asked the Minister of Labour how many aliens have been granted facilities under the Further Education and Training Scheme of his Department; what is the cost per head of providing such training; and whether, in future, it is intended to make these facilities available to aliens unless they undertake to apply for naturalisation at a later date.

So far, three aliens have received grants under this scheme, which is administered by the Education and Agricultural Departments in association with my own. One of the conditions of the scheme is that applicants must have been engaged in work of national importance which has prevented or interrupted their further education or training. Subject to this condition, among others, aliens are eligible for grants provided that British subjects are not thereby excluded. The cost of providing this training varies widely with the type of training and the circumstances under which it is received, and no general indication of the cost per head can be given. I do not contemplate imposing the further condition suggested by my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Labour why it has been decided to legislate by Defence Regulations, S.R. & O., 1944, No. 181, that the day on which Good Friday occurs this year shall not be Good Friday in certain circumstances; why Scotland is being better treated in this respect; and whether every effort was made to achieve his limited object without giving any possible offence to religious feeling.

These Regulations remove certain legal obligations, which do not exist in Scotland, to treat Good Friday as a compulsory holiday in the Customs and at factories. Save for certain special provisions with regard to Bills of Exchange, the Regulations are identical with those made last year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been called to the lenient sentences recently imposed on boys who have broken into Home Guard ammunition stores and stolen bombs and ammunition; and whether he will circularise magistrates calling attention to the importance of adequate sentences in these cases in view of the dangers to the public involved.

I have been informed of the decision of the courts in a number of similar cases, including the one of which my hon. and gallant Friend has been good enough to send me particulars. It is the duty of the magistrates to take into consideration all the relevant circumstances, including the need for protecting the public from dangerous mischief of this type. The cases I have seen do not lead me to believe that the magistrates are disposed to disregard this consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why no explanatory memorandum was attached to the Alien Protected Areas Order (S.R. & O., 1944, No. 176), which involves reference to an Act of Parliament and 15 earlier Orders.

The general effect of this Order, as was explained in my answer to the Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Batley and Morley (Mr. H. Beaumont) on 24th February, is to maintain, within the Aliens Protected Areas, certain restrictions which no longer apply outside those Areas. The Order is also a consolidating Order. It has not been the practice to attach an explanatory memorandum to Orders made under the Aliens Order of 1920, and I do not think that the present Order is so complex as to require one.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is aware that certain water authorities, including the Metropolitan Water Board, continue their previous practice of cutting off the water supplies of peoples in arrear with their rates; and whether, in view of the dangers from air-raids involved, not only to those directly concerned, but also to their neighbours, he will effect the discontinuance of this practice.

I realise the need for securing adequate supplies of water for fighting fires in residential districts, but I do not think that the method suggested is practicable or would meet the end in view. An arrangement has, however, been made by which local authorities can instal small water containers in the poorer districts where the houses are dependent entirely upon the mains. Expenditure so incurred by local authorities ranks for grant.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider arranging for another day of national prayer before the opening of the second front.

This suggestion has been considered by His Majesty's Government, but they do not see their way to adopt it.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any decision has yet been come to in regard to increasing the pay of the auxiliary police to make it comparable with that of the regular police force when the same duties are being performed.

I have received requests from the Auxiliary Police Associa- tion that the pay of the police auxiliaries should be differentiated from that of the other war-time services, but I have been unable to accede to these requests.

asked the Minister of Health how long after the war is to be allowed for the resettlement of the population, military and civilian, before the next census takes place.

It is not at present possible to foresee by what future date the population, military and civilian, will have become re-settled under normally stable conditions. The value of a census depends in many respects upon the stability of the population when the census is taken; though I do not exclude the possibility of a special census if the need becomes acute. About a year and a half, however, is required for preparations, which include the recruitment and instruction of some 60,000 enumerators. Normally, the full value of a census depends upon its place in a decennial or quinquennial series synchronising with Dominions and international practice in census taking.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will rescind the rule whereby the public assistance boards compel a man to accompany his wife and family in the event of his being admitted to a public institution.

No, Sir. I assume that the rule to which my hon. and gallant Friend is referring is that under which an able-bodied man in receipt of wages may not receive relief except in special circumstances. I am satisfied that this is a sound rule and ought not to be abolished. I am, however, inquiring into the case which I assume that my hon. and gallant Friend has in mind.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he will institute a large-scale scientific inquiry as to the relative value of the different means of adding to land fertilisation.

Investigations on different aspects of this subject are constantly in progress and the need for extending them is continually under review by the Ministry in conjunction with the Agricultural Research Council.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether, in view of the fact that agricultural progress in this country would be much improved by arrangements for the distribution of increased supplies of electric power at reasonable rates throughout those country districts where no such facilities at present exist and by the installation of power units and other necessary equipment by long term instalment payments at low interest rates, he will consider taking steps to effect such improvements.

I presume my hon. and gallant Friend has in mind the post-war position, and I would refer him to the reply which I gave to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for East Norfolk (Colonel Medlicott) on 16th February.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what is the approximate acreage, formerly liable to periodic flooding and restored to permanent cultivation since the start of the war.

Figures are not available, but a large acreage of land which was either liable to flooding or was waterlogged has been improved as a result of drainage schemes carried out during the war.

asked the Minister of Food whether he will arrange for small stocks of bananas to be in the hands of medical authorities available for the use of children suffering from cœliac disease, as this is the only known recognised possible cure.

Yes, Sir. As bananas form a useful addition to the diet of children suffering from cœliac disease, arrangements are being made by my right hon. Friend which he hopes will result in enough bananas being imported in dried form to provide all approved cases of cœliac disease with the supplies they need.

asked the Minister of Food what steps he is taking to stop the profiteering in the London area for officers and men of the Allied Forces who require accommodation when on leave for one or two nights.

No representations have been received by my Department from the Service authorities on this matter. If my hon. Friend has any particular cases in mind I should be glad if he would let me have the details.

asked the President of the Board of Education what are the qualifications and experience of regional organisers of C.E.M.A.; and whether these posts are open to public competition and the vacancies for them advertised in the newspapers.

The regional officers appointed by C.E.M.A. are carefully chosen by a panel of the Council and its Directors, which meets to interview candidates for vacancies. Each regional officer must have expert knowledge of one branch of the work, music, painting or drama; combined with administrative experience. Most of those at present on the staff have had previous experience of C.E.M.A. work as artists or as independent organisers. The Council has not, so far, advertised vacant posts in the Press, although it may find it desirable to do so at a later date.

asked the President of the Board of Education the exact nature of the eyesight tests given at the medical inspections in schools; and whether any optical inspection, as distinct from an external ophthalmic inspection, is made at regular intervals in the case of every school-child.

All children have their eyesight tested for visual acuity on the occasions of routine medical inspection in the schools, which take place two or three times during their school career. These tests are carried out by the School Medical Officer or by nurses working under his supervision with the use of Snellen's test type. If the vision is found to be defective, the child is referred for ophthalmology logical examination, carried out for the most part by specialists in ophthalmology, or in some areas by School Medical Officers who have had special experience. If the term "optical inspection" in the second part of the Question means tests of visual acuity the answer is in the affirmative.

asked the President of the Board of Education the school population per thousand of the populations of the Parliamentary Boroughs in Lancashire, separately for each borough.

Following is the information:Table showing the number of pupils on the registers of public elementary schools on 31st March, 1939, per 1000 of population (estimated at the middle of 1938) in each Parliamentary Borough in Lancashire.

Parliamentary Borough and Public Elementary School population per 1000 of population.
Accrington	…	…	110.3
Ashton-under-Lyne	…	…	112.7
Barrow-in-Furness	…	…	126.9
Blackburn	…	…	113.9
Blackpool	…	…	85.1
Bolton	…	…	111.4
Bootle	…	…	147.9
Burnley	…	…	110.4
Bury	…	…	106.4
Eccles	…	…	120.6
Leigh	…	…	129.2
Liverpool	…	…	154.4
Manchester	…	…	127.4
Nelson and Colne	…	…	99.2
Oldham	…	…	107.6
Preston	…	…	128.5
Rochdale	…	…	107.6
Rossendale	…	…	108.3
St. Helens	…	…	170.8
Salford	…	…	136.6
Southport	…	…	90.1
Warrington	…	…	140.1
Wigan	…	…	139.2

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what additional expenditure has been approved by Parliament since the outbreak of war in respect of social services, old age pensions, the pay and allowances to men in the fighting Services and the like, showing the total cost under each item in a full year for which provision will have to be made by the taxpayer.

The answer is as follows:

(a) Provision made in Civil Estimates, 1939 and 1943 (including Supplementary Estimates) for certain services.

	1939	1943
	£000	£000
Unemployment Insurance and Assistance	66,513	33,455
Education, including Teachers' Pensions	61,210	70,253
Housing Subsidies	18,465	18,528
National Health Insurance, and Grants for certain Health Services	7,376	10,328
Old Age and Contributory Pensions	69,047	77,855
Supplementary Pensions	—	46,250
War Pensions (1914–18 war)	38,629	35,544

(b) Expenditure on pensions, etc., arising out of the present war is not provided for in the ordinary Estimates but is charged to the Vote of Credit. The cost in 1942, the last year for which figures are available, was £9,989,000.

(c) Excluding post-war credits, the additional charge for the year 1943–44 due to major improvements in Service Pay and Allowances introduced since the outbreak of the present war is estimated at about £160 millions.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the amount of vehicle duties on commercial road transport and the amount of the tax paid in fuel and lubricants used by commercial road transport for the financial year 1938–39.

The gross amount of tax received in payment for licences of commercial vehicles in Great Britain during the Financial Year 1938–39 was as follows:

		£
Hackneys	…	4,011,627
Goods and Tractors	…	13,466,043
Total		17,477,670

Figures are not separately recorded for the amount of tax paid on hydrocarbon oils used as fuel or lubricants for commercial road transport.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is in a position to give the House any figures in regard to the amount of Mutual Aid furnished by the United Kingdom for the second half of the year 1943 in continuation of the figures given in Section III of the Report on Mutual Aid (Cmd. 6483) of 11th November, 1943.

The figures of our Mutual Aid to the United States are a continuation of the figures given in paragraph 31 of the Report on Mutual Aid presented to the House on 11th November last (Cmd. 6483).

(i) Capital installations in the United Kingdom. Estimated value of work done up to 30th September, 1943.	£m	Oct.-Dec. Qtr. 1943.
Barracks, hospitals, etc.	36
Air Ports	74
Other	7
Total	117	19
Cumulative total up to 31st Dec, 1943 £136m.
(ii) Goods and Services transferred in the United Kingdom.	Up to 30th Sept.	Oct.-Dec. Qtr. 1943.
	£m.
1. Army Supplies	35
2. Aircraft	27
3. Industrial, Naval and other supplies	16
4. Miscellaneous Services	23
Total	101	32
Cumulative total up to 31st Dec, 1943 £133m.
(iii) Shipping Services	Up to 30th Sept.	Oct.-Dec. Qtr. 1943.
	£m.
Freight Services	46
Disbursements and bunkers	10
Total	56	14
Cumulative total up to 31st Dec, 1943 £70m.

The figures above have been furnished to the United States authorities in connection with the Congressional hearings now in progress on the extension of the Lend-Lease Act.The totals quoted are rough estimates and may be subject to amendment when more detailed information is received as to the last quarter of 1943. The tentative totals for that quarter however indicate that apart from the very substantial programme of capital installations, which was of course approaching completion, we were transferring goods and services (including shipping services) at the rate of about £184 million a year as compared with £124 million a year during the period covered by the Report. The greater part of the value of the aid afforded by His Majesty's Government to the United States in overseas countries has not been included, nor the value of raw materials and bulk foodstuffs, sent to the United States under reciprocal aid, since the relative figures are not yet available. The present figures do not therefore fully state our total aid to the United States. Statistics on our aid to Russia and European Allies have not yet been completed. Available figures indicate that the total value of our supplies to Russia up to 30th September, 1943, amounted to £200 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if it is the intention of His Majesty's Government to extend the Anglo-Polish Pact of Mutual Assistance for a further period after its expiration in August, 1944.

Article 8 of the Anglo-Polish Agreement regarding Mutual Assistance, signed in London on 25th August, 1939, provides that the Agreement shall remain in force for a period of five years from the date of signature, and that, unless denounced six months before the expiry of this period, it shall continue in force, each contracting party having thereafter the right to denounce it at any time by giving six months notice to that effect. There is, therefore, no question of this Agreement expiring in August, 1944, and no need for any extension of the Agreement at that time.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he is aware that a welfare centre is being erected, at a cost of £70,000, at a place of which he has been informed, to induce workpeople to live nearer their factory; that local councils and trade unions have opposed this plan, demanding dwelling houses to be built for the workpeople instead; that the workpeople living in hostels there have been warned that when the centre is completed the charge for board and lodging will be brought up to the standard of the National Service Hostels Corporation, who will take over the administra- tion involving an additional payment of from 7s. 6d. to 10s. a week; whether this corporation is a private concern; and what has been his reply to the opponents of the scheme.

The provision of welfare facilities for the hostels at the place referred to by my right hon. Friend is in accordance with the policy of H.M. Government of ensuring that workers accommodated in hostels shall enjoy proper facilities for rest and recreation. I assume that the representations referred to by my right hon. Friend are those which were made by the workers when the altered arrangements were laid before them some weeks ago. These representations have been formally raised with the Admiralty by the trade union side of the Admiralty Industrial Council and will, no doubt, be considered at the meeting of that body next week. These complaints have nothing to do with the representations made last year by the local Trades Congress, through the T.U.C., about married accommodation. For some years it has been Government policy not to build married accommodation in factories established during the war, owing to scarcity of building materials and labour. It is not possible to vary this rule.The workers have been notified of a rearrangement of the charges in the hostels, but this is not strictly connected with the provision of the new welfare centre. The residents of the hostel have, up to now, been obtaining board and lodging at charges appreciably, less than the standard charges normally made to residents of Government hostels. An adjustment of this state of affairs would, in any case, have been necessary. Other alterations in the management of the hostel had to follow the completion of the welfare centre, and it was desirable for purposes of administration to make the adjustment of charges at the same time. For some residents the increased charge is negligible; for the others the all-in cost will work out at 5s. 5d. a week. At present they pay for their meals separately. The arrangements for the future management of the hostel are under consideration, and it is premature to say that the National Service Hostels Corporation will take over the administration. Any questions relating to the status of the Corporation would be a matter for my right hon. Friend the Minister of Labour and National Service.

asked the Minister of Health the product of a penny rate in the Parliamentary boroughs of Lancashire, separately for each borough.

The following statement shows the estimated product of a penny rate for 1943–44 in the rating areas contained in the Parliamentary boroughs in Lancashire.

			£
Accrington	…	…	1,688
Ashton-under-Lyne	…	…	1,000
Barrow-in-Furness	…	…	1,577
Blackburn	…	…	2,850
Blackpool	…	…	8,147
Bolton	…	…	4,200
Bootle	…	…	1,641
Burnley	…	…	2,220
Bury	…	…	1,618
Eccles	…	…	1,996
Leigh	…	…	1,614
Liverpool	…	…	24,200
Manchester	…	…	23,400
Nelson and Colne	…	…	1,750
Oldham	…	…	2,640
Preston	…	…	2,875
Rochdale	…	…	2,190
Rossendale	…	…	1,269
St. Helens	…	…	1,850
Salford	…	…	4,100
Southport	…	…	3,940
Warrington	…	…	1,640
Wigan	…	…	1,711

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that some local authorities refuse to give their guarantee under the Housing Act, 1933, with the object of escaping the competition of the low rented unsubsidised houses built by private enterprise with their own higher rented subsidised houses; and what steps does he propose to take to remedy this.

The answer to the first part of the Question is "No, Sir." As regards the second part, the operation of the guarantee arrangement referred to is under review by the Sub-committee of my Central Housing Advisory Committee, which is considering the part that private enterprise can best play in housing after the war.

asked the Minister of Pensions what complaints he has received on behalf of wounded Service men that they have to wait an undue length of time for artificial limbs; and what action he is taking in the matter.

There have been some such complaints, though they have not been numerous. As regards the second part of the Question I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to similar Questions to-day by the hon. Member for Birkenhead East (Mr. G. White) and the hon. and gallant Member for the City of Chester (Major Nield).

asked the Minister of Pensions if he is aware that repatriated prisoners of war who have suffered amputations have to wait months before being supplied with artificial limbs; that men who served in Tunisia, Sicily and Italy are in the same position; that men who have lost both legs fail to get supplied with self-propelled chairs; and if he will take steps to remedy this.

I would refer my right hon. Friend to my replies to-day to Questions by other hon. Members which cover all his points.

asked the Minister of Pensions if he will consider the reintroduction of the scheme operating during the last war under which Service personnel discharged from the Forces on the grounds of mental disorder irrespective of whether they are pensionable or non-pensionable, became and remained the charge of the Ministry of Pensions.

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to my reply to similar questions on 7th March by the hon. and gallant Member for Blackburn (Sir W. Smiles) and the hon. Member for the Everton Division of Liverpool (Mr. Kirby).

asked the Minister of Labour if any of the items, of which account is taken in calculating the cost-of-living index, are subject to Purchase or other tax; and if they are, is the cost of such tax included in the cost-of-living index.

Yes, Sir. A number of the items of which account is taken in this index are subject to Purchase Tax or other taxes, and the index figures are based on the prices actually charged by retail shopkeepers, inclusive of any taxation that affects the retail prices. In the monthly issues of the "Ministry of Labour Gazette" particulars are regularly published as to the extent to which the rise in the index figures, since the beginning of the war, is represented by the Purchase Tax and by increases in the taxes on other commodities, respectively.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport the comparative costs of freight and insurance in June, 1939, and January, 1944 of palm oil in casks and in bulk from Lagos, French West Africa and the Belgian Congo.

The freight and insurance cost for palm oil in casks was about 34s. a ton from West Africa in June, 1939. In bulk it was about 25s. from Lagos and French West Africa, and about 26s. from Belgian Congo. The freight and insurance cost to the importer in this country in January, 1994, was about 110s. 6d. a ton from Lagos and French West Africa, and 115s. 6d. a ton from Belgian Congo.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the names of the Committee who advised him in regard to the Making of Civilian Clothing (Restriction) Orders; and whether such persons, or any of them, are still advising him in regard to matters affecting clothes.

The members of the Committee which advised my Department on the Making of Civilian Clothing (Restrictions) Order relating to men's suits are as follows:—Mr. T. W. Boyd, Mr. T. V. Cook, Mr. J. T. Davis, Mr. W. E. Gerrish, Mr. R. Harmer, Mr. T. R. Hewitt, Mr. A. Hollington, Mr. H. Kay, Mr. C. E. Marsden, Major J. Morris May, Mr. H. D. Mumby, Mr. P. Pope, Mr. W. F. Redman, Major D. E. Roberts, Mr. G. R. Schneiders, Mr. I. Shuttleworth and Mr. T. B. C. Thorneloe.The Committee has not met since the Order was made in March, 1942, but several of its members and the Associa- tions which they represent, as well as other members of the industry, have been consulted by my Department from time to time on matters affecting the clothing trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he gave any licences, or granted permission, to any clothing manufacturers to manufacture clothing without regard to the regulations contained in the Making of Civilian Clothing (Restriction) Orders; upon what conditions and during what period; whether any check or inquiry was made to see if such conditions were duly complied with; and with what result.

The Making of Civilian Clothing (Restrictions) Order relating to men's suits was made on 21st March, 1942 and came into operation on 1st May, 1942. A general licence, which was made on 26th March, 1942, authorised the completion of:—(1) Bespoke articles of civilian clothing, to which the Order applied, which were ordered before 28th March, 1942, and cut before 1st May, 1942. (2) ready-made articles of civilian clothing to which the Order applied which were cut before 1st May, t942. This licence was revoked as from 1st August, 1942, but special licences were issued allowing an extension of date to a few clothing manufacturers who, on account of Ministry of Supply contracts, were unable to complete before that date garments which had been cut before 1st May, 1942. While the Order was in operation, a number of special licences were issued to meet the needs of individual consumers who could show special reasons for being allowed to purchase clothing of other than restricted styles, e.g. on account of special physical disabilities or because they had to carry instruments in their pockets. With regard to enforcement of the restrictions, and of the conditions on which licences were issued, my technical officers made frequent visits to clothing manufacturers while the restrictions were in force, and in appropriate cases legal action was taken or warnings were administered.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the fact that in the production of a suit a bespoke tailor has to use about 30 coupons on the average and a clothing manufacturer only about 24 coupons, with the result that the former suffers a coupon loss of about four coupons and the latter a coupon profit of about two coupons on each suit, he is willing, in order to help the bespoke tailors who are nearly all small men, to recover from the losses they suffered owing to the Making of Civilian Clothing (Restrictions) Orders, to make an extra grant of coupons.

No, Sir. I would refer my hon. and learned Friend to the answer which I gave to a Question on this subject by the hon. Member for the Abbey Division of Westminster on 4th May, 1943, of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the President of the Board of Trade why no extra clothing coupons are given to members of the Coastguard Service in respect of their uniforms.

Full-time Coastguards receive an initial outfit of uniform and any necessary replacements in return for the annual surrender of a fixed number of coupons. A Coastguard's uniform outfit is worth 52 coupons, and the annual surrender has been reduced this year from 18 to 16 coupons.

askd the Minister of Fuel and Power if he has considered a communication from the clerk of the mayor and St. Mellons Rural District Council dealing with the supply of petrol to members to enable them to attend meetings of this council; whether he is aware that long distances have to be travelled in these rural areas and difficulty in attending meetings is experienced; and if he will give permission to the clerks of these councils to issue vouchers to members for this purpose.

Communications have been, received in this sense from several Councils, and I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 7th March to the hon. Member for Newton (Sir R. Young), of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Minister of Information if he is aware that a lecturer for his Ministry has given offence to the Parsee community by claiming to be one of the few white men ever to see inside the Tower of Silence at Bombay; whether he was one of the lecturers supplied or recommended to the Ministry by the India Office; and whether official regrets have been tendered to the Parsee community for this public advertisement of an act considered to be sacrilege by Parsees.

I understand that a gentleman who has given lectures under the auspices of the Ministry of Information has made this claim and that it has been objected to by a society called the Northbrook Society. This lecturer was not supplied or recommended to the Ministry by the India Office. I am sure that the lecturer had no intention of offending anyone's susceptibilities, and I understand that he informed the Society some time ago that he would not invite Press references to it in future.