asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of agricultural workers employed in the North-Eastern division of Scotland in 1913, 1925 and 1935?

The numbers of agricultural workers in the North-Eastern agricultural division of Scotland (comprising the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine, Moray and Nairn) as returned to the Department of Agriculture for Scotland in the years specified are as follow:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many houses in the Dennistoun, Whitevale, and Mile End Wards of the Camlachie Parliamentary Division have been scheduled as overcrowded; and how many houses are being built or are to be provided within the next 12 months to meet the housing difficulties of the people living in these overcrowded conditions?

The report on overcrowding recently prepared by the Corporation showed that 1,264, 2,039 and 2,357 fit houses in the Dennistoun, White-vale and Mile End Wards respectively were overcrowded. As regards the second part of the question the Corporation propose to provide 51,000 new houses for the relief of overcrowding in the city as a whole, including the wards referred to, and their programme contemplates the erection of 6,500 houses per annum. The Corporation are unable at this stage to say the numbers of houses to be built in particulars wards of the city.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the amount of barley imported through Lossiemouth in the years 1913, 1925 and 1935; and the average prices obtained?

I regret that separate figures as to imports of barley into Lossiemouth are not available. Following is a tabular statement showing the quanties and values of barley imported into the Port of Inverness, including Lossiemouth, for the years mentioned:Quantities and value of Barley imported into the Port of Inverness (including Ballachulish, Burghead, Findhorn, Fort William, Invergordon, Isle of Skye, Lossiemouth, Portmahomack and Portree).

Year.	Quantity.	Value.
	Cwts.	£
1913	179,500	72,716
1925	176,361	133,656
1935	134,742	31,698

asked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been drawn to the proposal of the Birmingham City Council compulsorily to acquire the best portion of the 82 acres of allotment land situated at Brookvale Road, Witton, Birmingham, for housing purposes; if he is aware that these allotments were purchased after a struggle to raise the necessary capital by work-people, many of whom are ex-service men, in the belief that they as freeholders would be able to enjoy the use of the land for all time; and will he therefore refuse to sanction an order for compulsory purchase?

I understand that the Birmingham City Council have abandoned any proposal to acquire this site.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can give any information as to the annual expenditure of Germany on her Army, Navy and Air Force, respectively, for each of the years 1930 to 1935?

The figures for the years 1930 to 1932, which are taken from the Budget estimates, are as follow:

Army Estimates:	RM.
1930	502,544,450
1931	472,772,900
1932	472,733,100

Naval Estimates:
1930	192,924,700
1931	183,504,350
1932	183,504,350

Sums Allocated for Aeronautical Purposes:
1930	45,777,550
1931	43,100,900
1932	43,343,200

As regards the years 1933 to 1935, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which was given to my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham (Sir A. Pownall) on 6th April last.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that, in order to comply with the regulations of his Department for the purpose of claiming rebates on long hirings under the Unemployment Insurance (Agriculture) Act, Scottish farmers and farm workers arc being asked to break the contracts made by them on 28th November, 1935 for one year's hiring; what authority exists for such a request; and if, in the interests of good relations between farmers and their men, he will see that this policy is discontinued?

I am not aware that farmers and farm workers are asked by officials of the Ministry of Labour to break contracts made by them. The point to which my hon. Friend refers arises, I understand, from the requirement made by the Unemployment Insurance (Agriculture) Act, 1936, in connection with refunds of contributions, that a contract of long hiring should be registered within 28 days of the first day of employment under the contract. A contract for one year's hiring from the 28th November, 1935, clearly could not be so registered and consequently no refund would be payable in respect of it. The Department was asked by farmers whether if the parties to such a contract chose to replace it by a fresh contract of long hiring as denned in the Act, the new contract could be registered and a refund claimed. The Department replied that this course would be possible and the officials of the Ministry of Labour have been instructed so to inform persons who make inquiries on the subject or to whom the information might be of interest.

asked the Minister of Labour the percentage of unemployed insured persons on registers at employment exchanges for the month of May, 1936, in Great Britain, England, and the county of Durham, respectively, and the respective percentages in the administrative county of Durham of the undernoted centres, namely, Bishop Auckland, Cock-field, Crook, East Boldon, Felling, Jarrow and Hebburn, Lanchester, Shildon, and Spennymoor?

While statistics as to the numbers of insured persons recorded as unemployed are regularly compiled, at monthly intervals, for each of the areas covered by the local offices of the Ministry of Labour, estimates of the total numbers of insured persons in those areas can be made only once a year, on the basis of the information obtained from the annual exchange of unemployment books, in July. As considerable changes in the numbers insured, especially among juveniles, may have taken place in some districts since July, 1935, exact percentages of unemployment cannot be computed for any recent date. The following figures, however, show the percentages obtained if the numbers of insured persons, aged 16 and under 65 years, recorded as unemployed at 25th May, 1936, are related to the estimated numbers insured at July, 1935:

	Per cent.
Great Britain	12.8
England (excluding Monmouthshire)	11.3
County of Durham	25.4
*†Bishop Auckland	41.2
‡Cockfield	35.3
*Crook	33.8
‡East Boldon	33.2
Felling	24.4
Jarrow and Hebburn	36.5
‡Lanchester	33.8
‡Shildon	41.8
Spennymoor	26.8
* The figures for these areas include juveniles from other areas.
† The figures for Bishop Auckland include men from depressed areas who are attending an Instructional Centre.
‡ Figures for juveniles in these areas are included with those in other areas.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what quantity of ammunition, rifles, machine guns, and other war material was unloaded at Berbera, in British Somaliland, for delivery to Abyssinia since sanctions were imposed against Italy by countries members of the League of Nations?

The following war material has been landed at Berbera for transit to the Abyssinian Government since the imposition of sanctions:Small arms ammunition: 14,520,000rounds. Rifles: 14,000.Machine Pistols: 1,020.Anti-aircraft Machine Guns: (20mm) 8, with 20,000 rounds of ammunition.Anti-Tank Guns (37mm): 36, with 17,200 rounds of ammunition.Grenades: 13,000.Bombs: 321.Swords and Lances: 480.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies which of the principal colonies have broadcasting stations of their own; and what is the approximate percentage of the population in each which is in possession of listening facilities?

I append a table showing the Dependencies which possess broadcasting stations of their own, the number of receiving licences issued (where that figure is available) and the total population in each case:

Dependency.	No. of receiving licences.	Population.
Barbados	Figures not available.	182,000
British Guiana	150	323,000
Ceylon	2,250	5,400,000
		approx.
Falkland Islands	140	2,400
Fiji	160	197,000
Gibraltar	Figures not available.	16,000
Gold Coast	700	3,444,000
Hong Kong	4,200	944,000
Kenya	1,280	3,094,000
Malaga	3,800	4,267,000
Malta	Figures not available.	255,000
Mauritius	160	394,000
Nigeria	750	19,800,000
		approx.
Palestine	11,000	1,195,000
Sierra Leone	750	1,834,000
		approx.
Trinidad	Figures not available.	432,000
Windward Islands	Figures not available.	201,000

It is not possible to estimate the average number of persons served by each receiving licence in these territories. I should add that the figures given above of the number of receiving licences issued are for the most part some months old. There has probably been considerable increase in certain cases.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many elementary schools there are in Kingston, Jamaica; what is the accommodation, the number on the rolls, and the average attendance in each; what is the allowance per head available for equipment; and why numbers of children have to provide their own books?

There is no recent information available in the Colonial Office as to the matters with which this question deals, and I am therefore asking the officer administering the Government of Jamaica for the informtion desired by the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many village agricultural societies there are in Jamaica; whether any of them have petitioned for a Government school; and what response has been made?

I am asking the officer administering the Government of Jamaica for the information desired by the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what is the present position with regard to the tax of 50 dollars per annum which it was recently proposed to levy on non-resident commercial agents visiting Jamaica and Trinidad; and whether arrangements have been made to provide that these taxes shall not apply to British commercial travellers?

In view of the urgent need to raise increased revenue, legislation has been passed by the Legislative Councils of Jamaica and Trinidad imposing along with other taxation a tax on non-resident commercial agents of £25 a year and $50 a year respectively. After careful consideration, the Governors of the Colonies have been informed that His Majesty will not be advised to exercise his power of disallowance in respect of this legislation. It was not found practicable to suggest that the taxation should not apply to British commercial travellers. It may be added that in the case of Trinidad concessions have been made which should in practice exempt from the tax special representatives of firms who have, or appoint, resident agents in the Colony.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the total strength of the British and Indian garrisons at present under the orders of the general officers commanding in the Tientsin, Shanghai, and Hong Kong areas in China; and whether it is intended to augment these garrisons by additional troops from India or any other part of His Majesty's Empire?

The strength of the British, Colonial and Indian troops in China on 1st June, was 358 officers and 7,266 other ranks. No increase in this number is contemplated at present.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he can state the number of trades at present being taught at various Army vocational training centres; and the number of men undergoing training at the last convenient date?

The number of trades in which tuition is available at the Army vocational training centres is 34, and the number of men at present undergoing training is 1,377.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the total amount of signing-on fees charged to fishermen of all ranks in Aberdeen, Hull, and Grimsby for the years 1925 and 1935, respectively?

The total receipts by the Board of Trade from the fees charged for the engagement and discharge of fishermen at Aberdeen during the years 1925 and 1935 were £779 and £1,162 respectively. The corresponding figures for Grimsby were £1 4s. and £2 2s., and for Hull, nil for both years. It may be taken that the engagement fees represent approximately half the total amounts, but it is not possible to state to what extent the fees are actually borne by the fishermen. I would add that it is not compulsory for trawler owners to engage or discharge fishermen at a Mercantile Marine Office.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the losses to British investors in foreign securities floated in London, as disclosed by the latest report of the Council of Foreign Bondholders, he will draw the attention of the Foreign Issues Committee to the desirability of discouraging, not only the flotation in London of loans to foreign borrowers, but also the placing on the London market of the papers of foreign commercial, financial, and industrial concerns, of which the Swedish Match Company is an example?

I see no reason to depart from the view that it should be left to the investor to assess the credit of foreign concerns in such cases, and I do not consider that it would be desirable to amend the instructions given to the Foreign Transactions (Advisory) Committee in the sense which my hon. Friend suggests.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the total number and tonnage of vessels built for British owners in German shipyards during the past 12 months under schemes for liquidating German debts to British exporters; and whether he proposes to take any action in this matter, which is an increasing menace to the British shipbuilding industry?

There are no official statistics of shipbuilding orders executed abroad for British owners, but, according to the returns of the Registrar-General of Shipping and Seamen, the number of steamers and motor ships of 100 tons gross and over of recent German construction which were registered in the United Kingdom during the past 12 months was 13 of a gross tonnage of 54,097 tons. I am informed that the majority of these ships were ordered with the object of liquidating frozen credit balances in Germany, such balances having arisen in respect of transactions for which exchange is not required to be provided under the Anglo-German Payments Agreement of the 1st November, 1934. As has been previously explained to the House, there is no action which I can take to prevent such orders being placed.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the number of promotions, from grade to grade, in the departmental clerical class of the Survey

Grade to Grade Promotions.	Salary scale (men).	Number of promotions during the last 10 years in the—		Additional promotions to Departmental grades with the same or comparable salary scales.
		Survey Service (Mercantile Marine Department).	Bankruptcy and Companies Departments Ex-Headquarters Service	Grade to which promoted.	Salary scale (men).	Number.
	£	Number.	Number.		£
From Grade I (Junior Clerk):	80–252
To Grade II (Second Class Clerk).	277–337	4*	46	Assistant Examiner Companies (Winding-	178–337	7
Second Class Examiner	277–396	—	1	up) Department.
From Grade II (Second Class Clear):	277–337
To Grade III (First Class Clerk).	337–456	3	7	Assistant Official Receiver.	337–456	20
Second Class Examiner	277–396	—	7	Second Class Examiner, Companies (Winding-up) Department.	396–515	1
From Second Class Examiner:	277–396
To Grade III (First Class Clerk).	337–456	—	3	Assistant Official Receiver.	337–456	3
				Second Class Examiner, Companies (Winding-up) Department.	396–515	1
				From Assistant Examiner, Companies (Winding-up) Department:
				To Second Class; Clerk.	277–337	1
				Second Class Examiner, Companies (Winding-up) Department.	396–515	13
Total	—	17	64	—	—	46
*In addition, 6 Clerical Officers redundant in the Survey Service were promoted to Grade II during this period.

asked the Secretary for Mines whether he is aware that the Ponthenry Colliery, near Llanelly, is being abandoned and that dismantling operations are now in progress; and whether he proposes to take steps to prevent

The following statement gives the information desired:vent this colliery, upon which the village depends entirely, being abandoned?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. With regard to the second part, I am afraid that the matter is not one in which I can render any assistance. I understand that the colliery is in the hands of a receiver, and that although it was advertised for sale, no purchaser could be found.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what quantity of liquid eggs was sold by National Mark packing stations during 1935?

The quantity of liquid eggs sold by National Mark packing stations during 1935 was, approximately, 300 tons.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will give, in terms of sterling, the approximate amount of taxation per head of population in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and the United States of America, respectively, on the latest available date?

Following is the information:

Taxation per head.
			£	s.	d.
United Kingdom.	1936–7	(estimated)	16	3	7
Prance*	1936	(estimated)	12	6	7
Germany†	1935–6	(actual)	11	12	6
Italy‡	1936–7	(estimated)	6	13	9
United States§.	1936–7	(estimated)	8	11	9
* Net receipts of sinking fund revenues have been taken at the total for 1935.
† Including tax certificates to an amount of 7s. 8d. per head. Federal revenues only are included.
‡ Including net receipts from Lottery as a tax.
§ Federal revenues only are included. The estimate includes the processing taxes, which have been declared unconstitutional since it was framed, and excludes the yield of new taxes now under consideration by Congress.

As I have frequently indicated calculations of this kind are an inadequate guide to the true burden owing to the differences between the financial systems of the various countries.