asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will urge that, in the discussions for any revision of the Ottawa Agreement which may take place next year, an effort should be made to discourage the import of highly-fortified British Empire wines by the imposition of a scale of duties commensurate with the alcoholic strength of the wines?

Due account will be taken of all relevant considerations when occasion arises.

asked the President of the Board of Trade (1) whether his attention has been drawn to the difficulties now being experienced by Sheffield exporting firms under the Anglo-Spanish Payments Agreement; and what is being or will be done to prevent these delays in payment for exports becoming increasingly serious;(2) whether he will take steps to secure the proper working of the Anglo-Spanish Payments Agreement and urge upon the Spanish Government the urgent necessity of stopping Spanish exporters from selling sterling on the so-called black exchange?

On the general question of the working of the Anglo-Spanish Payments Agreement I would refer the right hon. Gentleman to the statement which was recently issued by the Controller of the Clearing Office, a copy of which follows. His Majesty's Government are aware that in certain cases attempts have been made to secure by illegitimate means sterling in respect of Spanish exports to the United Kingdom which would no doubt be sold as suggested. Steps are being taken, which will, I hope, put a stop to this practice.

asked the Postmaster-General (1) whether he is aware that the pavements in Aberlour, recently broken up for the purpose of laying a telephone cable, are the property of the house owners; and whether their permission was asked before the cable was laid;(2) whether the permission granted to his Department by the Banffshire County Council to lay a telephone cable along the side of the main street in Aberlour entitled the department to lay he cable in the centre of the pavement, which is within the feus of the house owners and which was resurfaced at the expense of these householders?

The special interest of the frontagers in the cost of resurfacing pavements is appreciated by my Department; but this interest is safeguarded by statutory provisions, for the Post Office must at its own cost restore the pavement to a condition as good as that in which it was found, and must maintain it in good repair for six months after restoration. Accordingly, it is the practice of my Department to proceed with cable laying in adopted roads as soon as the consent of the competent local authority has been obtained, and not to seek the consents of individual frontagers. The latter course could not increase the protection already afforded to the frontagers by the statutory provision above-mentioned, and would delay the provision of much-needed telephone circuits.

asked the Secretary for Mines (1) the average pit-head prices for Durham for the quarter ended 31st December, 1935, and the average for Great Britain;(2) the average pit-head prices for Durham and also for Great Britain for the quarter ended 31st March, 1936?

The hon. Member will find in Cmd. 5142 and Cmd. 5198 that the information he requires is as follows:

asked the Lord President of the Council the scale of salaries paid to the several grades of persons employed as laboratory assistants at the fuel research station of the Scientific and Industrial Research Board?

The range of pay of male laboratory assistants (age not less than 19) in establishments of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research is from 40s. to 70s. a week, with extension to 85s. a week in exceptional cases; for female laboratory assistants the normal range is 33s. to 50s. a week and the exceptional maximum 65s. a week. The six laboratory assistants at present employed at the Fuel Research Station have pay ranging from 46s. 6d. to 75s. a week.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether, in view of the disinclination of the United States of America and Japan to discuss the British proposal to retain 40,000 tons of old destroyers in excess of the 150,000 tons quota allotted by the London Naval Treaty, it is the intention of the Government to at once invoke the escalator clause of the London Naval Treaty to enable Great Britain to increase her destroyer strength?

The question of invoking Article 21 of the London Naval Treaty of 1930 in order to retain these destroyers has been and still is under consideration and a further statement will be made in due course.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air what are the conditions on which Australia has agreed to accept the Government's plan for a bi-weekly service of flying boats on the Singapore-Darwen section of the Australian air route; and whether unified control over this whole route is now assured?

No decision has yet been taken by the Commonwealth Government in regard to participation in the Empire Air Transport Scheme. Negotiations are actively proceeding, but I am at present unable to make any further statement in the matter.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air whether, in view of the opposition in Canada to the project for a trans-Atlantic air service with a base in Newfoundland, and of the resolution, of which he has received notice, passed by the joint meeting of the city council and executive council of the Board of Trade in Sydney, Nova Scotia, requesting the Governments of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island to oppose the plan, the Air Ministry are prepared to consider on their merits any alternative plans for this route?

The project has the concurrence of His Majesty's Government in Canada, who are co-operating in this matter with His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. I am not aware of the resolution to which the hon. Member refers, and I am unable to recommend any change in the plans which have been made by the Governments concerned for a service via Newfoundland.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air whether he will provide a list of the aerodromes in Great Britain and Northern Ireland?

A list of the aerodromes in Great Britain and Ireland is published in the "Air Pilot." Owing to its length, the list is not suitable for reproduction in the OFFICIAL REPORT and, to meet the convenience of the hon. Member, I am sending him the relevant pages from the last edition of the "Air Pilot" brought up to date.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many Arabs formerly in possession of land in Palestine are now landless as the result of the sale of the whole of their land to Jewish immigrants; and if it is known how many of these persons are unemployed?

This statistical information is not in my possession; but I am addressing an inquiry to the High Commissioner.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many Arabs are known to have entered Palestine during the last three years; and how many of these are being employed by the Government?

Recorded Arab immigration into Palestine in the years 1933 to 1935 consists of 1,950 persons, not including Egyptians who number 450. Of these 356 are at present employed by the Palestine Government, all except 13 being daily paid workers. In addition to immigrants, temporary and seasonal migrations cause flow and ebb of some thousands of men across the frontiers each year. No reliable estimate of their numbers at any time of the year can be supplied, though during the harvest season their numbers are large.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what has been the increase in the Arab population in Palestine since 1922; and in what parts of Palestine has this increase chiefly taken place?

The Arab population is estimated to have increased during the years 1922 to 1935 by about 270,000. The largest proportional increase has been in the towns of Haifa, Jerusalem and Jaffa and in the coastal districts where citrus cultivation predominates.

asked the Minister of Pensions as representing the First Commissioner of Works whether his attention has recently been drawn to the unsatisfactory nature of the ventilation of the chamber and galleries of this House; and whether he proposes to make any immediate improvement?

The question is under review, but any right hon. Friend regrets that it will take some time before final conclusions are available.