural north district, 3, Unity Street, Bristol, is inadequate, with consequent overcrowding of the staff and lack of privacy for callers; and whether it is proposed to secure alternative accommodation?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative; in regard to the second part, every effort is being made to secure alternative accommodation of a suitable nature as early as possible.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he will consider the possibility of transferring official staffs from premises in highly-rented districts of the Metropolis; and will he ask a committee of three Members of the House of Commons to visit Sanctuary Buildings, Westminster, and report upon the possibility of removing, without detriment to the public service, the staffs from Sanctuary Buildings to less expensive premises at a distance of not less than three miles from Charing Cross?

As I have already informed the hon. Member for Chislehurst (Mr. Smithers), the possibilities of transferring official staffs from premises in the central area of London were exhaustively investigated by a Committee some years ago, and I am satisfied that no further steps can be taken in that direction at the present time. No useful purpose would therefore be served by the appointment of a committee as suggested in the second part of the question.

asked the First Commissioner of Works if the plans for the-buildings on the Calton site in Edinburgh are ready for submission; and if it is his intention to have a model of the proposed building prepared?

The plans are practically ready for submission and the model, which is in course of preparation, will be ready early in March.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether it is by his authority that Westminster Hall is being disfigured by a display of hoardings?

The exhibition arranged by the Council for the Preservation of Rural England is being held for a period of one week in Westminster Hall with my permission.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether any exclusive user has been given to any individuals or clubs in connection with the use of certain parts of the parks for games?

It is at the present time entirely contrary to the policy of the Department to make any concessions in the nature of exclusive user of any part of the parks for games, and no such con-cessions have in fact been made in recent years.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he has received any representations regarding the character of certain of the alterations now being carried out in the Royal Parks; and whether he is aware that the alterations now being made, go much further than was originally intended and announced to this House?

I have received representations both for and against the schemes which are being put in hand for providing increased facilities for recreation in the Royal Parks. I circulated a list of these schemes in the OFFICIAL REPORT of 4th November last. The only addition since then is the provision of a running track in an outlying piece of ground at Regent's Park. The plan referred to in my answer to the hon. Member for Colchester (Mr. O. Lewis) will show how little a track on the site selected is likely to interfere with the amenities of the park.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs whether he is aware that the British South Africa Company has invited Tshekedi, the chief of the Bamangwato tribe of Bechuanaland, to sign an agreement permitting that company to prospect and mine for gold in the native territories of Bechuanaland; whether a draft of this agreement has been submitted to His Majesty's Government; and whether, before further steps are taken in the matter, the Secretary of State will ask to be allowed to see the proposed agreement?

The replies to the first and second parts of the question are in the affirmative, and the third part does not therefore arise. I may explain that the agreement which has been proposed to the chief is one to be substituted for the existing mineral concession in the Bamangwato reserve which was granted to the British South Africa Company by Chief Khama in 1893. The High Commissioner for South Africa, while advising the chief to accept the new agreement on the ground that it is more favourable to the Bamangwato tribe than the existing concession, has made it clear to him that it rests with him and his tribe to decide what action to take.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what is meant by the disposal of £65,554 shown as dividends to shareholders in the Report of the Industrial Assurance Commissioner, published on 2nd July, 1929, for the year 1927, seeing the files at Somerset House show no list of shareholders?

The figure to which the hon. Member refers appears against the name of the Salvation Army Assurance Society, Limited, in the column headed "Shareholders' Dividends, etc.," and it is not accurate to say that it is shown as "dividends to shareholders." The column does not predicate that it was distributed as dividends to shareholders. I understand that the company is limited by guarantee, and not by shares.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to how many cases the provisions of Section 4 of the Superannuation Act, 1914, have been applied since its enactment; and what appointments have been recognised as approved employment for the purposes of that Section?

The appointments which have been recognised as approved employment within the meaning of Section 4 of the Superannuation Act, 1914, are numerous, including, besides a variety of posts in Great Britain, employment in the Dominions, India, certain Crown Colonies, Iraq, Palestine, Tanganyika, Sudan, Zanzibar, China, Siam, Egypt, Turkey, Persia, Greece, Albania, Chile and Liberia, and certain posts under the League of Nations, Reparations Commission and the Permanent Court of International Justice at The Hague. The number of cases in which awards of pension or gratuity have been made by virtue of the Section is believed to be eight.

asked the Minister of Labour whether she can furnish a table showing the rates of wages and of real wages in the principal sheltered and unsheltered trades, respectively, in 1914 before the War and in 1929?

An article is being prepared for inclusion in the February issue of the Ministry of Labour Gazette which will show the relative levels of rates of wages in the principal trades in 1914 before the War, and at the end of 1929. I am afraid, however, that the necessary data for making a similar comparison of real wages in the separate trades are not available.

asked the Minister of Labour whether any trade boards have been set up since June last?

No new trade boards have been set up since June last.

asked the Minister of Labour the average number of unemployed on the Colchester register for January, 1930; and what were the corresponding figures for the same month in each year since 1924?

The average number of persons on the register of the Colchester Employment Exchange in January, 1930, was 1,157 as compared with 917 in 1929, 722 in 1928, 746 in 1927, 1,015 in 1926, 1,425 in 1925 and 1,818 in 1924.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of men who have been transferred from distressed areas to employment schemes in other districts since 1st June, 1929?

From 3rd June, 1929, to 27th January, 1930, 17,387 men were transferred from depressed mining areas under the industrial transference scheme to employment in other districts. Records of the numbers of these men who have had employment on State-aided schemes are not available.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of claims for benefit made and the number disallowed at the Employment Exchange, Woolwich, with the reason for such disallowances, during the years 1926 and 1929, respectively?

Between 1926 and 1929 changes were made in the conditions for the receipt of unemployment benefit and the procedure for dealing with claims on which a question as to title to benefit arose was also altered. The statistics of disallowances in these two years are therefore not strictly comparable. Statistics are not available in respect of disallowances by insurance officers in 1926 of claims made at the Woolwich Employment Exchange.The available figures are given in the following tables:

Woolwich Employment Exchange
Period 12th January, 1926, to 10th January, 1927.
Number of Fresh and Renewal Claims made	16,121
Applications for Extended Benefit recommended for disallowance by the Woolwich Local Employment Committee:—
Reason for disallowance:
Not normally insurable and not seeking to obtain a livelihood by means of insurable employment	125
Insurable employment not likely to be available	144
Not a reasonable period of insurable employment during the preceding two years	1,089
Not making every reasonable effort to obtain suitable employment, or not willing to accept suitable employment	1,102
Single persons residing with relatives	470
Married women who could look for support from their husbands	54
Married men who could look for support from their wives	1
Working short time but earning sufficient for maintenance	36
Postponed for a definite period	16
Total recommended for disallowance	3,037

Period 15th January, 1929, to13th January, 1930.
Number of Fresh and Renewal Claims made	15,532
(a) Claims disallowed by Insurance Officers.*
Permanent provisions:
First Statutory Condition (30 contributions in past two years)†	5
Not unable to obtain suitable employment	160
Not genuinely seeking work	1,473
Employment lost through misconduct	261
Employment left voluntarily without just cause	662
Other grounds	95
Transitional provisions:
Less than eight contributions paid in previous two years or 30 contributions paid at any time	11

asked the Minister of Labour the number of unemployed in Bradford, Sheffield, Manchester, Wigan and Blackburn, respectively; and the amount paid in unemployment pay in each place?

The following table shows the numbers of persons on the registers of Employment Exchanges in the areas mentioned at 3rd February, 1930, and the amount of direct benefit paid at those Exchanges in the week ended 7th February:

Area.		Numbers on Register at 3rd February, 1930.	Amount of direct benefit paid in week ended 7th February, 1930.
			£
Bradford	…	23,064	9,800
Sheffield	…	30,403	19,200
Manchester	…	35,793	22,600
Wigan	…	9,813	7,200
Blackburn	…	11,117	6,900

asked the Secretary for Mines the number of deaths caused by colliery explosions for each of the following periods: 1850–59, 1860–69, 1870–79, 1880–89, 1890–99, 1900–09, 1910–19, 1920–29?

The particulars are as follow:

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if any and, if so, what contracts have been entered into during the last six months between his Department and foreign firms for the supply of materials, manufactured articles, or commodities; and the reason why such contracts, if any, have not been entered into with British firms?

Only one considerable contract has been placed with foreign firms within the last six months, namely, for timber which is not obtainable in this country. On the general question, I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 24th July, 1929 [OFFICIAL REPORT, col. 1277].

asked the Minister of Pensions if he will inquire into the circumstances attending the continued refusal of recognition to Mr. W. Wilkins, 22, Francis Street, Stratford, 11/M/152,024; and whether, as this man is a permanent invalid, he will arrange a further examination?

This case was carefully reviewed in October last and the circumstances explained to my hon. Friend. The ailment giving rise to the present condition of disablement could not, in view of its nature, be certified to be connected with service, and, moreover, the evidence pointed definitely to postwar origin. The man was medically examined last year, and I am advised that a further examination would not be of any assistance.