asked the Secretary of State for War the daily meat ration of a soldier on leave; and how it compares with the meat allocated to civilians for the same.period?

As. my hon. Friend will have seen from recent announcements, arrangements have now been made by which a soldier on leave will have an entitlement to meat equivalent to that of a civilian.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food the nature of the important unrationed foodstuffs which are in short supply and on which discussions are now proceeding with manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, with a view to improving distribution?

I do not consider it desirable to give advance information as to future rationing developments.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether, as certain members of firms engaged in the butter and margarine business in a town of which he has been informed have expressed their willingness to manufacture margarine in that centre, which would meet a felt need, he will further their efforts by arranging to supply them with the required machinery and raw materials for that purpose?

No, Sir. I do not consider that the establishment of a new factory in the town referred to by my hon. Friend is required at the present time.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether the Minister has yet by order prescribed the constituents of the so-called national wheat-loaf; and, if not, what steps he has taken, or is taking, to ensure that the loaf so prescribed is made of flour of at least 85 per cent. extraction?

My Noble Friend has instructed controlled flour millers to make available national wheatmeal of a minimum extraction of 85 percent., milled to standards approved by his scientific and technical advisers, at the same price as national straight run flour. He has no reason to suppose that bakers would describe as national wheatmeal bread made from other types of flour.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether he is aware that approximately 1,500,000 tons of wheat-feed are extracted annually by millers from the wheat in the process of making white flour and used as animal food; that this wheat-feed contains the germ and the bran and therefore the greater part of the vitamins and mineral salts; whether, in the event of a serious shortage of shipping this valuable food will be diverted from animals to human beings; and at what short notice the millers will be able to adjust their mills to enable them to retain the grain in providing the national loaf?

The answer to the first part of the Question is in the affirmative; generally speaking millers can produce a flour of 85 percent. extraction without major adjustment to their machinery and without loss of working time.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether, in view of the prices fixed by his Department for eggs, he can state the membership of his Poultry Advisory Committee; how often it has been called together or consulted in the last 18 months; and what advice it has given on egg prices?

:The Home-Produced Egg Trade Advisory Committee, to which my hon. Friend presumably refers, and the Central Advisory Committee, which preceded it, have held six meetings since the beginning of the war; there have in addition been five meetings of the Scottish sub-committees. The producers' representatives on these committees have advised that prices should be fixed at levels that are remunerative to producers. The actual price levels and the dates on which they should be fixed have not been discussed by these committees as it is inexpedient that information on these matters should be disclosed by the Ministry until shortly before a change is made. I am sending to my hon. Friend a list of the members of the Home-Produced Egg Trade Advisory Committee with the organisations they represent.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether, in fixing lower egg prices now, he will take a long view of the question of the fixation of current prices next winter?

:Whenever a change is made in the maximum prices of eggs, account is taken of long-term considerations as well as of the circumstances at the time.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether there is any representative of the dental profession on the Scientific Food Committee in its present composition; and whether, in view of modern research into the influence of diet on dentition, he will add such an expert acceptable to the dental profession?

I have been asked to reply. The answer to the first part of the Question is in the negative. As regards the second part of the Question, dentition is one of the many aspects of the influence of diet on health upon which the Scientific Food Committee receives the advice of distinguished physiologists amongst its members, and I do not consider that the appointment of an expert such as my hon. Friend suggests is desirable.

asked the Minister of Supply whether he is aware of the dissatisfaction caused to owners of mills in Lancashire whose buildings are requisitioned for Government purposes, who are compelled to sell the machinery in the building to meet the requirements of the authorities and have to sell it at scrap prices; and will he consider the position with a view to compensating owners for machinery on the same basis as is being paid for buildings?

If my hon. Friend will furnish me with particulars of the mills to which he refers, I shall be pleased to make inquiries.

asked the Minister of Health, what was the death rate from diabetes in England and Wales for the years 1939 and 1940?

The death rate from diabetes in England and Wales in 1939 was 185 per million persons living. The approximate death rate for the first 6 months of 1940 was 150 per million persons living. The death rate for the whole of 1940 is not yet available.

asked the Minister of Information what steps are being taken to put the Allied case to the followers of Islam, particularly in North Africa and the Middle East?

All possible steps are being taken in the direction indicated.

asked the Postmaster-General whether, in view of the heavy fall in postal revenue, he will consider reducing the letter rate from 2½d. to 2d., and the postcard rate from ad. to 1½d.?

The fall in postal revenue to which the hon. Member refers was for the year 1939–40. Since then postal rates have been increased and there is a large increase in revenue in the current year.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will consider the introduction of a system of code messages for soldiers and civilians at home, similar to that introduced for the Army in the Near East, so that relatives and friends can communicate easily and cheaply reassuring messages when circumstances call for them?

:The coding of inland telegrams, which are mostly very short, would not enable a better or cheaper service to be given. Every effort is being made to give as quick a service as possible, and I am afraid that no re- duction in the existing charge of 9d. for nine words can be justified.

asked the Postmaster-General what safeguards are adopted to secure that a reasonable price is obtained for the benefit of the owner, or, failing discovery of the owner, for the benefit of the Crown, when perishable articles contained in parcels, which cannot be delivered Or returned to the senders, are sold to members of the Post Office staff?

The only office in London where there is any appreciable quantity of undeliverable perishable articles is the Returned Letter Section, where such sales are under the personal control of a responsible Supervising Officer, who decides when an article must be sold to avoid total loss, and fixes the selling price with due regard to current retail prices and the condition of the article. A detailed record of all such sales is maintained, and this record is examined at regular intervals by the officer in charge of the Returned Letter Section. At other Returned Letter Offices in the provinces a somewhat similar arrangement is in force.