asked the Minister of Labour whether he proposes to make regulations under the Military Training Bill and the Holidays with Pay Act to secure that militiamen serving their subsequent period of training with the Territorials or the Reserve will be able to claim their annual holiday with pay in addition to the two weeks required for annual service with the Colours?

Neither the Military Training Act nor the Holidays with Pay Act give me power to make regulations of the kind suggested. The question of the times at which annual holiday with pay is to be given whether under voluntary agreements or under decisions of wage regulating authorities is for the industries and authorities themselves to consider, and I feel sure that this question will be dealt with in such a way as to meet the needs and convenience of employers and workers.

asked the Minister of Labour what arrangements have been made for the application of the provisions of the Military Training Act to youths of between 20 and 21 years of age in Borstal institutions, and to those of like age now undergoing sentences of imprisonment?

I have arranged with my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Home Department and for Scotland for all persons between the ages of 20 and 21 on 3rd June in Borstal institutions and prisons to be given an opportunity of registering for military training on that day. Persons so registered will not be called up for military training while serving sentences imposed by the courts.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that various local authorities consider that increased contributions might properly be required from parents of children who are sent to approved schools; and whether his Department is requesting or intends to request larger contributions by local authorities towards the cost of keeping children in such schools?

Within the prescribed limit of 23s. a court has power to require the parent of a child in an approved school to contribute such weekly sum towards his maintenance as, having regard to the means of the parent, it thinks fit. It is open to any local authority responsible for the maintenance of the child to make representations to the court at the hearing as to the amount of the parental contribution, and such representations would certainly be taken into consideration. As regards the second part of the question, it became necessary in January last, owing to unavoidable increase of expenditure, to raise the flat rate contribution payable by local authorities from 15s. to 17s. a week, I cannot forecast what the figure may be in future years.

asked the Home Secretary whether he will ask the Chairman of the Departmental Committee on the Rehabilitation of Injured Persons to consult his colleagues before deciding whether or not to recommend the publication of the evidence tendered to them upon which, among other things, their report is based?

I understand that this point has in fact been considered by the Committee.

asked the Prime Minister whether permission has been asked by and given to William Hegan, a member of the staff of the British Embassy in Berlin, to wear the life-saving decoration conferred upon him by the head of the German State for gallantry in saving a German citizen from drowning at the imminent risk of his own life?

Sergeant Hegan has made no application for permission to wear the medal conferred upon him by the Chancellor of the German Reich, nor was it in fact necessary for him to do so. Under the King's Regulations respecting foreign orders and medals, British subjects may accept and wear, without special permission, medals conferred for saving life.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what amounts, by way of subsidy and otherwise, have been paid to British Airways and Imperial Airways, Limited, respectively, in each year since the companies were formed?

The figures are as follow:

		Imperial Airways Limited.	British Airways
		£	£
1924–25	…	131,565	—
1925–26	…	138,466	—
1926–27	…	174,03.7	—
1927–28	…	226,400	—
1928–29	…	240,457	—
1929–30	…	341,700	—
1930–31	…	393.250	—
1931–32	…	480,666	—
1932–33	…	575,614	—
1933–34	…	545.313	—
1934–35	…	568,790	—
1935–36	…	431.502	2,960
1936–37	…	378,309	11,565
1937–38	…	619,625	61,888
1938–39	…	1,233,614	110,653

:asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he will provide a statement showing the list of subsidies and grants given to industries since 1st January, 1932, indicating those payable in 1939, and such items as will be repeated for one or more other years?

The following table gives particulars of the subsidies payable since 1st January, 1932, from public funds to industries and branches of industry in the United Kingdom. The 1939 figures are the amounts included in the Estimates for the year.

	1932–38	1939
	£	£
Beet Sugar	18,594,585	3,000,000
Cattle Industry— payments to producers	18,114,794	4,265,000
Milk	5,696,861	492,910
Land Fertility Improvement	1,961,513	1,500,000
Bacon Industry	—	425,010*
Oats and Barley	164,868	930,000
Herring Industry	109,807	73.450
Tramp Shipping	4,002,183	—
Mechanical Trans port	7.560	—
Light Horse Breeding	35,549	—
Civil Aviation	3,539,723	2,000,000
* Against this provision, receipts of £228,010 are anticipated.

As announced by the Minister of Agriculture on the 18th May, it is proposed to introduce legislation to enable a subsidy to be paid in respect of sheep and to amend the basis of the subsidy now payable in respect of oats and barley. The estimated cost of these subsidies for one year, on the basis of the prices ruling last year, would be:

					£
Sheep	…	…	…	…	2,500,000
Oats	…	…	…	…	2,970,000
Barley	…	…	…	…	900,000

Under these proposals the amount included in the above table for the year 1939 in respect of oats and barley would not be required.It is not possible at this stage to give an estimate of the expenditure, if any, during 1939, in connection with the proposals for the asistance of British shipping outlined by the President of the Board of Trade on the 28th March.As regards expenditure in1940 and subsequent years, the conditions governing the subsidies payable during 1939 are regulated by statutes, the operation of which, with the exception of the Milk Acts, extends to various dates beyond the current year. It is not possible to state what amounts it will be necesary to provide in subsequent years for subsidies under the terms of existing legislation.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Government is still adhering to its proposals to make compensation for air-raid damage to private property in case of war, dependent upon the distribution of available State funds pro rata over the whole field, or whether it will now, in view of the progress made with rearmament and military training, make further investigation into evolving a scheme of pure insurance?

The Government remain of the opinion that, except in the case of marine war risks and essential commodities, it is not practicable to provide a scheme of insurance against the risk of war damage to private property and they adhere to the policy which I outlined in the statement which I made to the House on 31st January last.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when His Majesty's Government intend introducing legislation for the insurance of war risks?

My right hon. Friend intends in the near future to introduce a measure to deal with the insurance of ships and cargoes against marine war risks and of certain classes of commodities against war risks on land, but he is not yet in a position to name any date.

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether arrangements will be made for the issue of permits for the purchase of sufficient petrol to enable children for whom accommodation has been arranged in receiving areas to be taken by road to their destinations on the outbreak of war?

I assume that my hon. Friend has in mind the evacuation of children outside the Government scheme. In this connection I would refer my hon. Friend to the statement which my right hon. Friend the Minister of Health made on Government policy on evacuation in the Debate on 24th May on Clause 47 of the Civil Defence Bill, particularly with reference to transport difficulties. Within the facilities available, every effort will be made to provide supplies of petrol for transport used for the voluntary evacuation of children.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether it is an obligation of local authorities and contractors engaged in carrying out works in connection with air-raid precautions schemes to employ a definite proportion of ex-service men?

I have been asked to reply. Local authorities who require additional labour in connection with work under air-raid precautions schemes have been advised that all such labour should be obtained through the Employment Exchanges. I do not think it would be practicable for the Department to stipulate the engagement of any definite proportion of particular classes of individuals; but as the hon. Member may know, it is the practice of the majority of the larger local authorities to restrict their contracts, save in exceptional circumstances, to firms enrolled on the King's National Roll.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether he is aware that the acoustics of the Chamber of the House of Commons render it difficult for speeches and questions of hon. Members below the Gangway to be heard in the Press Gallery and, to facilitate accurate reporting, will he instal a microphone whereby the speeches could be transmitted to headphones to be worn by reporters?

I have been asked to reply. I would refer my hon. Friend to the replies made to similar questions put by the hon. Members for Stoke-on-Trent, Stoke (Mr. E. Smith) and Kings-ton-upon-Hull, East (Mr. Muff), on the 1st and 2nd May respectively.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education whether local education authorities will be permitted, when Clauses 1 to 4 of the Education Act, 1936, become operative, to grant employment certificates in respect to boys who are offered seven-year apprenticeships at the age of 14 years on the ground that such employment will be beneficial to the boy, and, in view of the principle involved, and the large number of cases that will arise in all parts of the country, will he take steps to secure uniform decisions on this point by local education authorities?

Under Section 2 of the Education Act, 1936, the question of granting employment certificates for beneficial employment is to be considered by the local education authority in the light of the particular circumstances of each individual case, and the determination of the authority is to be final. The Board in a Circular, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy, has drawn the attention of local education authorities to the importance of co-operation with neighbouring authorities with the object of securing that the conditions under which employment certificates are granted are, so far as may be, similar.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the Ministry of Health was consulted before permitting the insertion in the books of postage stamps of the advertisement of a proprietary remedy for diseases of the bladder, kidney, prostate gland and rheumatism; and what sum is annually receivable by the Treasury in respect thereof?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative, but the Ministry of Health is aware of the general policy of the Post Office regarding advertisements of proprietary remedies. It is not the practice to disclose particulars of individual receipts of this kind.

asked the Paymaster-General, as representing the Lord President of the Council, whether he has considered a petition from 58 registered men and women against the imposition of compulsory immunisation in the island of Guernsey; whether a similar petition signed by 4,300 persons living in the island was also considered by him; what representations were made by other Government Departments against the proposed compulsory law; and whether the imposition of compulsion has now been sanctioned?

As regards the first and second parts of the question, two petitions in similar terms, one of which was signed by a number of medical practitioners, received full consideration. As to the rest, no representations were made by any Government Department against the Law, which received the Royal Assent on the 9th March, 1939.

asked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs whether he has any information to give the House as to the position of affairs in Newfoundland?

The Commission of Government have reported that the catch of the seal fishery this year was below average and that unseasonable weather has hampered the preparations for the cod fishery now about to begin. In view of the continued low prices ruling in the foreign markets for codfish, special measures of assistance to the fishing industry have been approved, the aim being both to facilitate exports and to ensure an adequate return to the producer. Progress is also being made with schemes for widening the scope of the industry through the increased exploitation of fish other than codfish, the development of by-products, and the export of fresh or frozen fish.The unemployment figures for March and April (which are the peak months of the year) were 80,739 and 84,659 respectively.As regards reconstruction measures generally, apart from those affecting the fish industry, the Commission's programme for 1939–40 will be announced in the Budget speech to be made in Newfoundland towards the end of this month, and I will arrange for printed copies of the speech to be placed thereafter in the Library of the House.

asked the Minister of Transport on how many occasions during the last seven years has the roadway at Nightingale's Lane, Chalfont St. Giles, been opened up, and for what purposes; and will he endeavour to arrange some collaboration between the local authority and the contractors to lessen the cost and inconvenience suffered?

I am informed by the Bucks County Council, who are die highway authority for the road, that during the past seven years the roadway at Nightingale's Lane, Chalfont St. Giles, has been opened up on 52 occasions. These openings have, for the most part, been trenches made by public utility undertakings to enable service connections to be made.Statutory undertakers have the right under the existing law to break up streets in order that they may place their mains and service connections in the subsoil. Highway authorities endeavour, so far as lies within their power, to correlate projected disturbances of this kind.My hon. Friend will recall that the whole question has recently been under consideration by a Select Committee of both Houses, whose report is now awaited.