asked the Secretary of State for War whether he will investigate the accommodation and food on the Medloc leave trains between Marseilles and Calais, and the transit camp at the latter place, with a view to remedying the unsatisfactory conditions.

I have already taken steps to investigate conditions on Medloc trains and in the transit camps on the route. A War Office Inspection Mission travelled over the route as recently as mid-December and has reported. Necessary improvements are being made where this is possible. With regard to accommodation on the trains themselves, the whole of Europe is suffering from an acute shortage of rolling stock and there is no practicable method of obtaining more up-to-date stock for this route. Our existing repair facilities are strained to capacity in maintaining in running condition what we at present have.

asked the Secretary of State for War what terms are now being offered to T.A. officers to take up full-time staff appointments in the T.A.; and how these will compare with those received by Regular staff officers holding similar posts in the T.A.

No full-time staff appointments in the Territory Army are being offered to Territorial Army officers as such. New staff appointments for the Territorial Army have been kept to the minimum considered necessary. They will generally entail full-time duties, and in that case will in principle be filled by Regular officers. Territorial Army officers are normally only eligible for full-time appointments if they have deferred their release or if they take short service commissions in the Regular Army.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will consider giving priority for export to dollar countries in order to increase the supply of this country's dollar currency and to facilitate our purchases of food supplies and raw materials.

I agree that the need to earn more dollars and equivalent currency is vitally important. But for many reasons, I do not regard a general system of priorities as the appropriate means of achieving this end. I have already explained to industrialists and traders that I look to them to take stock of all possibilities open to them to secure an increase in exports to the Western Hemisphere, and the Board of Trade and other Departments concerned are now following this up by initiating more detailed discussions. We must, in addition, work for a still further increase in the total volume of our exports, and the restoration of a system of convertible exchanges throughout the world, to secure the permanent solution of the problem to which the hon. Member refers.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of trained telephone operators in the London area registered as unemployed at the last convenient date.

At 9th December there were 13 men and 201 women unemployed registered at employment exchanges in the Greater London area as applicants for employment as telephone operators.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General the number of telephone operators required to bring telephone exchanges in the London area up to their full complement at the last convenient date.

I am glad to say that the total number of telephonists in the London area has now reached the required complement. Owing to the very rapid recruitment during recent months, however, more than one-third of the operating staff have had only a few months' experience.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether its attention has been drawn to the Lord Chief Justice's judgment in the Divisional Court, in the case of James versus Lewis, in which certain justices at Aberayron, Cardiganshire, heard, and dismissed, summonses against their clerk alleging food offences; and whether, in view of the Lord Chief Justice's comments, it is proposed to take any action in the matter.

Yes, Sir; the Lord Chancellor and I have decided that there should be a public Inquiry into this case and we have appointed the Rt. Hon. Lord Justice Tucker to undertake it. I understand that he will hold the inquiry at Aberayron, on 11th February.The terms of reference are as follow:

asked the Minister of Food whether fruit retailers must exhibit for sale stocks of imported fruits, the basis of allocation of which has been determined by his Department; in what circumstances they may refuse to sell to the general public; and what action should be taken by one of his local food officers to whom a breach of the regulations has been reported.

The law does not compel fruit retailers to display their stocks or to make a sale to anyone if they do not wish to do so. Except in the case of bananas, which are liable to deteriorate if exposed to the cold, all fruit retailers have, however, been asked to exhibit their stocks, and in the case of fruits for which ration books have to be marked, they are expected to serve anyone presenting an unmarked ration book during the first five days of distribution. A retailer who persistently disregards the Ministry's wishes can, of course, have his allocations suspended. Local food officers are required to report to the Ministry any instances of the kind which come to their notice.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs since when it has been the practice to register with U.N.O. treaties concluded by His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland with His Majesty's Governments in the Dominions; and what is the reason for the abandonment of the old, practice of not registering such treaties.

The United Kingdom Government, after informal consultation with the Dominion Governments, have decided to adopt the practice of registering with the United Nations agreements concluded with Dominion Governments. The date for putting this practice into effect is the date prescribed in Article 102 of the United Nations Charter, viz., the date of the coming into force of the Charter, which was 24th October, 1945.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that many rubber planters and others in Malaya who have deferred bringing out their wives at the request of his Department are being faced with financial burdens by the necessity of maintaining two homes; and whether special arrangements can now be made to take out to Malaya all those wives who are awaiting passages.

The arrangement whereby the wives of Europeans had to obtain special permission to join their husbands in Malaya was cancelled in April, 1946. Since when, wives who could get passages have been free to return to Malaya, and there has been no deferment at the request of my Department. In fact over 3,000 wives and children were provided with passages by the Colonial Office during 1946. As regards the last part of the Question, I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave on 21st January to the hon. Member for London University. Since that date a further 115 passages for wives and children have become available on a boat leaving early in February, making a total of 299 for the first six weeks of 1947.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to remove the anomaly in the calculation of the means of claimants for old age and blind persons' pensions which at present exists, by taking the yearly value of capital value of property, after excluding the first £25, as 5 per cent. in respect of the next £375 and as 10 per cent. in respect of all capital value in excess of the first £400, since the amount actually received by claimants and pensioners is normally well under 5 per cent. owing to the present cheapness of money.

I cannot agree that the present rules are anomalous and I am not prepared to introduce legislation to alter them.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will inquire into the case of an ex-officer of the R.A.M.C. whose house was damaged by enemy action and who was given permission by the War Damage Commissioners to repair the damage by private arrangements and, having settled the contractor's account for £350 in February, 1946, has received only £180 from the War Damage Commissioners and been unable to get any answer to his applications for the refund of the outstanding sum of £170; and if he will rectify this position.

I regret that I cannot undertake to answer questions about individual war damage claims. If, however, the hon. Member will send me further particulars, I will ask the War Damage Commission to look into the case.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the national income for the last financial year was accounted for by wages and salaries; and what percentage of the total expenditure of the population was accounted for by rates and taxes.

Estimates of national income are not available for financial years. The latest figures which relate to the calendar year are published in Cmd. 6784. Table 20 shows that in 1945, wages and salaries of civilians before the deduction of direct taxes together amounted to 52 per cent. and wages, salaries and the pay and allowances of the Armed Forces to 67 per cent. of the national income. Table II of Cmd. 6784 shows that the total of taxes either paid directly or entering indirectly into private expenditure less the subsidies to private expenditure amounted in 1945 to 34 per cent. of private income. For the purpose of this computation taxes are defined to include not only taxes paid to the Exchequer, but also national insurance contributions, war risks insurance premiums and local rates.