asked the Secretary of State for India whether any deaths have occurred in the prisons of India among the civil disobedience prisoners as a result of hunger striking?

No. Sir; none.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether the Government of India hope to come to an early decision regarding the publication of the Tariff Board's report on the chemical industry in India?

I have no information to add to that already furnished to the hon. and gallant Member.

asked the Secretary of State for India the total mileage of railways in India purchased by the Government of India during the last 10 years and the total amount expended on this object; and the number of higher grade and other employés on the lines owned by the Government?

During the last 10 years, the Ahmedabad Dholka, Delhi Umballa Kalka, Mirpur-Khas-Khadro, Southern Punjab, and Arakan Light Railways with a total mileage of 1,150, have been purchased at a cost of about £8,650,000. In addition the late Burma Railway Company's interest in the Burma Railways (1,908 miles) has been bought out by repayment of their capital of £3,000,000, and assumption of their debenture liability of £1,250,000. The total number of employés on State lines, including those worked by companies was on 31st March, 1929, the latest date up to which figures are available, about 758,000. Of this number about 2,140 belonged to the officer class, and about 8,870 to the higher subordinate grades.

asked the Secretary of State for India what steps have been taken by the Government of India to represent to His Majesty's Government the objections of the Indian community an Fiji to the provision in the reformed constitution whereby the electoral roll is divided along racial lines?

I affil not yet in a position to add anything to the reply given to my hon. and gallant Friend to a question asked by him on 31st July.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he has any information as to the state of health of ex-Speaker Patel, at present in prison in India?

Nothing has been received by me to give rise to any fears as to the state of Mr. Patel's health.

asked the Secretary for Mines what was the average wage per shift in 1914 of the mine workers in the Ruhr coalfield of Germany; what is the present average wage per shift of the

A.—Average cash earnings per shift for workers employed at coal mines in the Ruhr Coalfield; including additional payments for overtime and family allowances in cash:—
1913	…	…	…	…	5s.	6d.
1930 (June)	…	…	…	…	8s.	10d.

B.—Index Number of the Cost of Living in Germany:—
1913–14	…	…	…	…	100·0
1930 (June)	…	…	…	…	147·6

C.—Output of coal mines covered by the Rhenish-Westphalian Coal Syndicate: together with the rate of levy imposed on the undertakings by the Syndicate:—
Month				Total Tonnage of Coal Disposable.	Sales Participation.	Consumption Participation.	Rate of Levy per metric ton.
							Sales Participation.			Consumption Participation
1929				Metric Tons.					s.	d.
January	…	…	…	10,106,000	7,020,000	2,215,000			2	2
February	…	…	…	9,415,000	6,417,000	2,153,000			1	9
March	…	…	…	10,689,000	7,596,000	2,302,000			2	0
April	…	…	…	10,027,000	6,629,000	2,320,000			2	3
May	…	…	…	6,629,000	6,694,000	2,223,000			2	2
June	…	…	…	10,009,000	7,116,000	2,225,000			2	1
July	…	…	…	10,542,000	7,551,000	2,286,000			2	1
August	…	…	…	10,670,000	7,720,000	2,250,000			2	2
September	…	…	…	9,730,000	6,888,000	2,167,000			2	5
October	…	…	…	10,186,000	7,274,000	2,169,000			2	5
November	…	…	…	10,278,000	7,388,000	2,156,000			2	5
December	…	…	…	10,20,000	7,121,000	2,149,000			2	4
1930
January	…	…	…	9,956,000	7,019,000	2,160,000			2	2
February	…	…	…	8,247,000	5,641,000	1,898,000			2	2
March	…	…	…	8,438,000	5,725,000	1,989,000			2	1
							s.	d.			s.	d.
April	…	…	…	7,693,000	5,292,000	1,724,000	2	4			1	6
May	…	…	…	8,293,000	5,927,000	1,683,000	2	4			1	6
June	…	…	…	7,726,000	5,571,000	1,525,000	2	3			1	6
July	…	…	…	7,861,000	5,705,000	1,484,000	2	4			1	6
August	…	…	…	8,047,000	5,903,000	1,496,000	2	4			1	6
It is understood that all the coal included under "Sales Participation" and "Consumption Participation" is subject to the levy. The levy is used to meet the administrative and other expenses of the Syndicate, as well as for the purpose of meeting competition at hone and abroad.

The information, so far as it is available, is as follows:

asked the Home Secretary whether he has any information to show the amount of drugs manufactured from opium and coca leaf by the Soviet Union, Turkey and India, respectively, in each of the past five years?

Following is the information:

asked the Home Secretary whether, upon any changes in the

As my right hon. Friend indicated in his reply on the 3rd instant, this question will receive consideration when a suitable opportunity arises.

asked the Home Secretary the number of prisons in England and Wales in which women are serving sentences; the names of these prisons; the number of female inmates; and the

STATEMENT showing the prisons in England and Wales in which women are serving sentences: the number of female inmates and female staff.
Name of Establishment.		Population.					Total female staff. (Superior and Subordinate).
		Class.			Number.	Total.
Liverpool	…	Convict	…	…	32	111	39
		P.D	…	…	4
		Local	…	…	75
Aylesbury	...	Convict	…	…	11	124	31
		B.D.	…	…	113
Birmingham	…	Local	…	…	—	54	13
Cardiff	…	Local	…	…	—	24	8
Durham	…	Local	…	…	—	26	10
Exeter	…	Local	…	…	—	5	4
Holloway	…	Local	…	…	—	305	111
Hull	…	Local	…	…	—	23	6
Manchester	…	Local	…	…	—	101	29
Winchester	…	Local	…	…	—	27	4
Totals	…	Convict	…	…	43	800	255
		P.D	…	…	4
		B.D	…	…	113
		Local	…	…	640

asked the Home Secretary if he will make further inquiries into the case of vivisection of a cat in Haverthwaite School, with the view of ascertaining the circumstances; and if he is aware that the cat was taken to this school alive in a bag by two of the boys and there chloroformed and dissected, and that some children were sick during this science lesson?

A report has been received from the inspector who investigated the case. It is not stated whether the animal was killed on the school premises or not, but this point is of no importance with regard to the question of vivisection, which is the only aspect which my right hon. Friend has any

The number of prisons in which women are serving sentences of imprisonment, penal servitude, or preventive detention, is 10, and the total number of women serving such sentences on the 11th instant was 687: there were in addition 113 girls serving sentences of Borstal detention. The other particulars are as follow:authority to deal with. The animal was painlessly killed one day and its body was dissected the next. This is not vivisection; it is entirely outside the Act; and my right hon. Friend has no jurisdiction in the matter.

asked the Home Secretary what inquiries are made as to character before licences are issued for performance of experiments an living animals?

The applicant is interviewed by one of the inspectors, who also obtains information from the head of the laboratory where the applicant proposes to work and makes any other inquiries that he may consider necessary in the particular case. The inspector's inquiry extends both to capacity and character.

asked the Minister of Health whether any representations have been made to his Department by the Nantwieh Rural District Council in respect of the provision of a more adequate water supply in that district, and with what result?

My right hon. Friend has recently received an application from the rural district council for loan sanction in respect of a comprehensive scheme of water supply for their district, and he is arranging a public local inquiry into the application to be held at an early date.

asked the Minister of Health what regulations, if any, are enforced in the case of imported fresh milk with regard to the conditions under which that milk is produced in the country of origin?

Imported milk is subject to the Public Health (Imported Milk) Regulations, 1926, which provide that it must be free from tubercle bacilli and must comply with a strict bacterial test.

asked the Minister of Health the number of notifications of tuberculosis, pulmonary and non-pulmonary, received during 1928 for age groups 1 to 20?

I will send my hon. Friend a statement giving the figures he requires.

Administrative County.			Number of persons in receipt of poor relief on Saturday, 25th October, 1930.		Average number of persons in receipt of domiciliary relief during the month of October, 1930.	Average weekly amount of relief in money and kind paid during the month of October, 1930, to persons in receipt of domiciliary relief.
			Institutional Relief.	domiciliary Relief.
						£
Brecon	…	…	210	1,734	1,672	461
Radnor	…	…	64	371	376	99

The corresponding figures for July, 1929, cannot be given, as prior to 1st April, 1930, the figures related to union

asked the Minister of Health whether he can submit any figures or other information showing if any special benefit has been received by necessitous areas as a result of the De-rating Act of 1929?

The principal provisions of the Local Government Act, 1929, did not come into force until the beginning of the current financial year. Many areas have received substantial benefit under the provisional distribution of grant, which is in course of being made for that year, but, in view of the differences of opinion as to what constitutes a "necessitous area" it is not proposed to publish particulars for any selected group of areas. In due course, a complete statement will be published, showing for every rating area in England and Wales, the amount in the £ local rates levied for the current financial year, with, for the purposes of comparison, a corresponding amount for the preceding year.

asked the Minister of Health the number of persons in receipt of Poor Law relief in the counties of Brecon and Radnor on 1st July, 1929, and at the latest known date and the total amounts paid during the weeks covered by those dates

The following statement gives the desired information for the administrative counties of Brecon and Radnor on the latest date for which information is available.areas the boundaries of which were not coterminous with those of the administrative counties.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he can give any comparative figures as to the comparative burden of local rates in London, Berlin, Paris, Stockholm and Christiania?

I have been asked to reply. The methods of local taxation in this and other countries differ so materially that no comparisons on the lines desired by my hon. Friend are possible.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the statement recently made before the Economic Committee of the League of Nations, he will take into consideration the decrees of the French Government against Soviet dumping and consider taking similar steps to protect British industry?

I have nothing to add to the replies which were given to questions asked by the hon. Member for Kingston-on-Thames (Sir G. Penny) and the right hon. Member for West Woolwich (Sir K. Wood) on 3rd and 4th November respectively.

asked the Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, in view of the fact that the currency in Soviet Russia in the period 1st April to let September has been increased at the rate of 155 per cent. per annum, whether it is intended to issue any cautionary notice to British banks and traders doing business with Soviet Russia?

No, Sir. Information as to the amount of currency in circulation is already published in English by the State Bank of the Soviet Union.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what are the percentages of the ad valorem premiums on exports from Germany on wheat, oats, barley, rye and pigs; and what steps have been taken on the League of Nations to secure the abolition of export premiums?

I presume that the hon. and gallant Member refers to the German import bond system for agricultural products. These bonds are no longer payable in respect of wheat, oats, barley and rye. The value of the import bond in respect of pigs, which is a specific amount and not an ad valorem percentage, is 27 marks per 100 kilograms. As regards the second part of the question, Article 2 (5) of the Protocol regarding future negotiations, which was drawn up at the Conference at Geneva last March, provided that the Economic Organisation of the League should examine the question of export bounties and subsidies, with a view to finding suitable solutions for this problem. It is understood that this examination is in progress.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is prepared to publish papers relating to the attitude adopted by His Majesty's Government and the Governors of the Straits Settlements and Ceylon, covering the period from the date when the Government decided to submit the question of rubber restriction to the Committee of Civil Research down to the present time?

If there is any general demand, my Noble Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies is prepared to publish papers relating to proposed rubber restriction during the past two years, but is not prepared to publish papers of an earlier date.

asked the Minister of Labour whether she can give comparative wages, hours and overtime worked in Soviet Russian factories for the making of doors and in similar Swedish and British factories, giving the wages in British currency?

I regret that I am not in possession of information as to the wages or hours of workpeople engaged in making doors in Great Britain, Russia or Sweden, or as to the amount of overtime worked. Some information is available, however, as to the wages and hours of workpeople in certain sections of the woodworking industry, in which the making of doors is probably included; this information is summarised below:

asked the President of the Board of Trade the description and quantities of fruit pulp imported into this country during the present year; the countries whence consigned; and the corresponding information for the previous year?

The following table shows the total quantity of fruit pulp in syrup imported into the United Kingdom and registered during the 10 months ended 31st October, 1929, and 1930, distinguishing the principal countries whence these imports were consigned:

Countries whence consigned.		January to October.
		1929.	1930.
		Cwts.	Cwts.
Netherlands	…	5,776	193
France	…	602	550
United States	…	189	154
Other Countries	…	271	216
Total Imports	…	6,838	1,113

Separate particulars of the various kinds of fruit pulp imported or of the imports of fruit plup preserved otherwise than in syrup are not available from the published trade accounts of the United Kingdom. From the trade accounts of the Netherlands, however, it appears that in the year 1929 and in the first nine months of 1930 the following quantities of various kinds of fruit pulp were exported from that country to the United Kingdom. No information is available as to the exports of fruit pulp to the United Kingdom from other foreign countries.

Exports from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom.
Kind of pulp.			Year 1929	Jan.-Sept.1930.
			Cwts.	Cwts.
Apple	…	…	1,833	*
Plum	…	…	27,119	17,853
Cherry	…	…	688	*
Raspberry	…	…	36,229	25,471
Strawberry	…	…	132,878	133,300
Gooseberry	…	…	25,709	22,243
Blackcurrant	…	…	61553	35,215
Redcurrant	…	…	3,651	*
Other kinds	…	…	624	*
Total	…	…	290,284	*
* Not separately recorded.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what is the net pencentage of profit earned by smallholdings on the total capital invested?

Smallholdings vary in character from a piece of bare land of just over an acre to a holding of 50 acres fully equipped with a house and buildings, and I have no information as to the percentage which the net profits made by smallholders in England and Wales bear to the capital invested by them in their undertaking.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the number of workers employed on market gardens and smallholdings in Worcestershire in 1929 and 1930; and the number of market gardens and smallholdings in that county in the same years?

I much regret that the information desired by the right hon. and gallant Member is not available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what conditions have to be complied with before horses can be exported from this country; whether his Department inspects each consignment of horses intended to be exported to see whether it complies with any regulations that exist as to the age and conditions of the horses; and whether inspectors also inspect the ships on which the horses are exported in order to see that suitable arrangements are made for their comfort?

Notice of the proposed shipment of every consignment of horses to the Continent is required to be given to the veterinary inspector at the intended port of shipment by the shipping company. Each horse is required to be at the place of examination at least one hour before the time fixed for that purpose. During this hour it is under the control of the Ministry's officials or of the police. Each horse intended for shipment has to be examined to see whether it is fit to be conveyed and disembarked without cruelty and to be capable of being worked without suffering, as required by the Act of 1914. For this purpose every condition, including age, is taken into consideration. The answer to the last part of the question is in the affirmative.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the annual value of agricul tural land as returned for the purpose of Schedule A asssessments in 1926, 1927, 1928, and 1929?

The statistics collected in. respect of the Income Tax, Schedule A, do not distinguish agricultural land. The only information available is the gross assessment on all lands, whether used for agricultural purposes or not, and the hon. and gallant Member will find this for the latest available year in Table 50 of the 72nd Annual Report of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue (Command Paper No. 3500).

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, for each year since its inception, the total cost to the taxpayer of the beet sugar subsidy, to include the direct cost of the subsidy plus the duty that would have been collected by the Exchequer?

Figures are given below for each financial year since the passing of the British Sugar (Subsidy) Act, 1925. Excise duty is levied on sugar produced in this country from home-grown beet, and I have interpreted the right hon. Member's question as referring to the difference between the amount of this duty and the amount which would have been payable at the rate applicable to imported sugar of foreign origin.

Year.	Subsidy Paid.	Cost of Preferential Rebate.
	£	£
1924–25	42,040	—
1925–26	1,06,090	259,000
1926–27	3,225,859	583,000
1927–28	4,309,260	761,000
1928–29	2,854,239	1,109,000
1929–30	4,229,730	1,709,000

asked the Minister of Agriculture how many agricultural institutions or colleges in England and Scotland receive financial assistance from the Ministry of Agriculture?

The total number of institutions in England and Wales which are aided by the Ministry of Agriculture for agricultural (including veterinary) research, advisory, experimental and educational purposes, amounts to 48. Of these, 21 are universities or colleges, and 17 farm institutes or schools provided by county councils. For full particulars I may refer the hon. and gallant Member to the report on the work of the Research and Education Division of the Ministry for the year 1928–29. As regards Scotland, I have to refer the hon. and gallant Member to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland, as my Department does not aid institutions in that country.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what, at the latest date for which figures are available, were the areas in England and Wales under arable cultivation, pasture, and rough grazing, respectively; and how these figures compare with those of 1913, 1920, and 1925, respectively?

The areas under arable cultivation, pasture, and rough grazing in England and Wales in 1913, 1920, and 1925 and certain other years are shown in the following statement.

Year.		Arable.	Pasture.	Rough Grazings.†
		Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1911	…	11,299,220	15,949,603	3,806,236
1913	…	11,058,233	16,071,149	3,805,266
1920	…	12,019,745	14,487,266	4,162,271
1921	…	11,618,236	14,525,835	4,731,837
1925	…	10,682,053	15,073,433	5,024,293
1930*	…	9,833,190	15,546,360	5,294,730
* The figures for 1930 are provisional and are subject, to revision.
† Figures for rough grazings include an area of mountain and heath land grazed in common which, as a result of a special enquiry in 1921, was estimated at over 1,000,000 acres and was found to have been underestimated prior to that year by about 500,00) acres.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether the investigation into the marketing of fruit and vegetables has been completed; and, if so, when he expects to be in a position to publish the results?

The investigations into the marketing of fruit have been completed, and the following reports have been published:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of acres growing sugar beet during the last season in Scotland, together with its allocation to the different counties in which this industry is carried on; and the allocation per parish in the Counties of Kincardine and Aberdeen, respectively?

The figures for each county in which sugar beet was grown in the present year are, according to the latest information, as follow:

County.			Acres.
Aberdeen	…	…	2
Angus	…	…	138½
Ayr	…	…	½
Banff	…	…	11¼
Berwick	…	…	33½
East Lothian	…	…	83¾
Fife	…	…	1,248
Inverness	…	…	¾
Kincardine	…	…	3
Kinross	…	…	3
Midlothian	…	…	11
Moray	…	…	14
Orkney	…	…	½
Perth	…	…	88
Roxburgh	…	…	3
Wigtown	…	…	27½
Total	…	…	1,6681¼

In the County of Aberdeen two acres were grown in the parish of Premnay and in the County of Kincardine three acres were grown in the parish of Mary-kirk.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is taking any steps to encourage research into the causes of animal diseases, particularly swine fever?

Proposals are under consideration for the extension of the existing facilities for research into animal diseases, which will enable increased attention to be given to swine fever. I hope before long to be in a position to make an announcement on the subject.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether the Commissioners of Crown Lands have purchased the Gorhambury Estate, near St. Alban's; and, if so, with what object this purchase was effected

The Commissioners of Crown Lands have entered into a contract to purchase 4,923 acres, part of the

(a) Cerebral Meningitis amongst troops in Great Britain.
—					England and Wales.		Scotland.
					Cases	ratio a thousand soldiers.	Cases	ratio a thousand soldiers.
1928	…	…	…	…	9	˙11	3	˙06
1929	…	…	…	…	25	˙29	3	˙06

(b) Cerebro-spinal Fever amongst troops in Great Britain (included in (a)).
—					England and Wales.		Scotland.
					Cases	ratio a thousand soldiers.	Cases	ratio a thousand soldiers.
1928	…	…	…	…	4	˙05	—	—
1929	…	…	…	…	20	˙23	2	˙04

(c) Cerebro-spinal Fever notified amongst civil population.
—					England and Wales.		Scotland.
					Cases.	ratio a thousand of civil population.	Cases	ratio a thousand of civil population.
1928	…	…	…	…	412	˙01	280	˙10
1929	…	…	…	…	650	˙016	463	˙17
* This disease is notable throughout the whole of Scotland, and the figures gives are for thirteen of the principal towns and the counties of Lanark and Fife.

asked the Secretary of State for War the average number of cases of cerebral meningitis among the troops in Great Britain during the past two years compared with the average of civilian population?

I understand that cerebral meningitis is not a notifiable disease, and that statistics are not available so far as the civil poulation is concerned. The following statement gives the figures for the troops in Great Britain, also figures relating to cerebrospinal fever amongst the troops in Great Britain and such figures as I have been able to obtain for the civil population.

asked the Secretary of State for War the number of houses being started for married quarters in Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the present time?

11 married quarters for officers and 231 for soldiers are at present under construction or about to be put out to contract.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the method pursued for proving that poison-gas experiments on living animals are applicable to human beings?

A comparison of the gross and microscopic appearance of the lungs of men killed by irritant gases in France with those of animals exposed to the same substance showed that the injuries were of similar nature and character, and further study of such animals gave evidence of the mode of action of the poison and their effects on vital organs. It was thus possible, by correlating these experiments with clinical observations on gas patients, to formulate curative treatments. There is no reason to believe that the connection between the effect of gas on animals and its effect on human beings, which experience in the War established, does not continue to hold good.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies the number of persons, if any, now engaged in forced labour or in work or service which is exacted under the menace of any penalty, and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily, at the present time in each country of the British Empire?

It is the policy of His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, in the Dependencies for the administration of which they are responsible, to reduce forced labour to an absolute minimum. In the execution of this policy they enjoy the active co-operation of the Officers Administering the Governments of those Dependencies in which it is still necessary to have recourse to forced labour. The number of persons employed on such labour fluctuates from day to day in accordance with the necessities of the various authorities in the Dependencies who are authorised to employ forced labour, and no statistics are at present available to show the number of persons so employed at any given time.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any source of information is accessible as to the actual public expenditure on African education in Kenya, as distinct from Arab, Indian, or European education, in the years 1927, 1928, and 1929, respectively?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 6th November, 1929 [OFFICIAL REPORT, COL 1030, Vol. 231], to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for South Derbyshire (Major Pole). The figures for expenditure on Arab and African education have not hitherto been shown separately by the Government of Kenya, hut, as stated in reply to my hon. Friend on 12th November, my Noble Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies hopes that it may be possible for this expenditure to be shown separately in the Estimates for 1932 and subsequent years. He will, however, inquire of the Acting Governor of Kenya whether it is now practicable to separate the expenditure on Arab and African education for the years 1927, 1928 and 1929, and on receipt of the Acting Governor's reply he will communicate with my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Pensions (1) the total number of cases in which the pension of a parent of a man killed in the War has been reduced, and the total sum saved consequent on the parent receiving either an old age pension or a widows' pension;(2) what body or person is responsible for deciding when a need pension to a parent is to be reduced; on what evi dence is the action taken; whether any appeal is allowed before the reduction takes place, and if any local body is consulted?

The information that my hon. Friend desires on the points raised in both questions was given him in answer to his questions of the 8th and 30th July last. I cannot, I fear, add anything to those answers, of which I am sending him copies.

asked the Minister of Pensions if he is aware that Mrs. Jane Hughes, of Cavendish Place, Glasgow, when her husband was alive received a pension for herself on the grounds that injury received by her late husband was caused by War service; that recently, since the death of Mr. Hughes, the widow has been refused a pension on the ground that the injury took place before the date of marriage; if, seeing that his Department have admitted the woman's claim by paying her a pension for at least 12 years, he will take steps to see that the pension is now paid, as the death of Mr. Hughes was caused by his pensionable disability; and, if it is held that the past payment to the wife was wrongly made, will he grant her an appeal on the matter?

Mrs. Hughes is not eligible for pension under the Royal Warrant because her marriage took place after her husband's removal from duty, nor has her claim to pension ever been admitted or any pension paid to her. The fact that during her husband's lifetime it was found possible to make an addition to his disability pension in respect of her did not imply any admission of her eligibility for widow's pension.

asked the Minister of Pensions the number of ex-service men who died whilst in receipt of a disability pension during each of the last five years ended 30th September, 1930; and in how many of these cases a service pension has been granted to dependants?

The number of pensioners (non-commissioned ranks), known to be married for Warrant purposes, who have died in each of the five years referred to, and the number of their widows and/or children to whom pensions were granted by my Department, is as follows:

Year ended	Number of Deaths.	Number of pensions granted to widows and children.
September, 1926	3,550	2,715
September, 1927	4,050	2,086
September, 1928	3,400	1,645
September, 1929	3,650	1,618
September, 1930	3,050	1,452

asked the President of the Board of Education the number of teachers, both men and women, estimated to be required in addition to the number at present employed, not only for class instruction but for the various necessary forms of handcraft, as a result of reorganisation and the raising of the school age, in each of the years beginning 1st April, 1931, to 1st April, 1938, and the sources from which he expects to draw the number so required?

As regards the years 1931–33, I have nothing to add to the figures which I gave in my speech on the Second Reading of the Education Bill which was introduced last Session. These figures related to teachers of all types, including teachers of practical subjects, and were based on the estimates submitted by local education authorities in their programmes. Similar estimates in respect of subsequent years have not yet been submitted, and I am not, therefore, in a position to make any detailed calculations in respect of the years 1934-38. As more information becomes available there will be time to consider whether any special steps are necessary to secure an adequate supply of teachers of any particular types that may be required during these years.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether the Bradford Education Committee have taken any steps to reorganise its schools under the scheme known as the Hadow reorganisation?

All the provided public elementary schools in the area of the Bradford local education authority have already been reorganised on the lines suggested in the Hadow Report.

asked the President of the Board of Education how many local education authorities are now ready to undertake the education of children aged 14 to 15 years in primary schools along the lines recommended by the Hadow Committee; and what is approximately the number of boys and girls, respectively, provided for by such arrangements?

I could not say how many local education authorities already have accommodation available for children between the ages of 14 and 15, along the lines recommended by the Hadow Committee, without a special investigation of the position in each area; but in my speech last May on the Second Reading of the Bill then before the House, I explained that inquiries showed 140 local authorities as likely to have substantially reorganised most of their areas by the time that the additional children would be retained in the schools. The experience of the last few months has served to show that this estimate was a reasonable one, and could perhaps be slightly increased.

asked the President of the Board of Education the approximate number of children at present receiving instruction in nursery schools maintained by the local education authorities and voluntary schools recognised for grants, respectively?

The latest precise figures are those relating to the 30 nursery schools which were recognised during the year ended 31st March, 1930. Adding to these figures, a rough estimate of the numbers likely to be in attendance at the 10 new schools recognised since that date, I estimate that there are at present some 1,350 children attending nursery schools provided by local education authorities, and some 950 at schools provided by voluntary bodies.

asked the President of the Board of Education the number of the nurse schools existing and contemplated which are maintained respectively by the local education authorities and voluntary schools recognised for grants?

Of the 40 recognised nursery schools, 20 are provided by local education authorities and 20 by voluntary bodies. Of 27 proposals for new nursery schools which are now under consideration, or for which plans have been approved, 20 have been submitted by local education authorities and seven by voluntary bodies. The programmes of local education authorities for 1930–33 contain preliminary proposals for 44 further schools.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air if he will make a grant to the dependants of those lost in the disaster of the It 101 for the loss of uniforms and clothing, which were bought for service on the airship, and which were destroyed with all their other personal effects, including money?

The dependants of Royal Air Force personnel who lose their lives in flying accidents do not normally receive any grants in respect of clothing lost in connection with the accidents. In the absence of any evidence that the clothing losses in connection with the R 101 disaster were on an exceptional scale, it is not proposed to treat exceptionally in this respect the dependants of the Royal Air Force officers and other ranks who lost their lives in the R 101. The amount of luggage they were allowed to take was in fact severely restricted. The civilian officers who were lost in the R 101 received grants or were given advances of pay to cover the provision of kit, and it is not proposed to seek repayment of any of these grants or advances. In addition, the officers and civilian members of the crew of the airship were provided with uniform on a repayment basis. In the special circumstances, the recovery of the cost of the uniform will be waived.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air the reasons for the advance of money on account of the £10 Government grant for A yet to be earned by National Flying services, Limited; the security obtained by the Ministry against this advance; and whether the Ministry have received any undertaking as to the repayment of this money by the company

As regards the first part of the question, the advance, at interest, was made in order to assist the company while they were arranging to obtain the further capital which the result of the initial year's trading showed to be necessary. As regards the second and third parts, the company agreed to recovery being made by the Air Ministry through the withholding of payments in respect of licence grants as earned, and further undertook to give to the Air Ministry a floating charge on all its assets to the extent of the loan outstanding, such charge to rank immediately behind that already given to the debenture holders. The company, having now obtained further capital, have decided to repay the advance in full, and the cheque sent for this purpose has been received by the Air Ministry.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he will reconsider the projected scheme for the transference of the Imperial War Museum to the south of the Thames, in consideration of the fact that its valuable library will thereby be made practically inaccessible to many of those who have hitherto used it, owing to its distance from central London?

I think the hon. Member is under some misapprehension, Bethlem Hospital is closer to central London than South Kensington. It can he reached in a quarter of an hour from here on foot. There is a practically continuous service of omnibuses and trams and two Underground stations are a few minutes away. If the scheme matures, I am confident that the museum will be more convenient and accessible than it is at present.

asked the hon. Member for Carlisle, as representing the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, whether, seeing that the income from the Bishop of London's Paddington estate amounted last year to about £50,000 sterling, he can state how much it was in 1920, 1910, and 1900, respectively?

The accounts appended to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners' annual reports to Parliament show that the amounts received by them from the Paddington estate were (for the year preceding 1st November in each case) as follow:

					£
1929	…	…	…	…	48,271
1920	…	…	…	…	22,861
1910	…	…	…	…	19,752
1900	…	…	…	…	15,398

The increased receipts have arisen partly from the falling into possession of properties of the smaller class, now in consequence managed directly by the Estate Trustees and well maintained, but chiefly from new leases and renewals of leases of houses of the richer class at greatly increased rents over the former ground rents. The property in the area of which the conditions have been adversely criticised is held against the Commissioners and the Estate Trustees on a lease for 2,000 years on terms settled in the year 1812, when the area was bare land and the ground rent receivable by the Commissioners and the Estate Trustees represents the value of the bare land, and does not amount in respect of each house since erected thereon by the lessees or their sublessees.

asked the hon. Member for Carlisle, as representing the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, the amount of slum property now owned by the Commissioners, and the steps that are being taken to do away with it?

I am unable to answer this question, which does not explain in what senses the terms "slum property" and "owned" are to be interpreted.

asked the Minister of Transport how long the experimental surface in New Bridge Street, E.C., has been in use; and whether be is now in a position to determine the value of the material for this purpose?

The rubber paving in New Bridge Street was laid for the City Corporation in October, 1926, and I am informed that it is too early for any definite opinion to be expressed as to the results.

asked the Minister of Transport, whether it is the intention of the Government to introduce legislation to nationalise the railway services and co-ordinate them with road transport on the basic of a living wage for all railway and transport workers?

The provisions of the Road Traffic Act, 1930, will, in ray opinion, enable a substantial measure of co-ordination to be achieved between railway and road passenger services. The Act will also contribute towards the establishment of better conditions of employment in the industry of road transport generally. The Royal Commission on Transport has received evidence as to the possibility of coordination between goods transport by road and the railways and on the question of nationalising the railways, and should prefer not to anticipate the findings of their report, which may he expected shortly.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of bulk barrels of beer having a specific gravity of 1,200 degrees and upwards brewed in this country during the last financial year?

The number is 543.

asked the Postmaster-General what is the total loss which has been incurred through mail robberies during the 12 months ended 30th June, 1930; and whether, having regard to the criticisms passed upon the methods of the Post Office in safeguarding Post Office property in connection with the recent prosecution and conviction of two men indicted at the Old Bailey for stealing a mail van in which were registered packets containing jewellery, any steps have been taken to increase the protection row in force for valuable postal consignments?

It is not possible to estimate the total value of the packets which were contained in the stolen mail bags; but the amount of compensation paid during the period named in respect of registered packets enclosed in the bags was about £480. Steps are being taken to provide additional precautions against the theft of mail vans and their contents.

asked the Minister of Labour what action she has taken in view of the resolutions she has received from local authorities suggesting that they be made the responsible authorities for all unemployed persons in their area, and that all contributions for unemployed benefit be paid direct to such local authority with a view to employing persons at the standard rate of wage upon works of public importance?

I have received no such resolutions.

asked the First Commissioner of Works the estimated cost of the new Employment Exchange to be erected at Crewe; the purchase price and area of the land to be utilised; and the date it is anticipated that the work will be completed?

The estimated cost of erecting the Employment Exchange at Crewe is £8,930. The site, which is approximately 1,220 square yards in area, is being purchased for £3,000. It is hoped to complete the building in about a year's time.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he has any further information as to the whereabouts of the plate belonging to the old British Embassy in Leningrad; and what steps have been taken to asoertain its present whereabouts?

My right hon. Friend has nothing to add to his reply of the 26th March on this subject to the Noble Lord the Member for West Derbyshire (Marquess of Hartington). I am sending a copy of this reply to the hon. and gallant Member.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury if it is contemplated to make provision to enable ex-service men occupying houses on estates erected under the Irish Land (Provision for Sailors and Soldiers) Act, 1919, to purchase those houses on an instalment basis; if so, when details of the scheme are likely to be available; and if, included in those details, there will be provision for repayment to intending purchasers of a portion of the moneys paid when these ex-service men are compelled to vacate their houses before complete purchase?

I have been asked to answer this question. I understand that a scheme has been prepared by the Irish Sailors' and Soldiers' Land Trust to enable ex-service tenants to purchase the leasehold of the cottages occupied by them on an instalment basis, and that it is hoped to publish the scheme shortly. I am informed that the scheme makes provision for repayment in the eases contemplated in the last part of the question where a certain minimum of instalments has been paid.