asked the Minister of Agriculture what action he has taktn, or proposes to take, to mitigate the losses of sheep producers caused through the severe fall in sheep prices?

The consultations with regard to imports of mutton and lamb from the principal Dominion suppliers, to which I have referred in my replies to previous questions, are still proceeding, but, as I have explained in those replies, the fall in sheep prices is due to a variety of causes, including an appreciable decline in the world prices of wool and skins, over which the Government have no control.

Will my right hon. Friend answer the other part of the question—what action he proposes to take to mitigate the losses of sheep producers?

I have informed my right hon. Friend about the consultations which have taken place. As regards the larger question, it is hardly suitable for discussion at Question Time. Perhaps he will raise the question next Wednesday in the discussion.

Will the right hon. Gentleman be able to give me a definite answer on Wednesday?

I will give the best answer I can to any question my right hon. Friend may put to me.

Is the object of these consultations to restrict the importation of foreign mutton and lamb and to raise the price here?

It is designed to ensure a regulated market for imported produce in this market.

Is it designed to raise prices here?

It is intended to save the market from undue fluctuations.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what steps the Government are now taking to ensure for 1939 a more adequate supply of skilled labour to work on the soil?

The maintenance of an adequate supply of skilled workers for agriculture must depend in the main on the general economic position of the industry, and the Government's policy is directed towards securing an improvement in that respect. My hon. Friend will be aware that important statutory provisions have recently been made for the improvement of the housing accommodation available for agricultural workers.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware of the imperative importance of maintaining skilled labour in order to increase the production of homegrown foodstuffs?

I am aware of the importance of that matter.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he will consider giving a year's trial to the emergency plans already formulated by the Government to increase home-grown foodstuffs with a view to testing their practicability?

No, Sir. My hon. Friend's suggestion is not a practicable one.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that increased home production is not a machine and you cannot press a button and that it takes "years to cultivate the soil and get a crop?"

My hon. Friend in his question suggests that the Government should now put into operation any plans they may have for the rapid expansion of production in time of war. I think he would find that that suggestion would not be received with any support by the farming community.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that the scheme is utterly unworkable?

I do not think my hon. Friend knows what the scheme is.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that at the present rate of progress the farmer's boy will become as extinct as the Dodo?

asked the Minister of Agriculture what was the average per capita consumption of liquid milk in Great Britain at the most recent date for which the information is available; and what was the average price per pint at the same date?

The average per capita consumption of liquid milk in Great Britain during the year ended 31st May, 1936, the latest period in respect of which adequate information is available, is estimated to have been two-fifths of a pint daily, the average retail price being approximately 3¼d. per pint during that year.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that average consumption of milk in this country is below that of European countries and that the average price is higher than in continental countries? Will he, therefore, take steps to increase the consumption and reduce the price of milk in this country?

The policy of the Milk Marketing Board is to increase the consumption of milk. As regards the comparison with other countries, the hon. Member must remember that we consume large quantities of milk produce in the form of butter and cheese, and that although the consumption of liquid milk may be below that of other countries, the consumption of butter is extremely high.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what are the proposals of the Milk Marketing Board for the formation of central milk distributing depots; whether he is aware of the considerable anxiety of dairymen with regard to these proposals; and whether he can make any statement with the object of allaying that anxiety?

I am not aware of any proposals of the kind referred to by my hon. and gallant Friend.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there is considerable anxiety among retail producers of milk that the Milk Marketing Board are going into the retail milk trade, and can he give the House an assurance that his is not the case?

I am not aware of any proposal of the kind referred to, but if the hon. and gallant Member has any particular proposal in mind, perhaps he will put down a specific question and I will give him a reply upon it.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what Treasury payments have been made to cattle owners for the purpose of eradicating tuberculosis under Part IV of the Agriculture Act, 1937?

During the period of three months following the date on which Part IV of the Agriculture Act, 1937, came into operation, namely, 1st April, 1938, payments totalling £4,085 were made out of the Diseases of Animals Account to cattle owners in respect of assistance under the Tuberculosis (Attested Herds) Schemes towards the cost of tuberculin tests with a view to eradicating tuberculosis from the herds concerned. The milk bonus of one penny per gallon payable under the schemes to owners of attested herds is paid by the appropriate milk marketing board, which subsequently recovers from the Ministry the amounts paid. No claims for the recovery of bonus paid in respect of the months of April, May and June have yet been made by the boards, but it is estimated that the amount to be claimed will be about £40,000.

asked the Minister of Agriculture how many consumers' committees appointed under Section 9 of the Agricultural Marketing Act, 1931, are still holding regular meetings; how many meetings have been held by these committees during the last two years; in what districts they generally held such meetings; by whom these committees were appointed; the length of their appointment; and how many, and what changes, have taken place in the composition of same during this period?

As the answer is a long one, I will, with the hon. Member's permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Is the right hon. Gentleman satisfied that these committees are doing good work?

Yes, Sir.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is in a position to make a statement with regard to the Government's policy for the poultry industry?

With the hon. Member's permission I will make a statement at the end of Questions.

The Government have given very careful consideration to the position of the poultry industry in all its aspects. They have had before them the reports of the Reorganisation Commissions for Eggs and Poultry, the report of the Poultry Technical Committee and the provisional proposals drawn up by the leading producers' organisations for a marketing scheme under the Agricultural Marketing Acts. They have also taken into consideration the results of recent consultations with representatives of organisations of producers and distributors.

Following a period of rapid expansion after the War, the industry has experienced an appreciable decline in the last three years. That decline appears to have been due to several factors, and the Government accept the view of the Poultry Technical Committee that one of the most vital factors affecting the prosperity of the industry in the whole of Great Britain at the present time is the high incidence of mortality in poultry flocks. The Government are impressed by the committee's views as to the very serious and urgent nature of the disease problem in the poultry industry, and they agree substantially with the recommendations of the committee as to the manner in which the problem should be tackled.

The Government accordingly propose that a Poultry Commission for Great Britain should be set up with power to control the distribution of breeding stock, hatching eggs and day-old chicks; and with the responsibility of conducting a stock improvement scheme on voluntary lines, assisted by premiums from the Exchequer on a diminishing scale. In addition, the Government are prepared to facilitate the establishment of a research station for the investigation of the major disease problems of the industry: to give sympathetic consideration to a scheme, which the Commission will be asked to prepare, for the establishment of a progeny-testing station with a view to the production of the highest quality foundation stock; and to co-operate in making increased provision for educational and advisory work among poultry producers. The proposal for a poultry research station is already under consideration by the Agricultural Research Council.

The Government are of the opinion that another factor contributing to the present difficulties of the industry is the lack of organisation in the marketing of Home produced eggs and poultry. This problem was dealt with in the reports of the Reorganisation Commissions appointed under the Agricultural Marketing Acts in 1933, and has since been discussed at length by the leading organisations of producers. The proposals provisionally submitted by the English organisations in December last envisaged the promotion of a statutory marketing scheme, the main object of which would be the regulation of the marketing of eggs by the standardisation of grading and packing.

There appears to be general agreement among the organisations representing both producers and distributors that some improvement in the present methods of marketing home-produced eggs is needed. Such a large proportion of individual poultry-keepers are in a small way of business, however, that the regulation of marketing under a producers' marketing scheme would present a very formidable task; moreover, it is doubtful whether a producers' marketing scheme would be the most effective, or indeed, the most appropriate, machinery for securing, for example, the standardisation of grades, since this is an object which necessarily involves the regulation of marketing practices in the wholesale and retail distributive trades. As an alternative to action by producers under the Agricultural Marketing Acts, therefore, the Government propose that the Poultry Commission should be given power to regulate the marketing of eggs, and also of dead poultry, by the standardisation of grades, etc., up to the point of final sale to the consumer.

In connection with this proposal for marketing reform, the Government are prepared to ask Parliament to provide a limited sum of money by way of loans to facilitate the establishment of producers' co-operative egg packing stations and by way of grants for the demonstration of efficient methods of packing dead poultry.

Careful consideration has been given to the claims of the industry that the existing tariff protection against imports from foreign sources should be supplemented by direct financial assistance in the form of an Exchequer subsidy, whether to off-set the present high cost of feeding stuffs or to provide in effect a guaranteed minimum price for eggs in the flush season. The Government are satisfied, however, that a subsidy for egg production would not only involve very serious administrative difficulties but would not be likely in the long run to be to the advantage of the industry as a whole. The Government do not propose therefore to invite Parliament to make provision for the payment of a subsidy.

On the other hand, the Government recognise that the quantitative regulation of imports of eggs and poultry may be necessary in certain circumstances. The Government are not prepared to restrict imports for the purpose of raising the normal levels of prices; only an increasingly drastic restriction of imports of eggs would effect and maintain (and then only for a limited period) any appreciable rise in prices. The Government feel, however, that if the task of establishing the poultry industry in Great Britain on a firm foundation is to be undertaken with energy and confidence, the industry should be safeguarded against possible dislocation of the market resulting from abnormal arrivals from overseas. They propose accordingly to seek power to regulate imports of eggs and other poultry products in the event of such a danger arising. Power will also be sought to, regulate imports, if necessary, in conjunction with, and in support of, any organised operations that may be undertaken by the industry, by storage during the spring flush, with a view to modifying the extreme seasonal variations of supplies and prices.

The Government commend these proposals as a policy which will materially assist the poultry industry by enabling effective steps to be taken to secure an all-round improvement in the quality of breeding stock and to reduce the heavy and increasing loss from disease, a loss which has been estimated at no less than £4,000,000 a year for adult laying-birds in England and Wales alone; and by facilitating reforms which should lead to greater efficiency and economy in the marketing field.

Legislation to give effect to these proposals will be introduced as soon as possible.

I think we are entitled to thank the right hon. Gentleman, though much of his statement was what the Government are not going to do instead of what they are going to do. May I ask when we may expect this legislation; whether Scotland and England will be taken together under one general policy; and whether consideration will be given, as he has said it will be, to the position of the poultry farmer who is exclusively employed in raising poultry and eggs as contrasted with the general farmer with a mixed farm?

How much dearer does the Minister expect eggs to become? Will they not become altogether outside the pockets of the working class, just as in the case of milk and other commodities other marketing schemes have made everything dearer for the democracy?

In reply to the hon. and learned Member for Argyll (Mr. Macquisten) this is not a marketing scheme at all, and I do not anticipate that any increase in the price of eggs will necessarily follow these proposals. It would be very inadvisable to check the consumption of eggs by any policy.

Then who is going to pay for this huge body of officials?

In reply to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Mathers), the answer to his first question is that legislation will be introduced as soon as possible, but the course of Parliamentary business is not a matter which I can confidently predict. As to his second question, the legislation envisaged in this answer will be on a Great Britain basis. The answer to his third question is that consideration will be given to the different conditions which affect the specialist producer and the farmer who produces eggs as part of his ordinary business.

Who is to pay for the officials? Will the hens have a vote like the cows?

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he can give an assurance that no steps will be taken to seek parliamentary approval for any of the proposed Amendments of the Potato Marketing Scheme until after the summer Recess?

The public inquiry into the proposed amendments of the Potato Marketing Scheme is being opened in London to-day, and will be adjourned to Edinburgh on Monday next. In the circumstances I do not think it would be possible to lay the Amendments before Parliament before the summer Recess.

asked the Minister of Agriclture whether in view of the impossibility of getting orders for slag or lime executed for the next six months, he will consider whether superphosphate cannot qualify temporarily for the subsidy so that a second cut of seeds and hay can be secured to make up for light crops owing to the drought?

The circumstances are not, in my opinion, such as to justify asking Parliament to consider legislation to give effect to this suggestion.

Have not prices risen above the estimate which was given when the Bill was going through?

No, Sir; that is not the case. As a matter of fact, we have arranged for the purchase of slag at lower prices than in the preceding year.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that farmers are crying out for superphosphates in order to stimulate the production of a second crop?

The considerations on account of which we did not include superphosphates in the scheme were debated during the passage of the Bill, and the hon. and gallant Member is aware of them. As a matter of fact, I am advised that the supply of super-phosphates at the present time would not have the effect of stimulating the growth of seeds so as to secure a second crop.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is aware that bacon curers in Northern Ireland are sending largely increased quantities of offals for sale into this country, and, as this will jeopardise the success of any factory rationalisation scheme under the Bacon Industry Act, what steps he proposes to take to stop this procedure; and whether he will approach the Government of Northern Ireland with a view to instituting a factory rationalisation scheme in Northern Ireland?

Such information as is available does not support the suggestion that curers in Northern Ireland are sending largely increased quantities of pig offals for sale in Great Britain and I have no reason to suppose that a factory rationalisation scheme under the Bacon Industry Bill is likely to be endangered by this trade.

asked the Postmaster-General what additional charge is made for the installation and rental of the special telephone apparatus for the use of deaf subscribers?

Amplifiers for persons with defective hearing are provided at a rental of 10s, a quarter. There is no installation charge.

Is the Postmaster-General looking forward to the time when people so afflicted can be provided with this service free of charge?

My right hon. Friend is always looking for improvements in the telephone service for those with good or bad hearing, and it is only a question of the financial effects of the hon. and gallant Member's suggestion.

asked the Postmaster-General whether his attention has been drawn to numerous complaints of the inefficient working of the telephone at and in the neighbourhood of Airdrie, Lanarkshire; and what progress has been made with the installation of an automatic exchange?

The telephone exchange at Airdrie is already automatic and my information is that the service in the neighbourhood is satisfactory. There have been very few complaints of unsatisfactory working.

Is my hon. Friend aware that one subscriber failed on three successive occasions to get a connection between London and Airdrie, and in view of that, is he satisfied that all the local complaints have in fact been reported to him?

I am not aware of the circumstances of the case mentioned by my hon. Friend, but if he will let me have full particulars I will have an investigation made.

asked the Postmaster-General how many public telephone kiosks providing a 24-hour daily service there are in each of the following islands of Scotland: Bute, Arran, Islay, Mull, Iona, Skye, and Lewis (including Harris); and whether he has any statement to make regarding the use of such telephone service over the last six years?

The numbers of public telephone kiosks providing a 24-hour daily service in the islands concerned are as follow:

Bute	…	15
Islay	…	10
Mull	…	11
Iona	…	1
Arran	…	13
Skye	…	7
Lewis and Harris	…	3

In the short time available, I am not in a position to make any statement on the extent to which the facilities have been used by the public; but if the hon. Member so wishes, the information will be obtained and communicated to him.

I shall be very much obliged.

asked the Postmaster-General whether higher rates of wages are paid and if so, what rates, in cases where young telephone girls are sent by the Post Office telephones department to work temporarily in cities away from their homes?

In certain circumstances a telephonist may receive higher age-pay or subsistence allowance. If the hon. Member will let me know the type of case he has in mind, I shall be glad to send him further particulars.

asked the Postmaster-General the number of recruits that have entered the engineering department of the Post Office in the London district during the past six months?

Three hundred and seventy-one during the six months ended 31st May last.

asked the Postmaster-General the amount of overtime worked by the Post Office engineers in the London district during the past six months, and the number of men involved?

The number of hours of overtime worked by engineering workmen in London during the six months ended 31st May, 1938, was 636,844. The average number of workmen employed during the period referred to was about 12,000.

asked the Postmaster-General how many complaints approximately his Department receives annually of wireless interference caused by neon-sign installations; and whether any action is contemplated in this connection?

Approximately 2,000 complaints are received annually regarding interference with wireless reception caused by neon-sign installations. In most of these cases the owners of the installations agree to fit interference suppression devices, although there is at present no legal power to compel them to do so. As I informed my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle-upon-Tyne, North (Sir N. Grattan-Doyle) on 21st June, the necessary inquiries regarding the possible scope and operation of a new Wireless Telegraphy Bill to deal inter alia with the question of electrical interference with wireless reception, are being actively pursued.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that, if he insists that each person using a receiving set must pay for a licence, he will debar thousands of sick persons in hospitals from this pleasure; and will he rescind this regulation for hospitals only?

Under the present regulations a single wireless licence taken out by a hospital authority covers the installation of any number of receiving sets for use by patients in the hospital.

Then, am I to take it that when it is a question of plugging into the wall it will not be taken into account in the case of a hospital?

The regulations apply to hospitals, but where the buildings are separate a separate licence has to be taken out.

asked the Postmaster-General what bookings have been arranged by his Department for the film "One Family," and the other films which were taken over by his Department from the Empire Marketing Board on 1st October, 1933; and will he give the financial results of same, stating what arrangements have been made for the future presentation of these films?

The position is still as described in my right hon. Friend's replies to the hon. Member on 18th February, 1937, and 21st March last.

Is it a fact that the sum of £I5,740, invested in this film by the Government, has been completely lost?

No, Sir, not completely lost.

Can the hon. Member say, how much has been lost?

The hon. Member had better put the question on the Order Paper.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the country's present requirements for the three Service Departments and in order to co-ordinate the supply demands of the several Departments for such purpose and avoid overlapping and competition between the Services, he will consider the appointment of a Minister of Supply so that proper priority will be observed?

I dealt at length with the question of a Ministry of Supply in the statement which I made in the House in the course of the Debate on Air Defence on 25th May. I have at present nothing to add to that statement.

Do I understand that the Prime Minister considers that a Minister of Supply is unnecessary?

The position is exactly the same as it was then.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will give an assurance that the Anglo-Italian Agreement will not be ratified before this House has had an opportunity to debate and affirm that the condition of a settlement in Spain, which formed the basis upon which conversations with Italy were entered into, has been fulfilled?

As I stated on 1st June in reply to a question by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Gorton (Mr. Benn) the agreement is not made subject to ratification, but it is provided in the body of the Protocol that its annexed instruments shall be brought into force on such a date as the two Governments shall together determine. There will be an opportunity for further discussion by the House when that date has been determined.

May I ask the Prime Minister if it is not now clear that the only settlement in Spain which the head of the Italian Government will accept is a total victory for General Franco, and if that is so, how can this agreement ever be brought into force unless the Prime Minister is prepared to accept the same definition of a settlement in Spain?

I do not think that is an accurate description of the position.

Is there any truth in the statement published in the "Times" that both the Italian and the British Governments at the time when they made this Agreement expected an early victory for Franco, and that that is why they agreed to this provision?

While I fully appreciate the Prime Minister's desire to get this agreement into operation at the earliest moment, will he give the House an assurance that it will not be brought into operation until Italian troops and airmen have left Spanish territory, and particularly the island of Majorca?

I am not prepared to add anything to what I have said already.

:Does the original answer imply that agreement will not come into force Recess?

I do not think it implies that.

Would it not make for international understanding if the Prime Minister would issue some kind of statement as to what he had in mind when he spoke of some settlement of the Spanish question, since the thing is left so vague that no one really knows what the Prime Minister meant?

I have nothing to add to my reply.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the progress already made with the Divorce and Nullity of Marriage (Scotland) Bill, he will consider the granting of some facilities to enable its remaining stages to be completed before the end of the present Session?

In view of the substantial progress made with this Bill, I hope to be able to afford facilities for the consideration of its remaining stages. It may be possible to put the Bill down for consideration either to-morrow or on Thursday after Government Business.

asked the Prime Minister whether his attention has been drawn to the daily number of oral questions to Ministers by private Members that are unanswered; and whether he is prepared to consider moving to amend the Standing Orders either to extend the time allotted to oral questions or to limit the number of supplementary questions by Members who put questions on the Order Paper?

Yes, Sir. I am aware of the position as stated by the right hon. Gentleman. In my view the remedy largely rests with hon. Members themselves, and I would draw the right hon. Gentleman's attention to Mr. Speaker's remarks only last Tuesday when he asked hon. Members to cooperate with him in getting through questions more expeditiously.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he can state, as a result of the inquiry into overcrowding in Glasgow, the number of single-apartment houses with 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, and 3 persons, respectively; the number of these houses with cases of tuberculosis; and how many have children over 16 years of age in the family?

As the answer to the first part of the question involves a number of figures, I propose with the hon. Member's permission, to circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT. With regard to the second part, I am informed that the only information available relates to a recent special investigation which showed that of the 257 cases of tuberculosis notified in one-apartment houses in 1937, 190 were in over-crowded houses. I regret that the information asked for in the last part of the question is not available.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that there is a complete report in Glasgow from the dispensaries as to where the tuberculosis cases come from? Can he not persuade the local authorities at any rate to get that information, which is very important?

Certainly, I will do my best.

asked the Prime Minister whether the Government will take the appropriate steps to transfer jurisdiction in the matter of the appointment of Justices of the Peace in Scotland from the Lord High Chancellor of England, so that in future such appointments be made by the Secretary of State for Scotland on the advice of the Lord Advocate for Scotland; and whether he has any statement to make on the subject of such appointments?

Justices of the Peace in Scotland have been since 1707 appointed by the Crown by a special commission under the Great Seal of Great Britain, and the Royal Commission on the Selection of Justices of the Peace in their report of 1911 recommended that, as long as these appointments are made by the Crown, the Lord Chancellor as Keeper of the Great Seal is the most suitable Minister to be entrusted with the responsibility of advising in the appointments to be made. In view of these considerations, I am not satisfied as at present advised, that a case has been made out for the change proposed by the hon. and learned Member.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there is a great deal of dissatisfaction in Scotland with the present method of appointment, and has he had in view the fact that the functions of Justices of the Peace in Scotland differ from the corresponding functions in England?

I think this is the first time this question has been raised, but I think all those considerations have already been taken into account.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is aware that the inadequacy of the water supply in many rural districts of Scotland will prevent full advantage being taken of the Housing (Rural Workers) Act; whether he is taking all possible steps to improve the supply of water in rural districts; and whether he proposes to introduce legislation to deal with this question?

Scottish county councils have represented that the inadequacy of water supplies in many rural districts has hampered the provision of new houses and the improvement of existing houses. My right hon. Friend's predecessor received in May a deputation from the Association of County Councils in Scotland when this question was discussed. It was agreed, in order to ascertain the real extent of the problem, that a small committee should be appointed to co-operate with the Department of Health. This committee is collecting information on the needs and rating resources of every county, and when this information is obtained the position generally will be carefully reviewed.

Does my hon. Friend appreciate that it is not much good passing a law to make it obligatory to have a fixed bath in all these rural cottages if there is no water supply? Does he intend to take any legislative action following the report on this matter?

In reply to the first part of the supplementary question, the obligation to put in a bath does not mean that a water supply must be put in if no water is available. In reply to the second part of the question, I cannot make any statement about prospective legislation.

Is it intended that they should store their vegetables in the bathroom?