asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is prepared to advise a reduction in rents of steel houses at Sandyhills, Shettleston, in view of reductions in wages and salaries and decreased costs of building?

No, Sir. The Second Scottish National Housing Company to whom the houses belong is bound by agreement to fix the rents of steel houses by reference to the rents charged for houses of similar accommodation in the district.

asked the Minister of Labour the names of the chairmen of courts of referees who sat in Glasgow during each year since the end of 1931, and the number of sittings and the amount of money drawn for each year?

The following table gives the information desired:

asked the Minister of Transport whether he can now make any statement on the question of ribbon development?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the statement on this subject contained in the King's Speech made at the opening of Parliament.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what was the average price of malting barley in October, 1934; and what was the average price at the same date last year?

Owing to the wide range in the price obtained for barley of malting quality, any comparison of average prices would tend to be misleading. The following quotations show the trend of prices of barley of malting quality in October, 1933 and 1934:(1)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the growing practice of providing entertainments in London departmental stores which are tantamount to stage plays as defined in Section 23 of the Theatres Act, 1843, to which admission is free on presentation of a 1s. purchasing voucher but without any payment of Entertainments Duty, he can state whether arrangements can be made for theatres permitting admission in a similar manner to be equally exempted from the obligation to pay Entertainments Duty?

I have not heard of any theatre in regard to which the circumstances described by my hon. Friend obtain, or are likely to obtain.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether the Government will consider instituting an additional system in all Government Departments designed to provide increased pensions for ex-Service men in those Departments?

His Majesty's Government are unable to contemplate a modification of the Superannuation Acts, which would confer upon ex-service established civil servants special non-effective benefits in addition to those which they enjoy in common with other established civil servants.

asked the Secretary for Mines the figures for 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, and 1933, and the latest figures for 1934, of the export of coal to the Irish Free State; and the figures for the same periods of the export from Lancashire to the Irish Free State?

The information is as follows:Quantity of coal exported to the Irish Free State from the United Kingdom and from ports on the North-West Coast of England:

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs whether he can now make any statement as to the effect on Lancashire textiles of the reconsideration by the Australian Government of the Australian tariff changes which are prejudicial to the export of these textiles?

The position is as stated in the reply which I have to-day given to the hon. and gallant Member for Accrington (Major Procter).

asked the Post- master-General whether his attention has been drawn to the report of the Institution of Electrical Engineers' Committee on radio interference and its findings that listeners and those who advise them have not yet done to their own receiving sets all that is possible to mitigate some of the effects of interference; and whether he will request the British Broadcasting Corporation to advise listeners as to the steps they should take in this direction?

My attention has been called to the report of this committee and to the suggestion it contains that in some cases receiving sets are capable of improvement to avoid electrical interference. For many years now the Post Office and the British Broadcasting Corporation, working in close co-operation, have assisted listeners in connection with complaints of such interference; and the Post Office is at the present time investigating complaints at the rate of 40,000 a year. In addition, the Post Office has shared with the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Radio Manufacturers' Association the cost, which was considerable, of financing research work in connection with the committee's inquiries. I can assure my hon. Friend that the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Post Office will continue their efforts to assist listeners in the direction suggested by the committee.

asked the Minister of Health what new appointments are being made to the Consultative Council of the Ministry of Health; and whether he is in a position to furnish a list of the members of the Council?

In accordance with the Orders in Council under which the Consultative Council on National Health Insurance (Approved Societies' Work) was established, a number of members were due to retire on 1st October, 1934, after having served on the Council for the normal period. I have recently made appointments to fill the vacancies thus created, and I am sending my hon. Friend a list of the members of the Council showing the new appointments.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office what was the cost to the Exchequer of the Cavalry and the Household Cavalry for the year 1933–34?

The effective cost of the Household Cavalry and the horsed regiments of the Cavalry of the Line on the British establishment is estimated at £1,130,000 a year.

asked the hon. and gallant Member for Rye, as representing the Forestry Commissioners, the number of trees, and the various kinds, conifer and hardwood, planted by the Forestry Commission during the last year?

The number of trees planted by the Forestry Commission last season was 53,928,000. The species were as follow: