asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education if he can give a list of all local education authorities which exclude children under five years of age from their schools?

On 31st March, 1932, there were no children under five years of age in the public elementary schools in the areas of the following authorities:

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the total amount paid in commission to the Bank in connection with the recent conversion of the 5 per cent. War Loan; and what was the total cost of converting Savings Certificates?

No commission is payable to the Bank of England on the conversion of War Loan; but the Bank will be entitled to a charge for its services based on the work involved. The expenses incurred in the recent conversion of Savings Certificates, including commission, amounted to approximately £175,000.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has considered the report from the Municipal Economy Committee (Scotland); what recommendations it contains in such local services as housing, education, health, public assistance, or capital expenditure; and if he proposes to accept any of the recommendations and, if so, which?

I have not yet seen a copy of the report to which the hon. Member refers.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what steps are taken to inform all civil servants, including industrial civil servants, that after becoming established they may no longer belong to any trade union of which they may have been a member before establishment, except under the limited conditions provided for under Section 5 (1) (b) of the Trades Disputes Act; and whether he is satisfied that no established civil servant at the present time is improperly a Member of any trade union?

The nature of the steps to be taken to bring to the notice of those concerned regulations relating to the conduct of civil servants is in each case a matter for the employing Department. As regards the last part of the question, I am not aware of any case where a breach of the rules in question is likely to be involved.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether seeing that the Public Works Loans Board has informed the Heston and Isleworth Council that the board has no power to vary the rates of interest, any action will be taken at an early date to lower the rates of interest on existing loans under the Small Dwellings Acquisition Acts?

As the hon. Member is no doubt aware, the rate applicable to advances made by the Public Works Loan Commissioners under the provisions of the Small Dwellings Acquisition Acts has recently been reduced from 41 per cent. to 4 per cent., but there is no intention of reducing the rate chargeable upon advances made prior to that date. All these advances are made out of money raised by the issue of Local Loans Stock. That stock could only be redeemed at a heavy capital loss, and so long as it remains unredeemed His Majesty's Government are bound to continue to pay interest upon it at the same rate as when the money was originally borrowed.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the additional dead-weight tonnage or carrying capacity which will be added to ships of the British Mercantile Marine as a consequence of the new load line recently come into operation?

I regret that it would be impossible without an altogether undue amount of labour to arrive at a reliable estimate of the increased carrying capacity of the British Mercantile Marine due to the assigning of load lines in accordance with the International Load Line Convention.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that Mr. R. W. Taylor, of Sheffield, aged 43 years, who volunteered to fill a vacancy open for a plasterer, was told by the official of the Employment Exchange, Corn Exchange, Sheffield, that he was too old, as a man of 18 years was required; and whether special instructions are given to officials to select men of certain ages?

I am making inquiries, and will let my hon. Friend know the result.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that during the Recess officers of his Department re- quested representatives of the West Ham Corporation to attend and discuss the incidence of the application of transitional payments and the means test within the West Ham area; and whether he will state the nature of his objections to the methods of administration adopted by the West Ham authority necessitating such interview?

Yes, Sir, a meeting took place on 3rd August. The letter inviting the corporation to send representatives to this meeting stated that the Department had before them reports by the general inspector and suggested that it would be an advantage if the points raised in these reports could be discussed with representatives of the corporation.

asked the Minister of Health if he will arrange for the publication of all the correspondence between his Department and the Mayor and Corporation of West Ham, and the minutes of the interviews relative to the means test and transitional payments?

No, Sir.

asked the Minister of Health if his attention has been called to a recent resolution of the Durham Public Assistance Committee that in future Poor Law children in their area should not be boarded out when there was accommodation in the cottage homes, on the ground that many people were exploiting boarded-out children; and if he has any information of cases where boarded-out children have been exploited?

I have seen a resolution of the Durham Public Assistance Committee to the effect that vacancies in the cottage homes should be filled before further children are boarded out. I have no evidence of the exploitation of boarded-out children.

asked the Minister of Agriculture the average price per lb. between May and August in the three years 1913, 1931, and 1932 of currants, raspberries, and loganberries?

The average prices (per lb.) at wholesale markets of currants, raspberries and loganberries in the period May to. August in the years 1913, 1931 and 1932 are as follow:

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he will consider the possibility of taking steps to propose to farmers that, to avoid the discharge of agricultural labourers, the Government will pay half their wages during the winter months if the farmers will pay the other half, in lieu of their being chargeable to the public assistance committees?

I regret that I do not see my way to adopt my hon. Friend's suggestion.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether his attention has been called to the large sums of money being allocated by the Governments of foreign nations to the assistance of horse-breeding; and whether he is satisfied that the measures now adopted by his Department to encourage horse-breeding in Great Britain are sufficient to maintain the standard of the various breeds of horses and the export trade resulting therefrom?

I am aware that many foreign Governments provide considerable sums of money for the encouragement of horse-breeding mainly, I believe, for the purpose of securing an adequate supply of horses for Army purposes. So far as heavy horses are concerned, I am satisfied that the grants made by the Ministry to heavy horse societies suffice for the purpose of the agricultural in- dustry. The question whether it will be possible in existing financial circumstances for the Ministry to take over responsibility for providing financial assistance for the encouragement of the breeding of light horses is receiving consideration, and I am not at present in a position to make a statement on the subject.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether it is proposed to place any restriction upon the production or sale of home-produced beef, mutton, or pig meat?

No, Sir. The present proposals of the Government are to deal with the present emergency by the voluntary co-operation of all concerned. But I look to the home farmers to market their supplies in an orderly and prudent manner and so make their contribution to a sounder price situation, which cannot be finally regularised without their co-operation and assistance.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether the Government propose to enter into negotiations with Poland, and other minor sources of meat supply, for the restriction of imports; and, if not, how it is proposed to regulate imports from these sources?

His Majesty's Government have been in touch in this matter with representatives of the Governments of Poland and other countries such as my hon. Friend has in mind.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the quantities, expressed in a month's supply, of chilled and frozen beef, mutton, and lamb now in cold storage in this country from Dominion and foreign sources?

I regret that the desired information is not available.