asked the Minister of Agriculture whether his advice is ever sought by the Import Duties Advisory Committee in respect of applications for the imposition of Import Duties upon livestock or other agricultural produce entering this country; and in which instances such advice was sought during the year 1933?

The Import Duties Advisory Committee frequently asks the Ministry for information regarding particular commodities which are under consideration by the Committee. With regard to the second part of my hon. Friend's question, I would remind him that the Committee was created to advise the Government, and it would not be proper for Ministers to tender advice to the Committee.

asked the Home Secretary if he is yet in a position to make any statement about the result of his efforts to arrange with the Auctioneers' and Estate Agents' Institute that published prices of goods, chattels, and real estate submitted to auction shall represent actual changes of ownership by sale, and not the prices of property bought in on behalf of vendors?

I am not in a position to add anything to the reply which I gave to the question addressed to me by my hon. Friend on 15th May.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the exports of arms during the present year to the Yemen and Arabia?

During the period January to April, 1934, exports of arms and ammunition registered as consigned to Yemen and Saudi Arabia were valued at £123, of which £94 represented miscellaneous explosives and ammunition and £29 represented non-military guns, rifles, etc. Exports registered as consigned to the remainder of Arabia during the same period consisted of sporting cartridges valued at £114.

asked the Minister of Transport if, in the interests of safer motoring, he will recommend to the authorities concerned the urgent necessity for widening the Great North Road between Baldock and Stamford?

While I have not overlooked the desirability of increasing the traffic facilities along this important stretch of road where the carriageway measures on the average slightly over 20 feet in width, I am not prepared, in the present circumstances, to press the local authorities to embark immediately upon a general widening scheme which would place a heavy burden upon the rural counties through which the road passes.

asked the Minister of Health if he will consider establishing some standard of house building, in order that purchasers of houses in different parts of the country may receive uniform value in material and labour?

My right hon. Friend is afraid he does not quite appreciate how my hon. Friend's object could be secured by Governmental action. Perhaps if my hon. Friend wishes to carry the matter further he will communicate with the Department.

asked the Minister of Health the number of empty or relatively empty reservoirs now in this country and the towns which normally rely on such reservoirs; and the precautions which are being taken to safeguard the well-being of the townsfolk affected?

I am not aware of any empty or relatively empty reservoirs. In some areas reserves are seriously low. Active steps have been taken in these areas to conserve supplies, with the cooperation of consumers, and to augment the supplies. Where further powers are necessary these can be obtained expeditiously by procedure under the Water Supplies (Exceptional Shortage Orders) Act recently passed.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has yet considered the advertisement of the promoters of the rodeo about to be held at the White City, a copy of which has been sent to him, in which the rounding-up of wild charging steers is held out as a feature; and whether, having regard to the fact that none of the steers recently imported into this country for employment in the rodeo have evinced any signs of wildness and have been managed and controlled without difficulty, he has any statement to make?

I have seen the advertisement which my hon. Friend has sent to me. As the performance has not yet taken place, it is impossible to say whether it is likely to fulfil the description given in the advertisement, but the promoters are well aware of the provisions of recent legislation on the subject.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that the scheme for structural alterations in the officers' old quarters at Pentonville Prison is expected to last five years; and will he take steps to ensure that the large rubbish dump will as soon as possible be removed from in front of the windows of the officers' occupied quarters?

It is the case that the reconstruction of the officers' quarters at Pentonville Prison will occupy some five years. I regret the inconvenience to the prison officers in the other quarters due to the storage of material arising from the demolition of the old quarters and their rebuilding. Owing to the limited space available it is not possible to avoid this inconvenience, but care will be taken to see that it is reduced to a minimum.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether any recent estimate has been made of the amount of good arable or pasture land in Scotland urgently in need of drainage; how many applicants for drainage grants have received assistance in the present year; and whether the Government propose taking any more active steps to deal with the increasing loss of good land on account of lack of proper drainage?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. At 31st May, 1934, 351 applicants had been offered drainage grants under the scheme authorised for the current financial year. The Government are fully aware of the importance of preventing, so far as practicable, the deterioration of good agricultural land through lack of proper drainage; but the assistance available for this purpose must necessarily be limited by financial considerations.

asked the Minister of Labour whether, in view of the widespread interest in the inquiry being conducted by Sir Arthur Rose into conditions in the distressed and derelict areas of Scotland, he can state what arrangements have been made to make public the progress of this work?

For the reasons which I gave to the hon. Member for Chester-le-Street (Mr. Lawson) in answer to a supplementary question on 19th April, it is not intended to publish a report of the result of the investigation, nor can I properly make public the progress of Sir Arthur Rose's work.

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs the total number of "S" shorthand-typists employed in his Department on 1st April, 1934?

It is not clear what is meant by the term "'S' shorthand-typists." The number of shorthand-typists paid from the Dominions Office Vote who were employed on 1st April, 1934, was:Dominions Office, nine;Oversea Settlement Office, two;Empire Marketing Board liquidation staff, one.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the respective total numbers of "S" class clerks, female writing assistants, and established shorthand-typists employed in his Department on 1st April, 1934?

The numbers were as follow:

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education why the proposal of the West Riding (Yorks) Education Committee, for the erection of a technical school at Mexborough, has been turned down?

The present position in this matter is that the board informed the local education authority early last month that they proposed to defer further consideration of the proposal pending a discussion between representatives of the local education authority and His Majesty's inspectors, on the functions of the Mexborough Technical Institute and its educational relation to the neighouring technical college at Rotherham. No further communication has yet been received from the local education authority.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if his statistics show the cost of producing a dozen eggs at the present time; and what relation this cost bears to the wholesale prices obtained for such eggs?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. The cost of production of eggs varies so considerably according to the personal capacity of the individual poultry farmer, the circumstances of the farm, the strain of hens kept and the period of the year, that it is impossible to supply precise information on this subject. Moreover, even in the case of transactions where all the information is available, a comparison of costs of production and prices during any short period of time may be misleading owing to the seasonal variation of costs and prices.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of persons employed in the following industries: blast furnace, iron and steel smelting and rolling, foundries, tinplate, hardware and hollow-ware trades, chain mail and screw, wrought iron and tubes, the wire industry, tool and implement, and in the cutlery trades, in Great Britain on the latest date for which information is available and on the corresponding dates in the years 1924, 1929, 1930, 1932, and 1933?

An approximation to the numbers of insured persons in employment in particular industries can be obtained for June of each year by deducting the numbers of insured persons recorded as unemployed at that date from the total number of insured workers, at the same date, as estimated on the basis of the annual exchange of unemployment books. The following table gives these figures in respect of the industries referred to, so far as statistics are available:

asked the Attorney-General whether he will now consult and invite the active co-operation of provincial law societies and the Institute of Auctioneers and Estate Agents to assist him to place the benefits of the Land Registry at the disposal of more provincial districts from January, 1936?

As was pointed out in answer to the hon. Member for West Fulham (Sir C. Cobb) on 14th May, the Lord Chancellor has under his consideration the question of what steps shall be taken in view of the situation which will arise on 1st January, 1936. Meanwhile, he does not think that any useful purpose will be served by his addressing the Provincial law societies or the Institute of Auctioneers and Estate Agents on the matter. But if any Provincial law society or the Institute desire to forward any views, he will be glad to receive and consider them.