asked the Attorney-General when the Bristol advisory committee held its last meeting to consider the question of recommending further persons to serve as magistrates for the city; if any recommendations were then made; and whether it is proposed to give effect to these in the early future?

The Bristol Advisory Committee has recently held a meeting and has recommended certain persons for appointment as magistrates. These recommendations are now under the consideration of my Noble Friend, the Lord Chancellor.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what has been the amount of capital expended for all purposes by the beet-sugar factory companies now operating in Great Britain; what is the total amount which has been applied to depreciation; and the total amount allotted to reserves or retained as un-appropriated balances during the period of the subsidy?

The position as at 31st March, 1931, was as follows:—

asked the Minister of Agriculture what was the amount of dividend paid on the preference and ordinary capital of each of the beet-sugar factory companies receiving subsidy from the Exchequer in each of the subsidy years?

I regret that I am not in a position to give the information desired. I understand, however, that those companies that are public companies have from time to time published their dividends in the Press, though the private companies have not.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if the existing British standards of safety differ from those required by the Safety of Life at Sea Convention; and, if so, in what respects?

It is not practicable to make an exact and complete comparison between the existing British system, which consists of detailed rules covering the whole of the ship, and the Convention system which deals in detail with some important features and refers to many others in very general terms, leaving it to the administrations concerned to do what is required to make the Convention effective. The general comparison between the existing British standards of safety and those required by the Convention (apart from points of detail) may be briefly, but not exhaustively, stated as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs the total number of persons in this country who have been rejected during the 12 months ended to the last convenient date on medical examination by the Canadian Government doctors as unfit for immigration to Canada under the Canadian emigration laws; and the total number of persons during that period who were examined.

The figures are not available, but I am in communication with the Canadian immigration authorities on the subject.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has considered the representations made to his Department by the London taximeter-cab drivers against the new Regulations curtailing their street activities; and what action he intends to take with regard to this matter?

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has considered the complaint by London taximeter-cab drivers as to the effect on their trade of the recent restrictions made with regard to them in the London Traffic Regulations; and what action he proposes to take?

Two proposals which affect taxi-cab drivers in London have recently been engaging my attention. In the first place I have given notice of my intention to make Regulations extending the existing restrictions upon cruising cabs to a number of additional streets; and in the second place I have made the London Traffic (Oxford Street) Regulations, 1931. As regards the first set of proposed Regulations, the statutory period of notice has not yet expired, and the representations which have been received from the associations representing the taxi-cab interests have been referred to the London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee for their consideration and advice. The proposed Regulations do not in any way prevent the hiring of cabs in the prescribed streets, but merely require that in those streets an unhired cab, which is not on a rank, shall not proceed at a slower pace than that of the general flow of traffic. As regards the Oxford Street Regulations, before they were made on 22nd June, I received representations as to the effect which they would have upon the London taxi-cab interests. The Associations concerned have been informed that I am desirous that any movement of traffic which might militate against the success of the experiment with traffic control signals in Oxford Street should be avoided in the early stages, but that the Regulations will be specially reviewed when experience has been gained of the signalling installation with a view to ascertaining whether it would be practicable to withdraw the provision which requires that taxi-cabs shall not turn in Oxford Street and shall not wait except on a rank.

asked the President of the Board of Education the present position with reference to the West Ham Council and the Tollgate School in relation to the submission of tenders?

The West Ham local education authority invited tenders for the erection of this school, and after considering them asked the Board's approval to the acceptance of the tender of their works department, which exceeded the lowest outside tender by more than £3,000. The Board have informed the authority that they would not be justified in consenting to this proposal.

asked the Home Secretary if, in view of recent tendencies to keep shops open later at night, he intends introducing legislation during the present Session of Parliament to protect shop assistants against the increases in their hours of employment involved by these extensions?

If my hon. Friend is referring to the arrangements recently stated in the Press to have been made at certain large establishments in London, they would not appear, from the notices, to have involved any appreciable increase in the hours of employment, and any proposal for legislation on this subject must await the Report of the Select Committee, which, I understand, may be expected shortly.

asked the Under-Secretary for Air whether he can make any statement as to the cause of the accident that happened on 14th June to the British machine G ABBH; whether he can state whether the pilot obtained a weather report at Calais; and, if so, the nature of the report and the time the machine left Calais?

I regret that I am not yet in a position to add anything to the reply which I gave the hon. Member on 24th June. Technical investigations into the causes of accidents inevitably take some considerable time.