asked the Postmaster-General what steps are being taken to expedite telephone communications between the Isle of Wight and the mainland?

Calls are already completed on demand between the Isle of Wight and places on the mainland within a radius of about 50 miles, including Bognor Regis, Bournemouth, Brighton, Guildford, Haywards Heath, Horsham, Lewes, Newbury, Portsmouth, Reading, Salisbury, Southampton and Worthing. A new multi-circuit submarine cable has recently been laid between the mainland and the island. An additional circuit to Southampton has been put into service by means of this cable, and three more additional circuits (one to Portsmouth and two to Southampton) are in course of completion. Further circuits in the cable will be put into service as soon as the traffic requires them. During the course of this year arrangements will be completed to enable calls to be accepted on demand between the island and London, and also between the island and places within a large area around London (including, for example, Cambridge, Ipswich and Oxford).

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he proposes to take advantage of the German Government's offer to enter into reciprocal free trade arrangements with any country which will extend similar treatment to Austria?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which was given on 25th March to my hon. Friend the Member for Brecon and Radnor (Mr. Freeman) by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has now given further consideration to the legal, commercial, and political aspects of the projected customs union between Germany and Austria; and whether he can make any statement as to how His Majesty's Government are advised that it affects the trading and other interests of this country?

I would refer the right hon. Gentleman to my very full statement on this subject in the House last Monday.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what steps he proposes to take to bring before the Council of the League of Nations the question of Great Britain's position in so far as it may be affected by commercial treaties negotiated by ex-enemy countries?

I would refer the hon. Member to my very full statement on Monday last.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when the committee of three which is to examine the petitions from the Ukrainian minority in Poland is to meet; what petitions are to be examined and from whom; and whether the committee intends to examine witnesses and take evidence?

The committee has arranged to meet on 16th April, and will then consider six, or possibly seven, petitions addressed to the League of Nations by various representatives of the Ukrainian minority and by the Union of Democratic Control. The procedure to be followed will be decided by the committee when it meets.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he has given further consideration to the claim made in September, 1929, for increases in the minimum wages of certain men employed in the mechanical engineering department of the Royal Arsenal; and what are the rates at present paid to such men?

Full consideration was given to the claim in question before the decision referred to in my reply of 5th February was taken, and no fresh evidence has been brought to my notice which would warrant further consideration. The normal weekly rates for non-skilled labour, which depend upon the nature of the occupation, range from a minimum of 49s. to a maximum of 62s.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether it is part of his arrangements with the four Scottish banks who have agreed to subscribe the share capital of £125,000 to the company proposed to be formed under the Agricuitural Credits (Scotland) Act, 1929, that farmers borrowing from the company will not be required to pay a higher rate of interest in excess of the rate payable by the company on its debentures than borrowers from the corporation formed in England, under the Agricultural Credits Act, 1928, pay in excess of the rate payable by that corporation on its debentures; and, if no such arrangement has been made, whether he will see that the rate of interest to be charged to borrowers by the proposed Scottish company will be so limited?

The matter to which the hon. Member refers is one which must be primarily for the consideration of the Agricultural Security Company when formed. I may point out, however, that having regard to the statutory provisions respecting the memorandum and articles of association of the company, there is no reason to suppose that the rates to be charged to borrowers will be higher than is necessary to ensure that the company's business is conducted on sound financial lines.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he proposes to take to deal with difficulties arising from irregular marriages?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave on the 10th March to a question on this subject by the hon. Member for Central Southwark (Mr. Day).

asked the Minister of Health whether he has taken, or intends to take, any steps to ensure that grants claimed under the 1930 Housing Act are applied in accordance with the principles laid down in his Circular 1138 that it is the clear intention of Parliament that the benefit of the new grant shall not enure to persons for whom it is not needed?

In the event of its appearing that a local authority does not propose to implement the intention of Parliament to which the hon. Member refers, my right hon. Friend would certainly take such action as might be open to him, but he hopes the necessity will not arise.

asked the Home Secretary how many local authorities allow only films passed by the trade censor to be exhibited in their area, and which authorities exercise an additional censorship either for children or for both adults and children?

The local authorities in England and Wales recognise the examination of films made by the British Board of Film Censors, and as a rule exercise additional censorship only when they receive a complaint about a film passed by the board or an application for permission to show a film which has not been passed by the board. The Home Office has from time to time recommended local authorities to attach to cinematograph licences conditions designed to enforce the decisions of the Board of Film Censors and to give effect to their classification of films as suitable either for universal exhibition or for exhibition only to adults. I have reason to believe that the majority of local authorities have adopted these or similar conditions, but inquiry is now being made on this point, and a little later in the year I shall be able to give the Noble Member more exact information.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has circulated to local authorities as models for their adoption any, and, if so, what, regulations designed to prevent children under 16 from seeing films passed for adult audiences only?

The answer is in the negative, for the reasons given in the reply to the question put by the hon. and gallant Member far Kelvingrove (Major Elliot) on 25th March, 1930, of which I am sending the Noble Lady a copy.

asked the Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department whether there is any system of trade information relating to Soviet Russia in any way comparable with that maintained by the British Consular Service in relation to openings in other countries?

A commercial counsellor and a commercial secretary are attached to His Majesty's Embassy at Moscow, and in addition there are consular officers stationed in that town and in Leningrad. In theory, the arrangements for commercial intelligence in the case of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics do not differ from those in force in the case of any other foreign country. Owing, however, to the fact that a Government monopoly of foreign trade exists in that country, it is obvious that in practice the functions of the commercial diplomatic and consular officers stationed therein are necessarily different from those of officers stationed in any other country.

asked the Minister of Health whether the Hedley Committee, appointed by the Board of Control, have completed their report; and, if so, when will it be published?

I understand that this report will be presented to the board shortly after Easter, and the question of publication will then be taken into immediate consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for India the amount of the expenditure incurred up to date in connection with the Meerut conspiracy case?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to the hon. and gallant Member for Epsom (Commander Southby) on 26th January. I have no later information.

asked the Minister of Labour how many courts of referees serve the Bristol district; on how many days during January, February and March, 1931, have these courts sat; and what have been the daily expenses of the assessors during the three months?

Three courts of referees, Bristol itself, Kingswood and Eastville, serve the Bristol district. These courts sat on 72 days in all during the period 1st January to 28th March, 1931. The total allowances paid to assessors (other than the chairmen) for the three courts amounted to an average of about £1 a day.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of persons directly employed at the end of December last on works for the relief of unemployment, including those financed out of the Road Fund, and the corresponding figure in December, 1929, and December, 1928?

In December last the number of men directly and indirectly employed was about 200,000 of whom about 93,000 were directly employed on the site of works. The comparable figures available for the earlier years, relating mainly to road works and works assisted by the Unemployment Grants Committee, are 70,000 and 35,000 for December, 1929, and 30,000 and 15,000 for December, 1928.

asked the Minister of Labour the price of a 4-lb. loaf in typical industrial and agricultural areas of the country, including London?

According to returns collected by the Ministry of Labour for the purpose of the cost-of-living statistics, the average retail prices of bread, per 4 lbs., at the end of February, were 6¾d. in London, 7d. in other towns with populations over 60,000 and 7d. in 420 smaller places, including both industrial and agricultural areas, from which information is collected.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty what raw materials used in the workshops under his Department are obtained from foreign sources and not from Empire sources?

The following are the principal raw materials of foreign origin used in His Majesty's Naval establishments: special timbers, hemp, cork, turpentine, nitrate of soda, calcium carbide, rosin and pyrites.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the desire of sheepbreeders for some active development of research on sheep diseases, he proposes to stimulate such reearch?

A considerable amount of research in sheep diseases is already in progress. A scheme has been prepared for the development of research in animal pathology generally, upon which I hope it may be possible to make a commencement in the near future, and this will include increased provision for the diseases of sheep.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the increased purchases by the distillers of foreign barley and the difficulty of obtaining bulk British supplies of uniform quality, his Department will take steps to encourage British farmers to grow suitable varieties of barley for this specific purpose?

Steps in the direction indicated by the hon. and gallant Mem- ber have already been taken. Since the publication in 1928 of its report on the Marketing of Wheat, Barley and Oats (Economic Series, No. 18), my Department, at its marketing demonstrations at agricultural shows, has emphasised the importance of growing a limited number of varieties of barley recommended by the National Institute of Agricultural Botany as being most suitable for commercial purposes.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the number of approved poultry-breeding stations supported by his Department, and the aggregate amount of subsidy paid to them?

County authorities for agricultural education undertake, with the Ministry's concurrence, the approval of poultry-breeding stations within their respective areas. The scheme is in operation in 16 counties, but I have no information as to the total number of stations approved. No subsidy is paid to any of the stations.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he proposes to take steps at an early date to improve and reconstruct the drainage system of the River Ouse?

The initiation of any scheme for the improvement and reconstruction of the drainage system of the River Ouse now rests, with the catchment board for that river, constituted under the Land Drainage Act, 1930. As the hon. Member is aware, the catchment board has not long been constituted, and the board will no doubt require a reasonable time in which to give this very important matter the necessary consideration, but special steps have been taken in this case to expedite consideration.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his Department is investigating the need for increased transport facilities, in view of the growth of population in North-West London?

No special investigation of the need for increased transport facilities in the North-West London area is at the present time being undertaken by my Department.

asked the Minister of Transport, with reference to the complaints of the overcrowding of trains on the Underground Railway during rush hours on the sections serving Kennington, Elephant and Castle, and the City, what action has been taken by his Department to deal with this matter?

I have been in communication with the City and South London Railway Company in regard to this matter, who inform me that in the course of the last three years the service between Kennington, Elephant and Castle and the City during the hours of 7-9 a.m. has been increased from 321 to 376 cars, an increase of 16 per cent. Improvements have also been effected in the signalling of the line, enabling trains to be operated at the rate of 40 per hour during the peak periods. Experiments are now in hand in respect of rolling-stock design with a view to ascertaining whether it is practicable to adopt cars of increased length. As the hon. Member will be aware, the company are seeking powers in their Bill of this Session for an extension of their Bakerloo line from the Elephant and Castle to Camberwell, which, if constructed, should afford some relief to their existing lines in that district.