asked the Minister of Labour when his Ministry discontinued supplying lists of vacancies to trade unions employment bureaux; and for what reason.

As indicated in my reply to a Question asked by the hon. Member on 18th January arrangements exist for supplying certain trade union organisations with lists of vacancies notified to my Appointments Department. This arrangement has not been discontinued and I regret if my hon. Friend received a contrary impression as a result of my reply to a supplementary question asked by the hon. Member for Chislehurst (Sir W. Smithers).

In those circumstances will my right hon. Friend say why the same arrangement cannot be made for private employment agencies?

There are only two professional organisations which the Appointments Department circulates and neither one of them is a fee paying agency.

I could not hear the right hon. Gentleman's reply very clearly, but in view of the fact that his reply to my supplementary question on 18th January was ambiguous, would he now take steps to make the position abundantly clear?

I think my answer this morning does so.

asked the Minister of Labour why, in his original L.S. Memorandum No. 8, it was stated that generally speaking it had been found possible to get more inside information from the Drawing Office Committee than from any other source; why the phrasing has now been changed to the words "valuable information"; and why the inspectors were invited to obtain information about the firm's plans regarding postwar reconstruction.

This was a statement of what inspectors had, in fact, found to be the case. In its original form, it was thought to be open to misconception, and it was accordingly modified to convey what was intended in a way which would not be misconstrued. With regard to the last part of the Question, a firm's intentions as to post-war reconstruction may have an important bearing on the present use being made of draughtsmen. It was felt, however, that this question could for the time being be deleted and it was removed early in 1944.

Can the right hon. Gentleman give the House an assurance that the type of inspection which this instruction advocates will not be put into operation in respect of any other inspections, and that this type of inspection will not, in fact, be carried out in its origanal form?

I could not say that. It will be carried out in a modified form, but, as I have indicated, draughtsmen present a very great difficulty at the present moment owing to the enormous claims being made upon them. I cannot give an undertaking that I shall not need to have a similar form of inspection for other grades, if I am to get private industry restarted and labour redistributed.

But does not my right hon. Friend realise that what is advocated here is going behind the backs of the management to try to get hold of information from the staffs about the type of work they are doing?

I disagree with that entirely. A man is a free agent and we have to interview a man to find out his ability, apart from the employer. The man is not the property of the employer yet.

asked the Minister of Labour whether it is his intention under L.S. Memorandum No. 8 that officials should carry out investigations independent of the management, in view of the fact that such methods are conducive to bad relationship and inefficiency.

No, Sir. It is stated in several places in the memorandum to which the hon. Member refers, that the investigations are to be carried out in the closest consultation with the management.

Having regard to the very great success which has attended the efforts of the right hon. Gentleman's Department to get men for the needs of the country at the present time, may I appeal to him to have this memorandum withdrawn, because it can only cause bad feeling and bad blood?

No, it has not caused bad feeling or bad blood. When you have to get certain special types of men, you have to make special investigations. The real trouble is that the training of draughtsmen was so neglected between the two wars that we started this war with only 14,000 for the whole country.

Why were so many draughtsmen called up for the Forces, and why were the women who took their places also called up?

The draughtsmen were called up in their trades for the purpose of modifying implements of war.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that a number of workers are shortly to be discharged from a factory engaged on war work, the name of which has been communicated to him, on the grounds of redundancy; that the discharge notices have recently had to be withdrawn at the instance of the Man-power Board owing to the fact that no alternative work was available for the redundant workers; and if he is satisfied that, when the new discharge notices take effect, alternative work of national importance will be available for all the discharged workers.

I am having inquiries made, and will write my hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he has yet reached a decision regarding the demobilisation of political agents from the Forces.

The Government have given careful consideration to this matter and, with my hon. Friend's permission, I propose to circulate a full statement in the OFFICIAL REPORT describing the arrangements which will apply to candidates, agents and others.

Will the right hon. Gentleman's answer indicate an early release of the agents belonging to the political parties?

I think my hon. Friend had better read the answer.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he has yet approved any scheme for the recruitment and training of ex-Servicemen and women for employment on the technical and professional staffs of local authorities in the post-war period.

Schemes of this nature are not my responsibility, except in so far as awards under the Further Education and Training Scheme are concerned. I understand, however, that a special scheme for the training of sanitary inspectors has been worked out by my right hon. Friend, the Minister of Health, in consultation with the Royal Sanitary Institute and Sanitary Inspectors' Examination Joint Board and the Sanitary Inspectors' Association and I have agreed that ex-Servicemen and women accepted for this training would, if otherwise eligible, qualify for awards under the Further Education and Training Scheme.

Does not my right hon. Friend agree that the Sanitary Inspectors' Association have given a splendid lead to other professional organisations; and will he not ask them to do all they can to train ex-Servicemen and women for important work in connection with local government?

As I explained in the opening part of my answer, the real work has to be done by the Minister of Health; all I have to do is to sanction the grant for the further education for which he asks.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that in most of these professions a premium is required, and that his Department is not now capable of paying that premium under the Further Education Scheme?

I would like notice of that question.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the fact that more than 60 per cent. of the vacant appointments advertised by local authorities during the past two months are stated to be permanent appointments, he will communicate with all local authorities calling their attention to the desirability of making appointments of a temporary character during the war to ensure that the prospects of promotion of the local government officers who are serving in His Majesty's Forces are not prejudiced.

I have every sympathy with my hon. Friend's purpose. I have no doubt that local authorities generally are fully aware of the importance of securing that purpose so far as possible, but I propose to draw the attention of the local government associations to the terms of this Question and answer and to suggest that they might be given suitable publicity.

asked the Minister of Labour whether, in view of the fact that Army personnel were recently employed in the distribution of coal in the London area, he will see to it that in future a sufficient number of employees accustomed to the job are left in civilian life so that merchants may deliver coal without recourse to military assistance.

Having regard to the manpower position generally, I am satisfied that existing arrangements for call-up are not inadequate to meet normal conditions. When, however, conditions are abnormal it is necessary to take abnormal measures.

Does it not appear anomalous to my right hon. Friend that he conscripts men for the Fighting Services and then returns them in military clothes to do civilian work? When he talks of special conditions, surely he is aware that the winter in this country is severe as a rule?

This is the first winter for four years that it has been necessary to do it.

Can my right hon. Friend assure the House that, when normal weather conditions return, there will be sufficient labour for the delivery of coal in London?

I cannot give my hon. and gallant Friend that assurance. The amount which the War Cabinet has decided I must find for the Forces this year may interfere with it.

Does the right hon. Gentleman appreciate that the people of London who have been suffering during this cold spell are deeply grateful to the soldiers for the assistance they have given?

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that Mr. J. B. Evans, 78, Park Road, Bargoed, after having had three fits underground, appealed to the Local Appeal Board at Bargoed for release from the mining industry; that the Appeal Board unanimously recommended his release on the ground that he was a danger to his fellow workmen; that the National Service officer sought further evidence about the man after the hearing by the Appeal Board and refused to allow the man to leave the mines; and if this action has received his approval.

I am having inquiries made and will write to my hon. Friend.

Will my right hon. Friend have particular regard for the part of the Question which deals with the function of the National Service officer in getting additional evidence after the hearing of the tribunal, otherwise we shall lose all faith in the Appeal Board?

asked the Minister of Labour whether men now serving in the Armed Forces will be able to count any service they may have had during the war in the Merchant Navy when the question of their release from the Armed Forces comes under consideration.

Yes, Sir. It has been decided that service on British seagoing merchant ships and on Allied and neutral seagoing ships chartered to the Minister of War Transport during the war shall be regarded as war service for the purpose of determining the order of release from the Armed Forces after the defeat of Germany.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that on 31st August, 1944, Mr. G. Robinson, a driver employed at the Dudley garage of the Midland Red Omnibus Company, Limited, was scheduled for duty from 11.30 a.m. until 10 p.m., but as he was due on duty again at 5 a.m. next morning he was promised he would be relieved at 9 p.m. but was not; that he was suspended for one day for leaving duty at 9 o'clock, an arrangement endorsed by the local appeal board of the Ministry of Labour; and whether he will cause the case to be at once reopened and the punishment rescinded.

The facts of this case, as presented on behalf of both the worker and the employer, were carefully considered by the local appeal board who were unanimously of the opinion that the suspension was justified. In these circumstances there is no further action I can take in the matter.

Is it not intolerable that a Labour Minister should defend such conditions as these, and that men should be punished in such circumstances? How does the right hon. Gentleman reconcile his reply with his earlier statement that the working man is not yet the property of the employer?

He had the right of appeal and went to an impartial board. I do not go into the facts of suspension and I accept the decision of the board.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that unemployed building operatives willing to work on the repair of war damaged houses in London are prevented from doing so because firms cannot secure Ministry of Works contracts, not having the men, and are refused the men, not having the contracts; and what steps he is taking to employ these men.

I am not aware that there are unemployed building workers prevented from working on the repair of bomb damaged houses for the reason stated.

If I send to my right hon. Friend a letter which states that men are walking the streets looking for jobs, and that some of them are experienced craftsmen in the building trade, who have expressed their willingness to work on bomb damage repairs in London, will he look into the matter?

Certainly.

asked the Minister of Labour what steps he is taking to make available additional assistance to firms of printers who are required to carry out the printing of the new Electoral Register in view of the delay in the preparation of such registers in certain constituencies which, under present conditions, is likely to accrue; and if he is aware that the lack of labour in the printing industry is resulting in electoral registration officers having to produce the registers by duplication methods in their own offices, and the dislocation in such offices which will thereby accrue.

I am aware of the difficulties to which my hon. and gallant Friend refers, and my officers are taking all steps open to them to meet the requirements. In co-operation with organisations of employers and workpeople in the printing industry, I have made special arrangements for transferring from other industries to firms engaged on printing the Electoral Register, suitable ex-printing operatives who are known to be willing to return to the printing industry for this purpose, and whose transfer can be arranged without serious detriment to essential war work.

Is the Minister aware that were it necessary to hold a General Election in certain constituencies within a reasonably short period it would be impossible to operate the new Electoral Register, because of the difficulty in getting labour?

I know the difficulties in all spheres of labour at the moment, but I am doing my best to return to the printing trade sufficient labour by the date stated in the Act.

asked the Secretary of State for India how many years continuous service overseas must be completed by British ranks of the Indian Army before they are given the benefit of the 61 days' leave scheme which is to take the place of the Python scheme for such British ranks.

I assume my hon. Friend is referring to the permanent cadre of the India Unattached List. The rule for them is the same as for British officers of the Indian Army and they must have completed five years' overseas service before they are eligible for home leave. British ranks of the Indian Army who are not permanent members of the India Unattached List are eligible for home posting under the War Office scheme.

Having regard to the fact that, for other purposes, India is a command in which the period of overseas service is least, will not my right hon. Friend consider the case of the men who have to spend five years in India before they can come back even for 61 days?

I fully understand the difficulties, which are not only shipping difficulties but operational difficulties. These make it difficult for commanders-in-chief to spare a large number of highly experienced men simultaneously.

Does not the efficiency of an officer or a man, after five years out there, become seriously impaired, and is not this a very short-sighted policy?

This is a matter which must be left to the discretion of the military authorities on the spot who, I am sure, are as well aware of that as my hon. Friend.

Is not the Minister aware that letters now being received by Members of this House show a state of mind in which many officers cannot be any longer regarded as necessary for operational duties; and is it not the case that they ought to be given leave as early as possible, if the morale of the Army is to be maintained?

I am fully aware of the fact that many officers and men feel the hardship of long separation from this country, but whatever they may feel or write on that subject, I do not believe that they would allow their efficiency to be impaired.

They cannot help it.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that married Air Force personnel in India come back after three years, and is it not very unfair that the Regular soldier should have to serve an extra two years in India?

I think my hon. Friend will understand that the extra period which may be served by a Regular soldier in the British Army in India is a matter for the War Office. What I am dealing with is the question of those belonging to the Indian Army, which requires men with special experience in handling Indian troops. I am sorry to say that it is not so easy to spare such men as other British troops. We do our best in the matter, but we have to consider operational necessities.

In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the reply, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the matter on the Adjournment at the earliest possible moment.

asked the Secretary of State for India what further developments have taken place respecting future educational expansion and, in particular, regarding the Sargeant proposals.

I understand that the question is still under consideration in India.

Could the Minister indicate when he is lkely to have a Report, because this matter is extremely urgent?

I am sure the hon. Member will realise that this question of education is only part of a very wide programme of reconstruction, covering many years, which the Government of India have under consideration in consultation with the various Provincial Governments.

Can we take it that the Sargeant proposals are likely to be adopted?

I must leave some things to the Government of India.

Is not education a transferred Provincial subject?

Yes, Sir, my hon. Friend is quite right. This is a matter in which the Government of India can only take action after consultation with Provincial Governments, who are all studying this problem, among others.

Is not this House interested in the matter, too?

asked the Secretary of State for India how many Congress members have recently been arrested and interned, for what reason, and under what circumstances and conditions.

I have no information beyond a Press report from Bihar that five prominent members of Congress have been served with orders confining them to the limits of their home villages. It appears that following their recent activities the Provincial Government has imposed this restriction as a precautionary measure to prevent a situation which might again, as in 1942, interfere with the prosecution of the war.

Would the right hon. Gentleman get the particulars, and give them to the House at an early date?

I have no doubt that I shall get the particulars shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether a decision has now been reached in agreement with the authorities in India to re-transfer British soldiers serving with the Paiforce to United Kingdom Income Tax laws; and are the soldiers concerned registered as voters in elections to this House.

I understand the hon. Member is referring to British soldiers attached to Indian Army units in Paiforce. I have just heard from the Government of India that the accounts of the British other ranks in question are in the process of transfer to home paymasters, and they will thus be subject to British Income Tax. They have the same rights as regards registration as voters as other British soldiers.

Does the right hon. Gentleman recall the promise he made to me some months ago that he would let me know about this? Is he aware that I have heard from a soldier in India about it, and that if the right hon. Gentleman had remembered to let me know my Question would have been unnecessary?

I could not answer earlier, because I have only just heard that the arrangements have been completed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department under what conditions conscientious objectors were disqualified from registration as Parliamentary and local government electors after the last war; and whether it is proposed to adopt any similar procedure after this war in the case of those who have not only refused to fight but also to undertake alternative forms of national service.

The Representation of the People Act of 1918 disqualified from being registered as Parliamentary or local government electors until five years after the official termination of the war conscientious objectors who had been exempted from all military service and members of the Forces who had been awarded detention or imprisonment for an offence against military law which they represented to be the result of a conscientious objection to military service, unless they could prove within one year of that date by means of a certificate from the Central Tribunal that they had been engaged in work of national importance. The arrangements for dealing with conscientious objection in this war under the National Service Acts have been rather different. Parliament has not provided for any such differentiation under the new electoral legislation.

Is it not true that many conscientious objectors, disfranchised after the last war, became Members of this House, some of them Cabinet Ministers, too?

Is the Minister aware that a considerable number of Members who were elected to this House during the war, as soldiers, quickly had conscientious objections about remaining in the Army, and decided to stay in the House?

That is an imputation which should not have been made about hon. Members.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will make a statement to the House giving his reasons for refusing the claims of the police, the auxiliary police and the Defence Services for the institution of arbitration machinery for dealing with wages and other conditions of service.

As regards the regular police, the concession of formal arbitration facilities would involve a revision of the consultative machinery established under the Police Act, 1919, and I have informed the Joint Central Committee of the Police Federation that the Government are not prepared to undertake any such revision at the present time. So far as the police auxiliaries are concerned, as I stated in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for West Islington (Mr. Montague) on 18th January, it has been decided that their pay and general conditions of service shall be assimilated to those of the regular police, and it follows that the Government's decision on arbitration must apply equally to them. I consider that there is no occasion at this stage of the war to alter the existing arrangements as affecting the Civil Defence Services.

May I direct the right hon. Gentleman's attention to the Question, which asks whether he will give a statement of the reasons which led to the refusal of the claims of these services? I listened carefully to his reply and there is not a hint of a reason anywhere in it.

I do not agree with the hon. Member. I think he will find that there is a reason in the answer that I have given.

I will raise the matter on the Adjournment, in the absence of any sort of reply.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in view of the dissatisfaction in the police service due to the injustice of Section 29 of the Police Pensions Act, 1921, and the lack of promotion facilities caused thereby, what action is proposed to ensure that the best type of man will be attracted to, and remain in, the police service in the post-war years.

I assume my hon. Friend has in mind the fact that Section 29 (1, a) of the Police Pensions Act, 1921, has the effect that persons who joined the police service on or after 1st July, 1919, are required to serve 30 years before qualifying for a full pension, but I cannot agree that this has had any substantial effect on promotion facilities, particularly having regard to the increased number of higher posts created since 1921. As regards future arrangements, as I explained in answer to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for West Islington (Mr. Montague) on 18th January, proposals for revising the basic pay of the regular police are to be laid before the Police Council at an early date; and an expert committee is now considering certain long-term questions affecting the maintenance and improvement of the efficiency of the police service after the war.

Is not my right hon. Friend aware that at a meeting of the Police Federation in September last a resolution was passed and forwarded to him in which considerable dissatisfaction was expressed at the operation of the Section, and that the service will not be attractive until it has been amended or removed?

Not only am I aware of that, but I have met the Federation on this and other matters and have not felt able to accept their point of view.

Is the right hon. Gentleman not aware that the chief cause of dissatisfaction is that he insists on being judge and jury in every case in which he and the police are concerned?

I do not think the hon. Member is such an authority on the police as he is making out.

Does the right hon. Gentleman not agree that these conditions are adversely altered from what they were when the men joined; and is it not a fact that in the metropolitan area, altered conditions have prevailed by arrangement between the men and the authorities concerned?

That raises complicated matters but on the whole, in the light of the pensions paid to the police, I do not think that 30 years' service is excessive.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is aware that there is dissatisfaction in the Metropolitan police force; that it is partly due to the stagnation in promotion; and what action is proposed to remedy this state of affairs.

For such dissatisfaction as there is in the Metropolitan Police on the question of promotion, the main ground is, I think, not so much the method of promotion adopted as the fact that the number of higher posts available is of necessity insufficient to enable more than a proportion of the qualified men to be promoted. As my hon. Friend will appreciate, it is essential in the interests of efficiency that the best men should be selected for the higher posts, and, whatever method is adopted, there is a likelihood that those passed over will feel a sense of grievance. The present situation is to some extent exceptional, in view of the necessity on man-power grounds to retain in the force a number of officers who might otherwise have retired and the suspension of recruitment since the outbreak of war, and the question is one which will need to be reviewed as a whole in connection with the post-war organisation of the police.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that, if pension rights were restored to officers who joined the force prior to 1921, it would, within the next two years, permit of more than 1,600 promotions?

That may be so, but I have to consider these things on their merits, and in the light of justice to the taxpayer as well as to the police.

Will my right hon. Friend inform the Minister of Labour that there are large numbers of young miners who would be delighted to become policemen?

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any action is intended to implement the recommendations contained in the Report of the Departmental Committee on Police Widows' Pensions which was signed 23rd July 1941.

When this Committee reported, it was not possible to introduce legislation to give effect to their proposals, as the Police Federation were unable to accept the Committee's recommendation on the fundamental question of the incidence of the cost of the proposed increases. The position has now been radically changed by the publication of the Government's proposals for National Insurance. The questions raised in the Snell Committee's report can no longer be con- sidered in isolation, but will fall to be reviewed as part of the general problems arising from the introduction of the National Insurance scheme.

As there are cases of real grievance among these police widows, surely the right hon. Gentleman could do something pending the introduction of a National Insurance Bill?

There was a fair and impartial committee and tribunal, before which evidence was given, and they made recommendations, but the Police Federation would not take on the burden of contributions, which the committee recommended. It is not fair to put the responsibility on me.

Does the slackness of the Police Federation exonerate the Home Office from its responsibility for carrying out the recommendations of the report, which was unanimous and which inferred that there was severe hardship among police widows, which perhaps cannot be remedied for some years?

I have not accused the Police Federation of slackness. It is a difference of opinion. If the men strongly object to making a contribution, it would be going very far to enforce a contribution on them.

Will the improvements contemplated by my right hon. Friend be made retrospective to present cases?

That is a matter for the Minister of National Insurance.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action is taken by the N.F.S. to ensure adequate fire protection in private houses now occupied by evacuated schools.

The National Fire Service has no authority to prescribe the precautions to be taken against fire in private premises. The provision of adequate precautions is a matter for the owner or occupier. Comprehensive guidance on the subject is given in a handbook on "Fire Precautions in Schools," issued by the Home Office in 1935, a new edition of which is to be published in the near future. The National Fire Service will be glad to afford school authorities any assistance they can. Application should be made through the fire force commander.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that since I put down the Question there has been a fire in a well-known girls' school at Ascot? Will he institute some form of compulsory night watching in all schools of reasonable size?

I will consider the case to which the hon. Gentleman refers, but the responsibility of those who conduct such schools is known, and I think it must be on them.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that the medical referees are now describing by other names conditions that were formerly diagnosed as industrial dermatitis; and whether, the patients are thus deprived of their rights under the Workmen's Compensation Acts, he will take steps to revise the definition.

I am not aware that there has been any such change as my hon. Friend suggests. If he will furnish me with the information, the matter will be looked into.

Is my right hon. Friend not aware that it is a common practice to describe as eczema, or pustular pompolyx, what was formerly described as industrial dermatitis, and that there is a widespread feeling that this is an insurance company ramp?

I do not think so. The statutory definition is "dermatitis produced by dust or liquids." If my hon. Friend will let me have particulars of cases that he has in mind, I shall be happy to look into them.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he gave the orders for the removal of E.S.W. tanks and pipes; and if so, why.

There is no intention at present of dismantling the emergency water installations as a whole; but in view of the reduced risk of heavy incendiary attack I felt justified in authorising the National Fire Service to begin to remove certain classes of emergency water installation which might cause inconvenience. This applies in particular to steel tanks which have become too corroded to be worth repairing, and installations that obstruct the highway. In the areas more remote from the likelihood of attack, a beginning is also being made with the removal of any installations that, from an operational point of view, are now unnecessary. In particular, I have taken into account the desirability of freeing possible housing sites. In all cases, I think the dismantling of the installations is in the public interest.

In view of the fact that there is now less danger of aerial incendiary attacks, cannot my right hon. Friend state that he will raise the blackout?

That, of course, has nothing whatever to do with the Question on the Paper.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether women can now be relieved from compulsory fire-watching of business premises, where that still obtains.

Fire-guard duties at business premises have either been completely suspended or substantially reduced and further relief will be given as soon as circumstances permit. At this late stage, I do not consider it desirable to embark upon the complicated task of revising the system of exemption from those duties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will be in a position to close down some of the N.F.S. centres in the outlying parts of the country which are no longer the object of enemy air attack.

Considerable reductions have already been made both in the administrative centres and operational controls of the National Fire Service, more particularly in the non-vulnerable areas. Similar reductions are being made in other areas as circumstances permit.

Will the right hon. Gentleman inquire into the conditions at Old Colwyn, as a typical case, where, I understand, the duties were for a time suspended and are now being renewed?

Certainly, Sir.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is now in a position to make a statement on the claims on the Bethnal Green Borough Council arising out of the Bethnal Green shelter case; and as to the position of those Servicemen who, owing to absence overseas, were debarred by the Local Authorities Limitation Act from sustaining any claim they might have.

The matter is being actively considered but I regret that I am not yet able to announce a decision.

As this disaster happened over 18 months ago, will not the right hon. Gentleman make up his mind soon so that those who are making claims will know what their position is and so that the borough council will know what their financial liabilities are likely to be?

My right hon. Friend's supplementary is very misleading when he talks about 18 months since the disaster occurred. It is only a few weeks since the latest legal decision was given in the courts.

I am referring to when the disaster took place from the point of view of the victims. Their interest arose directly it took place.

There may be more than one view about that. I took steps with the Minister of Pensions at once, and the Minister acted within 24 hours and recognised these cases for payment and benefit under the Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme, although it is doubtful whether he was bound to do so. Credit is due to the Government for the promptness with which they acted.

With reference to the latter half of the Question, can my right hon. Friend give some undertaking that Servicemen who were not on the spot and whose time might have run out will not be faced with a technical defence by the local authority when they return?

I can only say that that is being carefully considered, but I am not in a position to make a statement about it.

asked, the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he now proposes to publish a Report of the Prison Commissioners dealing with their activities since 1939.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave on 30th January to my hon. Friend the Junior Member for the English Universities (Mr. E. Harvey).

In view of the fact that there is ample paper now available—so says the Minister of Information—and as there are printing facilities in His Majesty's Prisons, cannot my right hon. Friend try to get this report out?

I do not know about paper supplies, but with regard to printing facilities I can assure my hon. Friend that there is very great difficulty about them, as I have good reason to know.

Cannot my right hon. Friend, pending the issue of a fuller report, issue a brief summary of only three or four pages giving the essential statistics?

I will consider that, but I am not sure whether it would be regarded as desirable. We are really in great difficulties about printing and must be careful about what we print.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in view of the recent disclosures, he will call for a Report on conditions prevailing in children's homes under the administration of local authorities; and will he arrange that those who make the inquiries are not members of local authorities and that they will include at least one member of the medical profession.

The homes referred to in this Question will come within the scope of the Committee which is being set up jointly by the Minister of Health, the Minister of Education and myself. I have noted my hon. Friend's views about the composition of the Committee, but I cannot accept his implication that no member of any local authority can be relied on to form a sound judgment on this matter.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the public conscience is seriously perturbed about recent revelations and the inefficiency of municipally and State controlled homes?

My hon. Friend should not introduce prejudices of that kind. There are plenty of other homes that will have to be investigated.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that there is growing public anxiety about the whole treatment of orphan children, not only in State and municipal homes, but all round, and will he do his best to allay this anxiety by holding a proper public inquiry?

That is exactly why the committee is being appointed.

Will my right hon. Friend make it clear, so that there shall be no uncertainty about the question, that voluntary authorities will also be investigated; and is he aware that many of us, without any political feeling in the matter, are seriously concerned about the treatment of children in both types of homes?

I am entirely in agreement with the spirit of what my Noble Friend says. The inquiry will cover all types of homes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the report of the inquiry into the administration of remand homes in London.

I have now received the report and have arranged for it to be published as a Command Paper as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Education whether, with a view to progressive improvement and to assist school authorities with practical advice, he will consider arranging for systematic inspection by travelling experts, serving under his Department, of the arrangements in force for the feeding of schoolchildren throughout the country.

The arrangements for the feeding of schoolchildren are systematically inspected by the expert inspectors on the staff of my Department, and one of their main functions is to assist local education authorities and school authorities generally with practical advice on the planning and management of the school meals service.

asked the Minister of Education what steps have been taken to ensure that elementary and secondary schools are adequately heated during the present cold period; and if he will permit schoolchildren to remain in warm school buildings under suitable supervision where their homes are without heat.

The responsibility for ensuring that school premises are adequately heated rests with the local education authority or the governing bodies of the schools concerned. It is a matter for arrangement between the responsible school authorities and the regional officers of the Ministry of Fuel and Power for securing that sufficient quantities of fuel are available at the schools. As regards the second part of the Question, the use of school premises out of school hours is a matter for local arrangement: so far as my department is concerned, there would be no objection to children being allowed to remain at their school under supervision after school hours.

Could the right hon. Gentleman be positive rather than negative in this matter? He says that the Department has no objection, but would he not make recommendations, especially in those areas where the absence of accommodation has imposed hardship on the children?

Local education authorities are responsible for the administration of education in their areas with my help and advice. I cannot go any further.

In view of the fact that the right hon. Gentleman's Department contributes to local authorities towards the education of children, cannot he take some steps to prevent the recurrence of what happened in Manchester last week when about 30 schools were closed because there was no heat, although the schools are within two or three miles of pits producing coal?

We give all the help we can, but I am confident that local authorities, particularly the ones to which the hon. Member refers, are competent to deal with their own affairs in the best way possible.

asked the Minister of Education what steps he is taking to work out joint schemes of training with industry and agriculture; what changes in secondary school curricula are contemplated pending the revision of nomenclature and abolition of fees in secondary schools on 1st April; and what arrangements he is making to relate choice of employment more closely to the work of schools and education authorities.

As this Question raises three separate issues and the answer is necessarily long, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Has my right hon. Friend given consideration to a transference of the functions of juvenile employment from the Ministry of Labour to the Ministry of Education, in view of the new Act?

My right hon. Friends the Ministers concerned and I have taken steps to establish a committee to look into a comprehensive juvenile employment service, and the whole question is under consideration. I hope the results will be satisfactory to my hon. Friend.

Will a statement be made?

When we are ready I shall have to make a statement on this important subject.

Is the Scottish Education Department included?

I referred to my colleagues the Ministers concerned, and one is the Secretary of State for Scotland.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that under Circular No. 134–44 issued by his Department and dated 4th October, 1944, local authorities are making offers of compensation of £1 per annum per site upon which temporary houses are being erected; and will he take steps to see that this injustice is discontinued forthwith.

Yes, Sir. Compensation in cases of requisitioning for emergency hutments falls to be assessed in accordance with the provisions of Section 2 (1a) of the Compensation (Defence) Act, 1939, and in the event of disagreement as to the amount of compensation, the claimant is entitled to refer the matter to the general claims tribunal for determination.

Are local authorities compelled to acquire the land that they require? Why is there a distinction be- tween temporary houses and permanent houses?

My hon. Friend is under a considerable misapprehension. Land can be acquired or leased either for permanent or temporary houses. The facts set out in his Question relate to the emergency hutments, which are not to last for more than a year or two.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that land being used for allotments and other cultivated land is being requisitioned for temporary housing by his Department without opportunity being given to gather crops or produce; and whether he will, wherever possible, give adequate notice before taking possession.

Local authorities have already been instructed to give the fullest possible notice to allotment-holders of their intention to requisition sites for emergency hutments which are in use for allotments. If my hon. Friend will let me have particulars of any case of difficulty he has in mind, I will have inquiries made.

Is the Minister not aware I have already given him particulars?

They have not come to my notice yet, but I will certainly look into them.

Why cannot the Minister be more definite and say there must be 12 months' notice at least, as is the case for smallholders?

That would be quite impossible in the case of these emergency hutments, which are needed in areas of great devastation.

Will my right hon. and learned Friend say that allotments will not be taken, if he can possibly get an alternative site?

This Question applies entirely to the requisitioning of land for emergency hutments, which only arises in a few closely built-up, and heavily devastated areas.

asked the Minister of Health why his Ministry has refused the application of the Stepney Borough Council for permission to dry out temporary hutments before occupation.

I regret there has been some misunderstanding in this matter. The borough council have now been given the necessary permission.

asked the Minister of Health whether all the local authorities requiring emergency prefabricated bungalows have yet lodged their requirements with his Department; the total number so far requested; and the total number allocated.

In England and Wales, 102,304 temporary houses have so far been allocated to 471 local authorities, who applied for 156,120. Further requests for allocations are expected as the smaller local authorities have only recently been invited to apply.

Can my right hon. and learned Friend say if all these local authorities have the land ready for these houses, or are they likely to be without sites when the houses are ready?

Of course all the sites are not ready for all the temporary houses, but I am glad to say that progress is good.

Can the Minister say what proportions of the allocations have been made to rural district councils?

These allocations are mostly to the urban authorities. The rural authorities, except for very few, fall within the more recent invitation.

Have these local authority programmes been placed on the basis of a £600 bungalow, and what will the Minister do about the programme where the price exceeds that figure?

What proportion did the allocation bear to the numbers for which application was made?

I gave the total figures, which were about 102,000 allocated as against about 156,000 applied for, but the allocations are not in that proportion everywhere. I had to decide in each case whether the application was excessive. In some cases they had to be cut down; in others the allocations were exactly the numbers asked for.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the increased cost of living which is bearing hardly on those of slender means, he will make arrangements whereby disabled persons unable to earn a livelihood and who have not reached pensionable age, are granted an allowance from the State which will provide them with the necessities of life.

A disabled person whose resources are insufficient to provide him with the necessities of life can obtain assistance from the public assistance authority. Under the proposals contained in the White Paper on Social Insurance the duty of providing financial assistance for all classes of persons on proof of need will rest on the Assistance Board.

Is not this a matter demanding immediate attention and not one for the Assistance Board? I would like my right hon. and learned Friend to go thoroughly into the matter with a view to making sorely needed provision for these helpless persons, and not throw them back on to public assistance.

asked the Minister of Health the names of the members and the terms of reference of the special body foreshadowed in Cmd. Paper 6579, which is to be set up as a matter of urgency to inquire into borough boundaries and functions within the county of London.

No, Sir. I propose to await discussion of the White Paper before taking steps for the institution of this inquiry.

Does not the Minister realise that the White Paper itself says that this is a matter of urgency?

Yes, Sir, but the White Paper indicates also that this House should have an opportunity of discussing the proposals.

asked the Prime Minister if consideration has been given to the action that is required over the renewal of the B.B.C.'s Charter; and can he make a statement.

This matter is under examination but I am not yet in a position to make a statement.

Is it proposed to hold an inquiry into the renewal of the Charter, as was done when the Charter was last renewed?

No decision has been come to on that matter. We have the Ullswater Committee's conclusions before us.

Is it not a fact that the renewal has to take place next year, and does that not make the matter one of urgency? If we are to conduct this on a democratic basis, could not some committee be set up to take evidence from representative organisations and to start public discussion?

That is a matter for consideration. We are going into it, but a great many things are pressing this year, besides those for next year.

In view of the fact that during war time the control is vested in the Ministry of Information, may I ask whether the House of Commons will be given an opportunity of discussing the matter on the Ministry of Information Vote?

That is hardly a question for me. My hon. Friend will no doubt see whether there are opportunities for raising it on a Supply day.

Will the Deputy Prime Minister give a pledge not to renew the Charter of the B.B.C. unless they abolish that appalling feature known as the Brains Trust?

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a full statement of the principles governing home leave in the different theatres of war, in order to relieve the anxiety of relatives, make the position clear to the Services and so reduce the volume of inquiries made to Members of Parliament on the subject.

The principles governing the scheme for leave from distant theatres were set out in the statements made by the Prime Minister on 17th November and by the Secretary of State for War in reply to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Oxford (Mr. Hogg) on 5th December. It was then made clear that the application of these principles in the various commands is a matter for the commanders-in-chief concerned. This will differ to some extent according to the varying local conditions which may change from time to time as a result of operational and other circumstances. If individuals are in doubt about the arrangements in force in their commands, they should make inquiries through their commanding officers in the normal way.