asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will sympathetically consider the urgent desirability of introducing a new coupon or- other system whereby workpeople engaged in filthy and heavy occupations necessitating constant replacement of overalls will be able to secure such replacements without using ordinary coupons which are required for ordinary clothing replace- ments; and if such special arrangements are not possible by direct issue of coupons to the workers concerned, will he consider the urgent desirability of instituting a scheme whereby the employers of such men may purchase overalls in bulk without coupons for sale to their workers?

Claims for supplementary clothing coupons from workers whose normal ration is insufficient to cover their needs of working clothes including overalls, should be submitted by the trade unions concerned to the Board of Trade through the Trades Union Congress.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether he will take steps to bring shaving soap and shaving cream within the Limitation of Supplies Order, in view of the fact that their manufacture involves the use of glycerine, oil and metal tubes?

I have been asked to reply. Shaving soap and shaving creams are at present excepted from control under the Limitation of Supplies Orders. The question of the future scope of these Orders is now under consideration and I have noted the Noble Lady's suggestion.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is now able to make a statement with reference to various recommendations in the report from the Select Committee on Offices or Places of Profit under the Crown which require action other than by means of legislation?

Part 1 of the Select Committee's Report is still under consideration by His Majesty's Government and a further statement will be made in due course. As regards Part 2, I need only deal with paragraph 86, in which the Select Committee considered the position of Members who, by virtue of emergency legislation, are occupying posts which in normal times disqualify for membership. The Government fully endorse the principles set out in this paragraph, and are making special arrangements to bring it to the notice of any Members to whom certificates are issued under the House of Commons Disqualification (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1939.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is now able to make any statement with regard to the Bucknill Committee of inquiry into the escape of the "Scharnhorst," "Gneisenau" and "Prince Eugen"?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave yesterday in answer to a Question by my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Loughborough (Major Kimball).

asked the Prime Minister whether he will move for the appointment of a Select Committee to investigate the misuse of man-power in Government Departments, controlled industry and transport?

The various Government Departments responsible for the organisation of public business and industry are fully aware of the importance of the economical use of man-power. Many steps have already been taken in this connection and the matter is under constant examination and review. I do not think that a Select Committee would usefully assist in the work which is already being done.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is aware of the non-informative attitude adopted by many Government Departments in their answers to Parliamentary Questions; and whether he will take steps to draw the attention of Departments to the dangers of their present outlook by side-tracking parliamentary desire for accurate information?

No, Sir. I do not accept the statement in the first part of my hon. Friend's Question.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will name the Minister to whom Questions relating to radio communication between the Armed Forces in the field should be addressed?

Questions on this subject which necessarily affect the three Services should be addressed to the Prime Minister.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works and Buildings whether he can give a list of every corporation and authority, etc., which, by private or special legislation, is now exempted in whole or in part from laws affecting town planning or other building regulations?

The information asked for is not available and I do not think it would be justifiable to absorb the amount of labour which would be required for its compilation.

asked the Minister of Supply whether he is aware that radio telephone equipment in tanks, aircraft, infantry units and ships, is imperfectly co-ordinated, and that the sets provided do not enable satisfactory communication to be maintained; and which department of his Ministry is responsible for this equipment?

This is not a matter which is the sole concern of my right hon. Friend, but inquiries are being made and I will communicate with my hon. Friend. The department of the Ministry responsible for the design and development of radio equipment for the Army is that of the Controller-General of Research and Development.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can give an estimate of the number of Japanese subjects who have been interned in the British Empire and in Allied countries?

The number of Japanese interned in the United Kingdom has already been stated by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary in reply to an earlier Question by my hon. Friend. The number interned in the Dominions is approximately 1,300. Figures for the rest of the Empire have not yet been received, though they have been asked for. Information regarding Allied countries is not available.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he has any means of ascertaining the position of the men and women left in Singapore; if so, will he state the position of Mr. Lewis Ivor Lewis, an official in the Colonial Office there, and where people can write for information about relatives or friends?

I much regret that at the present time there is no channel of communication with Singapore, but every effort is being made to obtain information through the Protecting Power and through the International Red Cross Committee. As already announced in the Press, inquiries about British civilian and local volunteer forces personnel should be addressed to the Inquiry and Casualty Department of the Colonial Office. I regret that there is no information available at present regarding Mr. L. I. Lewis. Any information received will be notified to the next-of-kin at once.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, whether he has any information as to the safety of Christian missionaries and their families who were in Hong Kong during the invasion of the Japanese forces?

No, Sir. My hon. Friend will have heard the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, on l0th March, to which I regret that I can add nothing.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what schemes have been submitted under the Colonial Development and Welfare Act in respect to British Guiana and British Honduras either by the local government or Sir Frank Stockdale; and which have been adopted or are under consideration?

Only one application has so far been received from British Honduras. This is for the build- ing of a road from Belize to Cayo and a scheme has been made under the Colonial Development and Welfare Act to cover it. Twenty-two applications, in respect of the following matters, have been received from British Guiana: Appointment of a malariologist, extension of campaign against yellow fever mosquito, medical service for the aboriginal Indian population, material for health education instruction, equipment for a venereal diseases clinic, apparatus for the diagnosis of tuberculosis, broadcasting, lady health officer, training for sanitary inspectors, school medical officer, improvements in irrigation in West Demerara, model houses for health centre staff at Anna Regina, animal husbandry, livestock officer, marketing officer, sistor tutor, survey, improvement of river communications, experimental community centre, principal and instructor at Kingston trading centre, stock farming, buildings and equipment for Georgetown and Kitty boys' clubs, boys' work secretary, hospital secretary.Schemes in respect of the first six of these have been approved, while the last has been deferred until after the war owing to difficulty in obtaining the necessary personnel. Of the remainder, two have been referred back to the Governor for further information, while the rest are under consideration either by the Comptroller or by Government Departments in this country. Delay has occurred in several cases owing to difficulty in obtaining suitable candidates to fill the proposed appointments, while other applications have only very recently been received. In addition to these, the Comptroller has made small grants in respect of the following items—prizes for competitions amongst allotment holders in Georgetown and New Amsterdam, construction of full-scale working sanitary models for use at Anna Regina Centre, and construction of houses.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what measures of prevention and treatment are being adopted in the Gold Coast for dealing with silicosis?

Two medical officers of the Gold Coast medical service undertook an investigation into the incidence of tuberculosis and silicosis amongst mine-workers in the Tarkwa area of the Gold Coast between April, 1940, and January, 1941. Their interim report, which has been published by the Gold Coast Government, reveals that considerable progress has been made with the investigation of this problem. Arrangements were subsequently made for one of the medical officers who is a specialist in these diseases to visit South Africa to obtain the advice of the authorities in Johannesburg who have special knowledge and experience of these problems. Before adequate preventive measures can be introduced, it is necessary to obtain fuller information regarding the dust counts of the atmosphere at the various working places, and arrangements have been made for officers of the mines department to receive instruction in this subject. The report showed that the incidence of pulmonary tuberculosis was higher than that of silicosis and suggested that it was a much greater menace to the health of mine employees. The medical officer referred to above has now been freed from all routine duties to allow him to devote his full time to the investigation of the incidence of tuberculosis. All known cases of these diseases are receiving the necessary treatment, but the elimination of silicosis must of course depend on methods of prevention.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether changes in the period of service of nominated members of the Legislative and Executive Council of Northern Rhodesia have yet been proposed; and whether other constitutional changes are contemplated?

Under the Northern Rhodesian Constitutional Instruments there is no prescribed period of appointment for the nominated members of the Legislative and Executive Councils. The life of the Legislative Council is three years. But it is open to the Governor to recommend a nominated member for reappointment. In practice, the period of appointment of nominated members to the Executive Council is normally for so long as the persons concerned remain members of the Legislative Council.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he will review the position of servicemen who recover damages, for pensionable loss of limb or other disabilities, resulting from accidents whilst on duty, and in whose cases the full weekly value of the damages so recovered is deducted from the disability pension normally payable; and whether, as the men concerned are disqualified from receiving National Health Insurance cash benefits by reason of receiving damages, he will make some abatement in the weekly deduction from pension?

As stated by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in answer to a Question by the hon. Member on Tuesday last, the method of reckoning such damages in the assessment of pension is at present under review.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether, in cases of men serving in the Army or Air Force who have received war service grants in respect of civil liabilities or other special claims, and have subsequently obtained commissions, the amount of the grant is reduced in proportion to the higher rate of pay; or whether it is taken into account that messing bills and other necessary charges incidental to commissioned rank, may actually make the man's immediate financial position worse than before he obtained promotion?

When a man is granted a commission his claim to war service grant is assessed afresh, and, in computing the amount of his pay which he can be expected to contribute to his family, regard is had to his personal needs as an officer and to the expenses incidental to that status. Where officers' families suffer hardship I am afraid this is due much more to omission to apply for a grant than to the method of assessment.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any regulations have been drafted on Section 3 (5) of the War Damage Act; and, if not, when will they be ready, in view of the uncertainty of the present position?

The drafting of the regulations to which the hon. Member refers is a matter of considerable difficulty. The subject has been under constant consideration in consultation with the War Damage Commission and I am hopeful that shortly it will be possible to issue the regulations.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether he contemplates making any provision, in the case of children who have reached the school-leaving age and whose schooling has been interrupted by their return from the evacuation to the vulnerable areas before proper facilities for their education could be provided, with a view to their attending some description of continuation class to make good the deficiency caused by such interruption?

I regret that the form of continued education suggested by my hon. and gallant Friend would not be legally enforceable. No one would doubt its desirability, but it would make demands on the teaching power of the country which could not be met in present circumstances.

asked the President of the Board of Education what action is taken with regard to youths who do not come to be interviewed when summoned under the National Registration Scheme?

I understand that it is the general practice of local education authorities, in cases of failure to respond to the invitation to attend for interview, to renew the invitation and to follow up such cases.

asked the Minister of Health what is the anticipated approximate capital cost of providing nurseries for the children of munition workers; and what is the anticipated approximate cost per head of maintaining those nurseries in day-time and at night-time, respectively?

Where a hut is provided for use as a nursery the estimated expenditure on preparation, site, shell, erection and equipment is about £2,000 for a nursery for 40 children. When existing premises are used they are usually rented and capital cost depends on the amount of adaptation required. The cost of maintenance varies according to the locality and hours of opening, but is estimated as on an average approximately 3s. to 4s. per place per day, of which the mothers are expected to contribute 1s. Where nurseries are open by night as well as by day it is estimated that the cost will be approximately half as much again as for day nurseries.

asked the Minister of Information the number of women employed, in any capacity, by the British Broadcasting Corporation between the ages of 20 and 30 years?

The number is 1,750. Discussions are being held with the Ministry of Labour in order to decide how many of these women can be called up without prejudice to the work of national importance on which the B.B.C. is engaged.

asked the Minister of Labour whether, in order to encourage part-time employment in war work, he will introduce regulations to permit the payment of partial insurance contributions, associated with proportional normal benefits?

I have this matter under consideration in conjunction with my right hon. Friends the Minister of Health and the Secretary of State for Scotland.

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been called to the labour position at Bishops-gate Street Station, London, whereby through the slow action of certain porters the drivers of lorries have had to leave without the goods they had been detailed to collect; and what steps have been taken to remedy this state of affairs?

I understand there is some difficulty here in regard to piece-work arrangements and that steps are being taken for a joint investigation by the company and the trade union concerned.

asked the Minister of Labour (1) what steps he proposes to ensure that those persons hitherto classified in Grade 3, and who are not employed in any form of national service, should be compulsorily mobilised for some suitable form of national service or training;(2) whether, in view of the need for man-power economy and utilisation in all forms of national service, he will arrange a fresh medical examination for all persons under 35 years of age who have been previously rejected for military service with a view to their mobilisation for some appropriate work in the war effort?

Subject to physical ability to undertake the work, all men rejected for military service on medical grounds are considered for transfer to work of national importance or training and directions are issued as appropriate. In cases of doubt as to physical fitness arrangements are made for independent medical examination, under direction if necessary. I do not think a medical examination is necessary or desirable in every case. I can, however, assure my hon. Friends that the importance of utilising the services of these men to the fullest extent possible is appreciated by my Department, and the machinery for reviewing cases is at present under examination.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether he can give any estimate of the annual saving in shipping space which will result from making wholemeal bread compulsory in place of white bread?

No, Sir. It is not in the national interest that the quantity of foodstuffs imported into this country in time of war should be disclosed. Any estimate of the saving in imports which might result from the raising of the extraction rate would be equivalent to disclosing the total quantity of wheat imported.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food why it is proposed that, in allocating fish from all ports, except Scottish, to London, all surplus supplies of fish from all ports, including Scottish, shall be sent to London?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend, the Member for Moss Side (Mr. Rostron Duckworth) on 17th March.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food what were the values, with or without duties, of the importations from Eire of poultry, rabbits, game, etc., at the present 10 distributing centres for the period 1st January to 31st December, 1938; what are the values of the allocations at present for any suitable period to the same 10 centres; and the values of allocations to Greenock for the same two periods?

The particulars asked for in the first part of the Question are not available. As regards the second part of the Question the publication of information as to importations into the United Kingdom has, in the national interest, been suspended during the war, and the present values of imports of poultry, rabbits, game, etc., cannot therefore be disclosed.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in order to augment the nation's food supply, he will authorise, through the various sea fisheries committees, the relaxation of the inshore fishing restrictions and permit the public to use private fisheries, retaining the restrictions against taking undersized fish?

The principal restrictions imposed by local by-laws on the use of trawl and seine nets in inshore waters have already been lifted, except in the case of the largest types of fishing vessels. I doubt whether any more general relaxation of restrictions would produce beneficial results, but I am at present in consultation with the Sea Fisheries Committees as to the effect of the existing relaxation. There are very few private fisheries in tidal waters, apart from shell fisheries, and I do not think that there is any necessity to take special steps to throw open these fisheries to the public.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food whether, in view of the fact that tea taken illegally across the border is being sold at a price as high as 20s. per pound, he will take immediate steps to conserve the stocks of tea in Northern Ireland where a shortage may soon be experienced?

Yes, Sir. All practicable steps are being taken to conserve the stocks of tea in Northern Ireland.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies what was the revenue of the Nigerian Government in 1937–38, its principal items and what sums were expended on account of salaries, allowances, gratuities and pensions of European officials, pensions, leave pay, family allotments, etc., of Europeans, passages of British officials and their dependants and debt charges, interest, sinking fund, etc.?

The total revenue of the Nigerian Government in 1937–38 was £7,342,450 7s. 8d.; the principal items being: Customs, £3,504,807 13s. 2d.; Interest, £913,192 14s. 11d.; and Direct Taxes, £854,156 16s. 6d. The annual accounts do not distinguish between payments in respect of European and African officials. The amount expended on pensions and gratuities for all officials was £530,089 16s. 7d. The expenditure on ocean passages was £109,932 2s. 5d. Payments for debt charges, including interest and sinking fund, were £1,748,193 15s.

asked the Minister of Labour whether the Schedule of Reserved Occupations extends to all classes of teachers?

No, Sir. Reservation under the Schedule extends only to whole-time members of University teaching staffs, to whole-time teachers in an institution or institutions recognised as efficient by the Board of Education or under inspection by the Scottish Education Department, or which, on the recommendation of the appropriate Government Department is, or are, regarded as entitled to similar treatment, and to whole-time teachers in approved schools.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty in what circumstances have detailed particulars of the losses of ships and personnel suffered by Great Britain and her Allies in the recent three days' battle of Java been published, thereby giving valuable and reliable information to the enemy, while on the other hand the only statement available with regard to enemy losses is that these are not known; and whether arrangements will be made between the Allied Powers that information of this kind of value to the enemy should not be published, as is the practice of the British Admiralty in refraining from giving particulars of the destruction of U-boats?

The practice of the Admiralty since the outbreak of war has been to publish losses of His Majesty's ships due to enemy action as soon as possible after the event. It is realised that the enemy may thus occasionally be presented with information, but the disadvantages of concealing our losses from the public are manifest, and it is not proposed to alter present arrangements. In the case of the battle of Java, the enemy had already claimed the sinking of the ships concerned. The practice of the Admiralty is similar to that of our Allies and the Dominions. The communique of 14th March was an agreed one.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the nation's urgent need of all available manpower, he will consider in future utilising the services of qualified women veterinary surgeons as veterinary inspectors, so as to avoid the necessity of employing men of military age to fill such appointments?

I must remind by hon. Friend that veterinary surgeons of all ages, whether employed in the Ministry or elsewhere, are reserved from service in H.M. Forces. The admission of qualified women veterinary surgeons to the Ministry's veterinary inspectorate is at present under consideration but in view of the large number of vacancies in this inspectorate their admission would not avoid the necessity of employing male veterinary surgeons.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the scarcity of reliable figures for the cost of production of commodities on the farms throughout the country, he will confer with the Lord President of the Council, the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with a view to the publication of the data upon which the recent adjustment of farm prices was prepared, since the publication of this data would do much to dispel the existing impression that the awards and adjustments had not been a generous interpretation of what the agricultural industry is entitled to under the Government's pledge?

No, Sir. I have nothing to add to the public statements which I have made on this subject, except to say that the recent adjustments of farm prices represent a settlement which is just both to the farmers and the taxpayers.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he will have inquiries made regarding the conditions under which the Goldsmith House Farm, Burleydam, Cheshire, was acquired by a member of the district committee of the war agricultural executive committee in this area?

I understand that the farm was offered for sale to the sitting tenant, who refused to buy. The property was then advertised for sale by public auction and the present owner purchased it in October, 1941, by private treaty, the auction being cancelled. The fact that the purchaser is a member of the Southern Area Committee of the Cheshire War Agricultural Executive Committee does not appear to have any relevance as the transaction was a private one in regard to which neither committee was concerned.

asked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been called to the proceedings at the East London Juvenile Court during the week ended 14th March, and to the cause of the offences being the existence of Fun Fairs; and, in view of the necessity for conserving oil and coal, will he take the necessary steps to close all Fun Fairs in the country?

I have seen the letter of the chairman of the juvenile court referred to which was printed in the Press and I have received representations on the same subject from other quarters. Inquiry is being made, and I will communicate the result to my hon. Friend.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that there are still local authorities in Britain and Northern Ireland who do not allow the opening of Sunday cinemas; that it means that thousands of British and American soldiers, sailors and airmen have nowhere to go on a Sunday; and whether he will take steps to order cinemas to open in the wider interests of the troops temporarily inhabiting such localities?

Yes, I am aware of the facts stated in the first two parts of this Question; but as my hon. and gallant Friend knows, this is a subject on which there is an acute difference of opinion in some areas and Parliament decided in 1932 that the matter must be determined by local public opinion. Many local authorities on the recommendation of the competent naval, military or air force authority have decided to take advantage of the simplified procedure for Sunday opening provided by Defence Regulation 42B. No less than 223 Orders submitted in pursuance of that Regulation have been approved by Parliament. Greatly as I appreciate the need for giving adequate opportunities for recreation to His Majesty's Forces, I do not think it would be desirable to attempt to override local opinion as regards Sunday opening. Sunday opening in Scotland is a matter for my right hon. colleague the Secretary of State for Scotland, and in Northern Ireland for the Government of Northern Ireland.

asked the Home Secretary why he made an Order, under Regulation 42B, for opening places of entertainment in Bridgend, in view of the fact that the Bridgend, Glamorgan, Urban District Council approached the competent military authority instigating him to request the council to make representations for the making of such an Order?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to-day to my hon. Friend the Member for Ogmore (Mr. E. Williams).

asked the Home Secretary whether, in order to increase public confidence, he will give instructions to abolish the secrecy now surrounding the composition of local defence committees?

I hope shortly to make an announcement which will cover, among other things, the work of these committees.

asked the Home Secretary whether any useful purpose is being served by allowing large numbers of building trades operatives to continue their activities at the sites of bombed property after all useful salvage has been taken and the structures have been made safe, when their services are seriously needed in connection with work essential to the war effort?

Local and other authorities concerned have been told that structures should be made safe, highways cleared of debris, useful salvage taken, and fire risks and danger to public health removed. Some further clearing up is occasionally required by considerations of morale. In the main the labour employed would not be suitable for transfer to constructional work, but if my hon. Friend is aware of any instances in which he thinks that building trade operatives are being used on work which is unnecessary perhaps he will send me particulars. I would add that in the London region the number of men engaged on debris clearance has been reduced by 63 per cent. from the peak figure at one time employed.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware of the growing sense of frustration amongst full-time Civil Defence workers at the delay in inaugurating schemes of employment for them during their on-duty and off-duty periods; and when lie expects to be able to announce details of such schemes?

As I informed the hon. Member for Balham and Tooting (Mr. Doland) on 26th February, the main line of approach to the removal of the sense of frustration amongst full-time Civil Defence workers must be by the method of releasing them for approved industrial employment away from their depots. My right hon. Friend the Minister of Labour and National Service and I are pressing forward with arrangements for their release on as large a scale as practicable at the earliest possible date. An industrial registration of whole-time members of the Civil Defence Services is taking place next week to ascertain to what extent the Services contain men or women who, if they can be spared from or replaced in their present duties, would be able to give more effective service to the war effort by being released permanently or temporarily to other employment. This, however, does not preclude the immediate release of particular individuals for whom approved employment can now be found.Consultations on the whole subject are to take place within the next few days with representatives of the local authorities and the Trade Union Consultative Committee representing the Civil Defence personnel. I hope to be in a position to announce before Easter a comprehensive scheme which will deal not only with the release of men or women for industrial employment but with the provision of opportunities for making a more direct contribution to the war effort by those who must necessarily remain whole-time in the Services. A considerable indirect contribution to the war effort is already made by members of the Services in their off-duty periods, and much of the local authorities' non-civil defence work is already done with the aid of Civil Defence personnel during their duty periods as well as in their off-duty periods.

asked the Home Secretary how many people and how many motor cars there were at Cheltenham Races on Saturday, 14th February?

I am informed that no race meeting took place at Cheltenham on 14th February.