asked the Minister of Fuel and Power if he has information regarding the average price of coal sold for industrial and domestic purposes, respectively, in this country and in the U.S.A. and for the last available period.

The average proceeds per ton at the pithead of commercially disposable coal in this country for the quarter ended September, 1944, were 34s. 6d. per ton. Separate figures are not available for industrial and domestic coal. The delivered cost to consumers is subject to large differences according to the qualities of the coal purchased and the transport charges incurred, and I regret no figures are available to show the average costs. The pithead price of coal in the U.S.A. is approximately half the British pithead price.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power if he has any information regarding the average amount of capital invested in coalmines with a daily output of 500 tons and 1,000 tons, respectively, in this country and for the U.S.A.

No, Sir.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether he is aware of the numerous complaints in the town of Bilston of the quantity of stone and bats in coal provided to certain householders; whether that coal is got from the seven-foot seam on the Cannock Chase coalfield; and whether steps are now being taken to remedy these complaints.

I am aware that complaints have been made of the quality of the coal taken from the seven-foot seam of the East Cannock Colliery. Arrangements have been made to instal picking belts to remedy this position, but some time must elapse before this can be done. I am considering interim measures to deal with the matter, and will communicate with the hon. and gallant Member further as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether, he is now in a position to make a statement with reference to the control of the Point of Ayr colliery.

I have recently reviewed the necessity for continuing in force the Point of Ayr Collieries, Ltd., Control Order, 1943. I am now satisfied that the circumstances which led me to impose the Control no longer apply, and I have, therefore, decided to revoke the Order. The revocation took effect as and from yesterday.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the number of boys who have been directed to the mines at present employed within each of the respective districts of the British coalfields.

The number of men who had completed training at Government Training Centres and been directed to coal mining employment by the 22nd January was as follows:

Scotland Region	3,091
Northern "A" Region	2,077
Northern "B" Region	5,361
North Western Region	3,328
North Eastern Region	6,936
North Midland Region	5,439
Midland Region	5,138
Wales Region	4,457
South Eastern Region	394
	36,221

About half the total have been directed as the result of the ballot.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the average attendance and absenteeism of boys directed to the mines engaged within each of the respective districts of the British coalfields and for the six months ended 31st December, 1944

Information is not available for the six months ended 31st December, 1944. An inquiry was made towards the end of this period, and the result for the country as a whole can be summed up by saying that the overall absenteeism percentage for men who have passed through training centres is about 50 per cent. greater than the corresponding figure for other workers.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the number of production directors in each coalfield region and the total salaries paid to them in each region from the Coal Charges Account.

The particulars in respect of Group Production Directors and certain Regional Production Directors, whose salaries are chargeable to the Coal Charges Account, are as follow:

Region.	Number of Directors.	Total Salaries.
		£	s.	d.
Scotland	9	15,132	5	2‡
Northern "A"	4	9,958	7	0
Northern "B"	6*	13,260	13	6
North Western	5*	10,172	6	10
North Eastern	10†	24,196	16	0
North Midland	9†	22,085	0	0
Midland	5†	12,869	12	6
Wales	13	42,436	12	0
* Includes 1 Regional Production director but omits 1 vacancy for Group Production Director.
† The Regional Production Directors in these Regions also act as Group Production Directors.
‡ Salary of 1 Group Production Director is not accounted for. Particulars of emoluments prior to appointment are awaited.

There are in addition 5 Production Directors whose salaries are not chargeable to the Coal Charges Account.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what request for income returns have been sent to troops in front line war theatres; and for what purpose.

The completion of an Income Tax return is, as my hon. Friend will appreciate, necessary in order that the Revenue authorities may be able to ensure that the full reliefs and allowances due shall be given.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in connection with the coming Budget, he will consider the division of income of husbands and wives for Surtax purposes.

My hon. Friend will not expect me to anticipate my Budget statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware of the practice of Foundling Estates, Limited, in charging lump sum premiums of more than a year's rent in addition to increasing rents as a condition of renewing leases of property in London; and whether tax is being recovered on such premiums.

I would remind my hon. Friend that information cannot be furnished as to the Income Tax liability in particular cases.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, in view of the year 1944 being a leap year, he is able to state what benefits have accrued to the National Exchequer as a consequence thereof.

The fact that 1944 was a leap year did not result in any measurable benefit or expense to the Exchequer which would not otherwise have arisen.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what are the estimated receipts for the current financial year from taxes, including import duties, imposed on foodstuffs.

I regret that the information asked for is not available, but the hon. Member will find estimates for certain specified items on pages 14 and 15 of the Financial Statement (1944–45).

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that badly wounded soldiers are, in many instances, discharged from the Army before they are fit for discharge from hospital, and that their leave pending discharge period is spent in the hospitals; and if he will take steps to stop this practice.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is now in a position to make a statement respecting wounded soldiers being discharged from the Service before being discharged from hospital, arising out of his consultations with the other Service Departments and the Ministry of Pensions.

The present arrangements are set out in the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Northampton (Mr. Summers) on 30th January. I regret that I am not yet in a position to add to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Wigan (Mr. Foster) last week. In view of its complexity this question requires most careful consideration by the various Departments concerned. There will be no avoidable delay, but I am afraid it is unlikely that a decision will be reached in the immediate future.

asked the Secretary of State for War, in cases where captured German policemen are being trained to take over the administration of occupied German districts, what investigations are made into their past records.

In cases where German police are being trained to carry out police functions in occupied German territory, my hon. Friend may rest assured that they are not selected for such training until after a most careful investigation has been made into their background and past record.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that personnel of the Middlesex Yeomanry serving with Royal Signals have, under authority given in 1921, continued to wear their Yeomanry badges; and for what reason has permission now been withdrawn.

I know of no general instruction forbidding men to wear these badges. All officers and men serving with a Middlesex Yeomanry unit, which has been converted to a unit of the Royal Corps of Signals, may wear Middlesex Yeomanry badges. In other units only those men may wear them who on joining signed specifically for service in the Middlesex Yeomanry.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that a soldier coming back from France on a leave train was charged 2s. 82d. for a mug of tea, four sandwiches and two cakes, in the N.A.A.F.I. tea car; and whether he wall take steps to reduce these prices for serving personnel coming on leave.

In N.A.A.F.I. restaurants, including buffet cars on leave trains, tea costs 1d. a cup, salad 1d., cakes, 1d. 1½d. or 2d. and sandwiches between 3d. and 6d. a round. These prices compare favouably with prices charged in cafes and tea shops elsewhere. It is, of course, just possible that a mistake was made in the case mentioned by my hon. and gallant Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he will endeavour to effect the release from military control of a hall at Evesham, of which he has had particulars, in view of the fact that the military authorities have made no use of it since March, 1944, and the urgent demands which have been put forward for other uses by the owners.

This hall is now occupied by a military unit. Every endeavour was made to avoid using it, but no other suitable accommodation was available. I can assure my hon. Friend that it will be surrendered as soon as it can be spared.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is now in a position to make a statement concerning Sapper F. W. White, No, 14712834, who, despite his having been sent to his billet for examination by a specialist, was sent out of this country for India, and had to be put off the ship at Port Said and sent to hospital.

The report I have received shows that Sapper White did not report sick to the medical officer of his unit until 29th November. There is no record that he was a patient in any hospital in the Caterham district during November. On 8th December he was given treatment and ordered to do light duty only. It was not thought necessary for him to see a specialist and no such arrangements were made. In fact he was examined on 11th December and was passed fit to go overseas with his unit. At the end of December he was admitted to hospital in the Command abroad. I am now awaiting a report on this.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he will state the full contents of the instruction issued by the Commander of the 17th area, M.E.F., to the effect that expressions of opinion about the Greek situation in letters sent home by troops should be checked by officers commanding.

I am making inquiries into this allegation.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware of the dissatisfaction caused by the delay and non-delivery of mails, parcels and cables to members of His Majesty's Forces in Italy and what steps are being taken to make this service more reliable.

I do not believe that any such general complaint is justified. I should be obliged if the hon. Member would forward me the evidence on which he bases his Question so that it can be investigated.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many officers engaged on training the Home Guard are on indefinite leave as a result of the stand-down.

Since the stand-down of the Home Guard about 1,650 officers hitherto engaged on training the Home Guard have been posted to Infantry Holding Battalions pending consideration of their future employment. Of these, approximately 300 have already been posted to other duty. The scrutiny of the remainder is continuing as rapidly as possible. The sudden influx of 1,650 officers into these Holding Battalions has aggravated accommodation difficulties in some cases. Some of these officers have, therefore, been permitted to go on temporary leave while their future employment is being considered. The number varies from day to day and I regret that the figure asked for by the hon. Lady is not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he will arrange for the following newspapers or journals, sponsored by his Department, to be made available to Members in the Library: "Middle East Mail," "World Press Review,'' "Gen," "Iraq Times," "Basra Times," "Trunk Call," "Contact," "Victory," "Weekly Commentary," "Ceylon Review" and for the placing of S.E.A.C. in the Library to be resumed.

The "Iraq Times" is a commercial paper although it is assisted by the Army. "Contact," "Victory", and "Weekly Commentary" are produced by the Government of India. The Army is reponsible for the other papers mentioned by my hon. Friend, and I will arrange for some copies of them to be placed in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) why his medical advisers have reduced the period of the protective power of vaccination to two weeks; and whether the order that, where there is smallpox infection, men not vaccinated within the previous fortnight must be done again means that they are to be done every fortnight so long as the infection exists in the area in which they are stationed;

(2) whether he is aware that during an outbreak of smallpox in Egypt, in 1943–44, amongst Allied soldiers, 96 out of 100 cases were vaccinated persons and that 70 out of the 96 had been vaccinated successfully within two years and 16 of them between two and eight weeks before the disease started; that 13 out of 14 of the fatal cases in this outbreak had been vaccinated and one of them two months before he developed haemorrhagic smallpox; and whether, as these happenings indicate that even the most recent and successful vaccination does not protect from smallpox when that infection is present, what steps his medical advisers are taking.

It has never been claimed that vaccination confers 100 per cent. immunity against smallpox in all cases and under all conditions. The maximum degree of immunity is estimated to develop about 14 days after vaccination; thereafter it gradually wanes, but it remains effective, under normal conditions, for five years in the United Kingdom, and for three years in Egypt, where the risk of infection is somewhat greater. But during an epidemic, whenever it occurs, the virulence of the infecting agent is such that even the maximum degree of immunity conferred by immediate revaccination is not in every individual case sufficient to resist the disease. Nevertheless, experience has shown that the revaccination of all exposed to infection, coupled with the normal precautions of immediate isolation of infected persons and restriction of movement of possible "contacts," is successful in giving immunity to all but a small proportion and so in quelling an epidemic. Whether still further revaccination may at any time be necessary must be decided by the local commander, acting on the advice of his senior medical officer in the light of current conditions.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the frequency of leave from front line service given to troops of the 36th Division in Burma; where are they allowed to go to and for how long; and whether he can state the number who have been serving with this Division continuously for a period of over two and a half years.

The approved scale of recuperative leave for troops serving in Burma is fourteen days annually, spent at Calcutta, Shillong, or Darjeeling. But the difficulties of transport in this area, where all men going on leave have to be carried by air in both directions, and the intensity of the recent very successful operations there, have made it impossible for this scale to be reached in all cases. Only about half of the troops now serving in the 36th Division have had leave in the past twelve months, but I hope it will be possible to arrange for leave more extensively in the next few months. I regret that it would not he in the public interest to give the information asked for in the last part of the Question.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that the necessity for relatives to apply to the Paymaster for a special form before they can send a compassionate telegram to the B.L.A. causes considerable delay and distress; and whether he will take steps to institute a simpler system.

These telegrams are sent to theatres of war overseas through Army channels used for operational traffic. It is therefore necessary to limit strictly the numbers which can be sent. A number of suggestions for exercising this control has been examined, but it has not been possible to devise a better one than the present one whereby in the case of other ranks the forms are supplied by Record Offices.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether active consideration is being given to the development of the Treforest Tinplate Works for factory purposes under the present ownership; and will he arrange for the South Wales Trading Estate Company, Limited, to develop the site by using the present structure with new roofing or by clearing the site and erecting new factory buildings.

These works are at present requisitioned for war storage. Their future is under consideration.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that there is a shortage of feeding-bottle teats in Birkenhead and district; and if it is in his power to increase the supply.

As I informed my hon. Friend the Member for North Camberwell (Mr. Manning) on 23rd January, the manufacture of teats is now three times greater than it was last summer, and retailers' stocks are being built up everywhere as rapidly as possible. I have no evidence that Birkenhead and district is receiving less than its fair share of these increased supplies.

asked the President of the Board of Trade upon what authority his Department is directing industrialists to transfer extensions of existing works to areas remote from the existing works or to set up new works in areas which the manufacturer concerned considers to be less suitable for his particular enterprise.

As I have already stated in the House, the Government are not directing industrialists to particular parts of the country. But, in accordance with Chapter III of the White Paper on Employment Policy, the Board of Trade are inviting the attention of industrialists who are looking for premises to those areas which need a greater diversity of industry.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what are the areas of Great Britain in which his Department considers serious disadvantage would arise from further industrial development; and whether the local authority was consulted before any particular area was so classified.

I would ask my hon. Friend to await the Bill on Distribution of Industry, which I hope to introduce very soon.

asked the Minister of Food how many new licences for retail shops have been granted to ex-Servicemen invalided from the Army since 1939.

I regret that the information for which my hon. Friend asks is not available. I can say, however, that between 17th April, 1944, when the arrangements for giving priority in the grant of licences to certain classes of ex-traders were introduced, and 15th January, 1945, 260 licences to re-open their retail food businesses were granted to discharged ex-Service persons.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware of the dissatisfaction in university and scientific circles because the paper control exercises a censorship of publications through the allocation of the paper pool being exercised by a small committee whose activities are conducted without any opportunity of public criticism; and if he will widen the membership of this committee and state the principles upon which they are instructed to proceed.

No, Sir; but I am aware of the dissatisfaction in the universities and schools about the shortage of educational books. The small reserve of paper, to which my hon. Friend refers, is set aside with the very object of relieving the shortage of these and other essential books. The Committee which advises me on the distribution of this reserve consists of an independent Chairman, Sir Walter Moberly, and four representative publishers, and it works on the broad principle of helping publishers to produce books of special importance, particularly educational books and reprints of the Classics, for which they cannot find paper from their normal quotas. I am glad to say that I have recently been able to arrange for an increase in the paper allocated to the reserve and this should help further to relieve the shortage of educational books. I do not propose to make any alteration in these arrangements at the present time.

asked the Postmaster-General, if a parcel post service is in operation to France; and if so, what are the regulations as to weight and contents of the parcels.

The reply is in the negative.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether he will state the Income Tax payable to the Indian Government by British soldiers in the Indian and South East Asian Commands; and whether this is in addition to, or in substitution for, United Kingdom Income Tax.

The Income Tax payable by the soldiers in question in respect of their Service pay is that leviable under the Indian Income Tax Act. The pay is not subject to United Kingdom Income Tax.

asked the Secretary of State for War why officers who were compulsorily commissioned in the Indian Army have not yet been enabled, should they wish, to transfer to the British Service.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for India informed my hon. Friend last Thursday that this matter is under consideration. I have nothing at present to add.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport whether he is satisfied that the reflector-stud type of road marking is the most satisfactory; and whether it is his intention to extend this method as rapidly as possible.

I am satisfied that the longitudinal marking of roads by reflector studs is of great benefit to traffic where the standard of street lighting is not such as to obviate the need for the use of headlamps, and I have no doubt that highway authorities will continue and extend the practice in appropriate conditions.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport if he has considered a resolution from the County Federation of Women's Institutes urging that kerb paths through villages should be made up in order to prevent road accidents; and with what result.

I have not seen the resolution to which my hon. Friend refers. The Road Traffic Act, 1930, lays on highway authorities the duty of providing, on all roads under their control, proper and sufficient footpaths for the safety or accommodation of foot passengers, wherever they deem it necessary or desirable, and my Department called attention to this provision in their Memorandum on the Lay-out and Construction of Roads which was issued to all highway authorities in October, 1943.

asked the Minister of Labour whether the advertisements in the Press emanating from his Ministry asking for applicants for posts, are paid for by the firms requiring those employees, or by the taxpayer.

As my hon. Friend is aware, under certain Orders restricting the engagement of workers, employers are prohibited from advertising vacancies. In these cases if advertising is essential it is undertaken by my Department and the cost borne on public funds, subject to any cost additional to the normal standard being borne by the employer and to the acceptance of offers by employers to bear the cost of standard advertisements either in whole or in part. Where employers are permitted to advertise vacancies no part of the cost falls on public funds.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that his Ministry has directed Mr. W. F Cooper, temporary cost accountant, to return to War Office employment, under Defence Regulation 58A, at a time when 10 temporary cost accountants in the War Office were under notice of discharge on redundancy grounds; and whether he will instruct National Service officers to refrain from issuing directions under Defence Regulation 58A when adjustments of staff can be met by voluntary methods.

At the time a direction was given to Mr. Cooper it was not fully appreciated that the War Office had a number of redundant accountants. My instructions to National Service officers provide that they should not issue directions in this type of case where adjustments of staff can reasonably be made.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the shortage of printing operatives to assist in the printing of electoral registers, consent will be given for the temporary release of printers' operatives in the home service for the period required for the printing of the electoral register.

The Ministry of Labour and the three Services are now considering the temporary release of a number of printers for this purpose but I cannot say now how many it will be possible to release.

asked the Minister of Labour whether it is his intention to implement the proposal in Section 120 of the Departmental Committee Report on Higher Appointments wherein it is suggested that information discreetly verified from any past employer of an applicant will be made the subject of compulsory supply; and what arrangements will be made to ensure that it will be regarded without prejudice to the employer who supplies it.

As I understand the recommendation of the Committee there is no question of the compulsory supply of information. If an employer voluntarily furnishes information of the kind referred to in the Question, its disclosure to third parties would be subject to any conditions imposed by that employer.