asked the Secretary of State for War whether he has inspected the austerity style of suits at present being issued to men demobilised from the Armed Forces; and whether he is satisfied that the weight and type of cloth as now used is considered to be of a satisfactory quality to merit further production?

The answer to the first part of the Question is "Yes, Sir." The cloth used is one of the better quality utility ranges and the suits are of the austerity type which are now generally available to civilians.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he is aware that some of the labourers employed at a R.N.A. Depot, of which he has been informed, who have returned to work after being discharged from the Army, complain that they have been penalised by their war service in not being up-graded as skilled labourers, as they would have been if they had not been called up in the Armed Forces; that they are suffering a disadvantage which will continue after the war as against men who joined the R.N.A. Depot at a later date; and whether, in such cases, the pledge of reinstatement given to serving men is being fully implemented?

Four ordinary labourers, who were called up under the National Service (Armed Forces) Acts have returned to their former civil employment at R.N.A.D., Upnor, following discharge from the Forces. All four men have been reinstated exactly in accordance with the provisions of Section 14 of the Act of 1939, that is to say as ordinary labourers. There is no guarantee that they would have been upgraded to skilled labourers had they not been called for service in the Forces. In common with all the ordinary labourers in the establishment, they are eligible for upgrading as skilled labourers as vacancies occur, subject only to the test of suitability; they suffer no disadvantage in this respect by reason of their service with the Forces; and have made no complaint or representations on this subject to the appropriate local officers.

asked the Home Secretary whether, in view of the recent incident at Dover, where a Sunday entertainment arranged for the troops had to be cancelled through the action of one civilian, he now proposes to take any action to prevent its repetition and to enable Service men to enjoy the recreation they desire when not engaged in military activities on Sunday?

Proposals which the Home Secretary made in 1941 for empowering local authorities to permit theatrical performances on Sundays during the war were rejected by this House, and as he has previously stated he is not prepared to re-open the question without some clearer indication than he has at present that the House wishes to reconsider its previous decision.

asked the Minister of Food whether he is aware that the harvest of olive oil in the Mediterranean area has been very good; and whether he is making arrangements for the importation of some part of it to relieve the shortage of first-quality fats in this country?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to him on 10th November. The statement I made then still holds.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether, in view of the urgent need for increased milk production, he will consider increasing the scale of rationing of feeding stuffs to those producers who are farming on marginal land where high protein foods cannot be grown?

Coupons for feeding stuffs for the maintenance of milk production of dairy herds on marginal land farms are already issued by agricultural executive committees in cases where need is shown.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he can now give the authority, statutory or otherwise, whereby the Treasury gratuity paid to the legal personal representatives of a deceased civil servant is held liable for the discharge of debt owed by the deceased, when such gratuity is deemed not to be part of the estate?

As stated by my predecessor on 4th August, 1942, the ordinary gratuity payable on the death of an established civil servant is payable to his legal personal representatives and forms part of the deceased's estate. As such, it is available without statutory authority for payment of his debts, and this is provided by Section 2 (1) of the Superannuation Act, 1909, in error referred to in my right hon. Friend's answer as the Superannuation Act, 1919. In certain circumstances gratuities are payable on the death of civil servants through injury, but such gratuities are paid in respect of his children and do not form part of his estate.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many farmers are paying Income Tax under Schedule D; and how many are paying Excess Profits Tax?

The number of farmers paying Income Tax under Schedule D is about 104,000; of these it is estimated that about 3,500 are liable to Excess Profits Tax.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has any statement to make about the amount of the fiduciary note issue?

Yes, Sir. The Treasury acting under the power conferred by Section 8 of the Currency and Bank Notes Act, 1928, as subsequently amended, have authorised an increase in the amount of the fiduciary note issue by £50,000,000 to £1,100,000,000 as from 7th December, 1943. The Treasury Minute will be laid before Parliament.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies to what extent the barter system of trade obtains in Sierra Leone; in what circumstances police are authorised to seize the general products of the country whether the producer is present or not; what is the form of receipt left in payment for goods which can later be used for exchange purposes; and whether he is aware that a considerable unrest is resulting in the Colony from this system?

In order to stimulate the production of certain essential imports, and also essential foodstuffs for local use, a system has been introduced in Sierra Leone whereby the receipt of merchandise by producers is made dependent on their offering produce for sale. Producers are not forced to accept payment in merchandise, but entitled to receive it up to 75 per cent. of the value of the produce which they tender. The object of the system is to secure that, at a time when purchasing power is relatively abundant, and merchandise scarce, the producer gets his fair share of it. I append a statement giving further details of this arrangement which includes the answers to the second, third and fourth parts of the Question.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies to what extent there is a shortage of foodstuffs in Sierra Leone?

The Governor informs me that there is now no shortage of foodstuffs in Sierra Leone. For a short period last summer there was insufficient rice in the area round Freetown for the big concentration of people caused by the Services and labour employed on essential work. The shortage was met by imports of rice and by supplementing the rice issue with other foodstuffs.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps have been taken to compensate the people in Sierra Leone who have been deprived of their land since 1939 as a result of the proposed Porcupine Ridge Forest Reserve?

I have no recent information about the claims referred to by the hon. Member and I have asked the Governor for a report. I will communicate with him as soon as I receive it.

asked the Home Secretary the number of societies for adoption of children now registered in England and Wales; and whether he will include a list of names and addresses in the OFFICIAL REPORT?

Thirty-two societies have been registered. The names and addresses are as follow:

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that in 1917 an agreement was reached that any prisoners of war in Britain or Germany undergoing punitive imprisonment, inter alia, for attempts to escape, should be released within two months, and the sentences suspended until and reviewed after the end of the war and also limiting future sentences; and whether he will endeavour to make a similar agreement now?

I would remind my hon. and gallant Friend that when the Prisoners of War Convention was negotiated in 1929, Articles were included which have substantially the same effect as the agreement to which he refers. These are Articles 50 and 54. This Convention is in force as between His Majesty's Government and the German Government and he will see, therefore, that his wishes in this respect have already been met.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will reconsider the case, details of which have been sent to him, of a student of London University who was improperly placed by the medical officers in Medical Grade I and assigned to work in coalmines until certified both by his pit doctor and by his family practitioner as unfit for this occupation, and when this verdict was challenged by the Ministry who required an examination by a doctor of its own choice, the verdict of unfitness was confirmed; and whether he will now allow this student to return to his study?

Reservation as a medical student was withdrawn from this man because he failed to make satisfactory progress in his studies. He cannot again be granted reservation to enable him to resume his studies. I am advised that, on the evidence available, it is by no means certain that this student was improperly placed in Grade I when he was examined by a medical board in May last. Arrangements have, however, been made for him to be re-examined and I will communicate the result to my hon. Friend as soon as it is available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he is aware that most people who cultivate allotments feel that they have an insecure tenure and might be called upon to relinquish their holdings when peace returns; and will he consider a post-war scheme whereby allotment holders will not be dispossessed?

Unless in exceptional cases the land is urgently required for some other purpose war-time allotment holders are assured of undisturbed possession at least until the official termination of the war, which may be some time after the cessation of hostilities. The post-war position regarding allotments will come up for consideration in all its aspects in the near future.

asked the Postmaster General the number of depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank at the latest convenient date and the aggregate amount of the deposits?

The number of depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank at 27th November, 1943, was approximately 17,100,000 and the aggregate balance due to them was in round figures £1,222,400,000.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport the objects for which the Merchant Navy Supply Association, Limited, was established?

The principal purpose of the Merchant Navy Supply Association is to ensure the supply of the necessary ship's stores to merchant ship's store dealers and to shipowners. The Association endeavours as far as possible to co-ordinate the requirements of the goods. It does not work for profit.

asked the Home Secretary whether he will instruct the Metropolitan Police to give further attention to the numbers of motor vehicles using wrongly constructed or incorrectly adjusted head-lamp masks during the hours of darkness, causing serious inconvenience and danger to other road users and to further check the masks of a new type in use on vehicles of the London Passenger Transport Board in the Kingston area, some of which give serious cause of complaint?

Headlamp masks are given close attention by the police, and I have no reason to suppose that further instructions are called for. The new masks in use by the London Passenger Transport Board, to which my hon. Friend refers, are of a recognised type, and I am informed that their adjustment is checked daily by the Board's officials. No case of faulty adjustment of these masks has come to the notice of the police.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will consult the medical committees of the London general hospitals as to steps to be taken to meet the most recent requirement of doctors to join the Services, thus reducing the hospital staffs to a proportion which does not provide civilian patients with proper medical treatment; and, in view of the fact that there is now an average of only one doctor to every 3,000 civilians, what is the proportions of doctors to men in the Services?

My medical officers will be prepared, as always, to consult with, and so far as possible advise, any hospital which is in special difficulty with regard to medical staff. I would point out, however, that the decision to accelerate the recruitment of a certain number of recently qualified doctors holding house appointments in hospitals affects far less than half the total of doctors holding such appointments, although in individual hospitals the proportion may be as high as one-half of the house officers. The house officers are, of course, only a proportion of the medical staff of a hospital and I am advised that the recruitment referred to should not result in depriving civilian patients of essential treatment. Special arrangements are being made whereby the doctors will not be required to take up duty with the Forces for a few weeks. I am glad to say that, in addition, the Service Departments are prepared, on the request of my officers, to make the services of their medical officers available as far as possible to hospitals in urgent need of such assistance. With regard to the second part of the Question, the average number of civilians per general practitioner is rather less than 3,000 over the country as a whole. For the corresponding information as to the Services I must refer my hon. Friend to the Ministers concerned.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware of the extreme difficulty experienced by many officers' wives in obtaining accommodation for their confinement; and whether he can take any steps to increase such accommodation?

My attention has been called to difficulty experienced in obtaining accommodation for confinement in some parts of the country though not specially on the part of officers' wives. The number of maternity beds in the country as a whole has been increased by some 4,600 since the war began, and I am doing what is possible, in view of the shortages of labour and materials, to encourage further provision.

asked the Minister of Health whether he has considered the copy of the resolution passed by the Kent Borough and Urban District Councils Association on 26th November, 1943, with regard to local government reform; and what was the nature of his reply?

I have seen the resolutions to which my hon. Friend refers, but I am not at present in a position to add to the statement made on 22nd September by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and the letter, therein referred to, from my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister without Portfolio to the Association of Municipal Corporations and County Councils Association.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport what is the percentage of empty vehicles running under Ministry direction since the Ministry took control and the corresponding figure for each of the previous three years?

I regret that the information for which my hon. Friend asks could not be obtained without the expenditure of a vast amount of labour, for which man-power is not available.