asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office whether he is satisfied with the workmanship and quality of materials on the building works at Catterick?

The answer is in the affirmative.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office the numerical strength of the British forces in Shanghai; and what particular regiments are there on service?

There are at present in Shanghai three infantry battalions, and ancillary troops. The infantry consists of the 1st Battalions of the Lincolnshire, East Lancashire and Wiltshire Regiments.

asked the Minister of Transport what is his attitude to the scheme of improvement to prevent the River Tawe overflowing and causing damage to property and danger to the public and to the health of the people at Pontardawe; and whether he will sanction the work to proceed and make a grant towards the cost?

I have been asked to reply. A scheme of improvement was submitted to my Department in 1930 and investigated. It was subsequently under revision by the Pontardawe Rural District Council. If it is resubmitted I will cause further examination to be made. There are, however, no moneys at my disposal available for a grant towards the cost.

asked the Minister of Health how many patients in the past year at the pavilion for tubercular cases at the Tickhill Road sanatorium, Don-caster, have been duly discharged and how many have departed without being discharged?

This information is not in my possession, but I will communicate with the local authority and furnish my hon. Friend with the particulars in due course.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the quantities, par head of the population of the United Kingdom, of imports retained for home consumption; and also, where possible, the home production, shown separately, of the following articles during the year 1931: butter, margarine, cocoa and preparations of cocoa, coffee, wheat, wheatmeal and flour, rice and rice flour, eggs, fish, dried fruit, beef, mutton and lamb, fresh pork, bacon and ham, sugar, tea, tobacco, beer, wine, and spirits?

pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 5th May, 1932, col. 1297, Vol. 265] supplied the following statement:The following TABLE shows the approximate quantities per head of the population of the United Kingdom during the year 1931, of the imports retained in the United Kingdom, together with the homo production so far as the particulars are available, of the undermentioned commodities.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what industries are involved in the 45 new concerns which have commenced in this country since the tariff policy was put into operation; and how many are in Lancashire?

With regard to the first part of the question, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 9th May to the hon. Member for Plaistow (Mr. Thorne), and with regard to the last part to the reply given on 3rd May to the hon. Member for Wigan (Mr. Parkinson).

asked the President of the Board of Trade the profits of the companies' and local authorities' gas undertakings in Great Britain for the years 1930 and 1931; the price paid per ton for coal; and similar particulars with regard to the generation of electricity and the production of coke?

The profits of statutory gas undertakings (companies and local authorities), as shown in the Board of Trade Return relating to all authorised Gas Undertakings in Great Britain for 1930 (Part II, Finance and Prices), are given below. Similar particulars as regards authorised electricity undertakings for the year 1930–31 in the case of public authorities, and for the year 1930 in the case of companies will be available in the course of a week, and will be forwarded to the hon. Member. No particulars are available regarding

asked the Secretary for Mines the total quantity of coal produced and the total quantity consumed in Great Britain for the years 1913 and 1920 to 1931, respectively?

The information is as follows:

asked the President of the Board of Trade why a British citizen embarking at Dover for a tour can do so by merely purchasing a ticket and producing a passport, but if he embarks at Immingham for a tour on a British steamer he is compelled to fill up an elaborate form containing personal particulars not required in the former case; and what reason is there for this-form and particulars?

If the hon. Member will give me particulars of the tours to which he refers, I will have inquiries made.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air what are the numbers of Anglican, Roman Catholic, and Free Church chaplains, respectively, in the Royal Air Force; and what are the highest and lowest salaries paid to senior and junior chaplains, respectively?

As regards the first part of the question, the numbers of Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian and Nonconformist chaplains in the Royal Air Force are 22, five, four and six, respectively; of these, one Anglican and one Presbyterian are honorary unpaid chaplains. As regards the second part, the minimum and maximum daily rates of ordinary pay at the present time are 15s. 2d. and £2 4s. 6d. In addition, provision in kind is made for certain services, and when this is not available cash allowances ranging from 6B. 6d. to 16s. 9d. a day are payable.

asked the Postmaster-General whether persons wishing to telephone outside the normal hours of ordinary counter business have a right to ask the sub-postmaster concerned to accept a message on tender of an additional charge not exceeding 1s. for each disturbance when off duty, or whether it rests with the sub-postmaster to decide whether he will consent to accept a message under such conditions; and whether, in view of the public importance of this concession, he can arrange for a notification as to the general attitude of the sub-postmaster to be prominently displayed in all sub-Post Offices concerned?

Sub-postmasters provide Post Office services under a contract covering stated hours, and they have no liability to provide call office attendance outside the hours for which they have contracted, that is, the normal hours of counter business. In practice, however, the great majority of them do give such service, when they or their assistants are on the premises; and in such cases a window notice is displayed in the following terms:

"Telephone calls can be made when this office is closed on payment of the appropriate fees and disturbance fees, provided there is someone on the premises who can deal with them, or from the Kiosk at on payment of the appropriate telephone fees."

asked the Minister of Labour the total number of unemployed persons at Neath, Pontardawe, and Clydach from January, 1932, each month to the last available date, and the number for the same period from January, 1931, respectively?

The following table shows the numbers of unemployed persons on the registers of the Neath, Pontardawe and Clydach Employment Exchanges at the dates specified.