asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning under what authority a development charge is payable when a private house is converted into a residential hotel.

Under Section 69 of the 1947 Act, a development charge may be levied on any material change in the use of land or buildings. I am advised that in the example to which this Question refers there would be a material change of use.

Is it a fact that a development charge is payable in all cases when a private house is turned into a residential hotel, but that no development charge is payable when a private house is turned into a block of flats? If that is so, can the Minister justify that on any grounds at all?

It depends whether the value of the building when developed exceeds the value of the building when undeveloped.

Could the Minister say, for instance, if a china clay store is turned into three cottages or flats whether a development charge would be payable on that?

I think I should be unwise to anticipate a decision of the courts in this way. If the hon. and gallant Gentleman will put down a Question, I will consider it.

By whom and to whom is the development charge paid in respect of the Government hospitality hotel recently opened in the vicinity of Park Lane?

The Central Land Board receives development charge when it is payable at all.

Can the hon. Gentleman say whether, in the event of a private residential hotel being converted into a private house, a claim for compensation arises?

It entirely depends on their relative values.

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning whether he intends to use the powers given to him by Section 14 (3) ( c ) of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1947, to require local planning authorities to take architectural advice before approving the elevations and materials of houses to be erected by private persons.

My right hon. Friend has no reason to suppose that the new planning authorities will not avail themselves of proper architectural advice wherever necessary, and unless experience shows this view to be wrong, he would prefer to leave this matter to their discretion and good sense.

Yes, but is the hon. Gentleman aware that, although this Clause could not be debated in Committee because of the Guillotine, definite assurances were given both by the Minister and by his Parliamentary Secretary, who said that all kinds of monstrosities would be perpetrated unless there was compulsory architectural advice?

Very many, if not all, local authorities do employ architectural advice, and I have no doubt they will deal with the monstrosities to which the hon. Gentleman refers.

What about those who do not?

Will the Minister at least give some fatherly advice in this matter, because the situation between the two wars was very serious from an architectural point of view when new buildings were erected in country districts?

The situation between the two wars was entirely different. We have now a new Act and also new authorities and, as in so many cases, the matters administered by His Majesty's present administration differ widely from what happened between the two wars.

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning whether he will now state the Government's decision in regard to the findings of the public local inquiry held on 16th June to consider the proposal to establish an anti-tank artillery range near Bamburgh and Holy Island.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer to his Question on 13th July to which my right hon. Friend has nothing to add.

Yes, but as that answer did not carry us any further, can my hon. Friend now tell me how much longer we have to wait for a Government decision on this matter?

Yes, Sir. It is not unreasonable for the Chairman of a public inquiry to take four to five weeks to consider the transcript of a report. I think within a week or two this will be available to the Ministry, and shortly after that we shall have something to say to my hon. Friend.

But in view of the statement made in the House yesterday by the Minister concerning Stanford and Purbeck, will he not now ask the Minister to use his influence with the Service Departments to abate their demands in these areas?

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning what arrangements have been made for the location and provision of houses for the additional workers at the new steel works at Margam.

My right hon. Friend, in consultation with other Ministers concerned, has carefully examined the question of how many houses are likely to be needed for the additional workers and where the houses should be provided. Care has been taken to see that the houses will be on sites with services readily available and that they shall be as accessible as possible to the works. It has been decided that initially approximately 1,000 houses will be provided for additional workers. These houses will be built in Penybont Rural District and in Port Talbot and will be in addition to the normal provision of houses for the present population. A start has already been made in both areas. At Port Talbot 250 aluminium houses and 100 permanent additional houses, specifically for the employees of the strip mill, are being erected. Penybont Rural District Council are in process of acquiring a site and preparing plans for the building of 100 houses for strip mill workers. It may be necessary later on to provide more houses in both areas for the steel workers, but this will be considered when more information is available about sources of recruitment.

Is it not a fantastic situation that this additional burden on the house-building resources of the country should be imposed when none of it was necessary, because these workers could have been left where they are in Newport?

No, Sir. It is most desirable that workers should live within a reasonable distance of their work, which can be done most efficiently at Margam.

Will the hon. Gentleman impress that upon the Minister of Agriculture, who has totally different ideas about farm workers?

That has nothing to do with this Question, which concerns steel workers.

Is my hon. Friend aware that his answer will give great satisfaction, not only in Port Talbot, but to the whole of the steel industry throughout South Wales?

asked the Minister of National Insurance whether the appeal has yet been heard against the decision by his Department to refuse a family allowance in respect of a two-year old boy, resident with his grandfather and his grandfather's three children, the eldest of whom is the boy's mother; and what was the independent referee's decision.

I understand that the decision of the referee in the case to which my hon. Friend refers has now been received and is being sent to the appellant. The appeal was dismissed.

Could my hon. Friend explain on what grounds this claim has been turned down? Would not the grandfather be covered as being the person who is maintaining the child?

So long as the boy is living with his mother they must be treated as separate families.

In view of the fact that painful cases of this nature are extremely rare and as this small child is actually the youngest member of a family living in one house, with one person upon whom he is dependent, will not the Parliamentary Secretary's Department raise this case again?

So far as the decision here is concerned it has gone through all the statutory machinery and is in accordance with the Act.

Is it not the case that the child is only excluded from counting as being maintained by the grandfather where the child could be included in a claim by the mother; and, if that is the position in this case, does the decision mean that if the mother were only to die, the child's allowance would then be paid?

If the child's mother were to die there would be another set of circumstances. There are other circumstances in which the family allowance could accrue to the grandparents but so long as the child is living with the mother—as is the case here—it must be treated as in the mother's family.

Is it not extraordinary that the child is actually living with the rest of the family and that the change which is contemplated, namely, the death of the mother or her residence elsewhere, would make no difference whatever?

asked the Minister of National Insurance if, in view of the apparent intention of paragraphs 12 and 15 of his Department's guide to family allowances, leaflet F.A.M. 1, he will reconsider his refusal to grant an allowance in respect of an illegitimate child living with the child's parents and with the father's elder children, particulars of whom have been communicated to him, and, if necessary, introduce amending legislation to cover such cases.

No, Sir. As regards the particular case, the position has already been explained to my hon. Friend by letter. As regards legislation, I have nothing to add to the reply given to the hon. Member for Finsbury (Mr. Platts-Mills) on 13th July.

Is not this kind of refusal quite contrary to the general intention of the Act, which was to provide allowances for all except the eldest of a family of young children living in the same house, and contrary also to the leaflet issued by my hon. Friend's Department?

It is not contrary to the leaflet because that explains in paragraph 13 what "maintenance" means. What my hon. Friend is asking us to do is to legalise for the purposes of the Family Allowances Act a union where the man and woman are living together and are not married. That is a highly controversial matter.

Is it not the case that the limitation in the leaflet to which my hon. Friend refers is not authorised at all by the Act of Parliament under which it purports to be issued and does not the Act make it perfectly plain that where a child is maintained its legitimacy is irrelevant?

The point in this Question is that a man and woman are living together and are not married.

That does not matter.

The Act says that the issue of the woman will be treated as being her family.

It does not say that.

It does. So far as the man's side is concerned, it is treated as his family, so that for the purposes of the Act there are actually two separate families.

Can the Parliamentary Secretary point out any Section in the Act which states that legitimacy is a relevant factor?

May we have an answer to that question?

The fact is that all these decisions go before the statutory authority.

What statutory authority?

There is the referee. In the first place, the matter went to the statutory authority and he made his decision. Cases similar to that referred to in the second question also have gone to the statutory authority but, where the position is similar to that explained by my hon. Friend in his question they are treated as two separate families.

What is the remedy if the referee's decision is in direct conflict with the Act of Parliament?

I do not think it is.

Supposing it were, what would be the remedy, if any?

Sir Waldron Smithers.

On a point of Order, Mr. Speaker. In view of the inhumane and legalistic attitude of the Department, I beg to give notice that, without endeavouring, of course, to suggest legislation, I shall endeavour to catch your eye on the Summer Adjournment.

asked the Minister of National Insurance if he has considered the position of a voluntary contributor over 60 years of age under the old Act, who paid 3s. 9d. every other week and received sickness benefit when ill, and who now has to pay 4s. 8d. every week, and gets no sickness benefit; and what action he is taking to remedy this anomaly.

An elderly voluntary contributor under the old Act who paid only 26 annual contributions would not have been entitled to sickness benefit, but to pension and maternity benefits only. To be eligible for sickness benefit he had to pay each year a further 24 contributions at 8d. Under the new scheme, insurance for sickness benefits is restricted to persons in the employed and self-employed classes. A voluntary contributor, however, who now falls into the non-employed class and who had paid 50 Health Insurance contributions in each of the two years ended July, 1947, and July, 1948, will be entitled to full sickness benefit until 31st July, 1949, at the earliest, and in many cases for a longer period. He will, of course, be entitled to the full benefits of the Health Service.

Is the hon. Member aware that his answer was so long that I could not quite take it in, and that he will hear from me further?

asked the Minister of National Insurance whether, in view of the fact that the present form TS7E issued by his Department requires a widow who is at present in receipt of disablement benefits to forgo permanently her right to an increased widow's pension of 26s. in order to secure a possibly temporary disablement pension, he will amend the regulations.

This form is issued to a widow pensioner who on 5th July was incapable of self-support and had up to that day also been in receipt of sickness or disablement benefit. As from 5th July she has the choice of having her 10s. pension increased to 26s. which, if still in payment at age 50, is converted into a permanent pension, or of retaining her 10s. pension and receiving in addition any sickness benefit for which she may be qualified on a weekly basis. She cannot receive both sickness benefit and widow's pension at the increased rates. The form gives her the opportunity of choosing the alternative which she considers will be to her advantage according to her age and other circumstances.

Is it not a fact that the form forces the widow to speculate upon chances of recovering from her disability? Surely, that is entirely wrong? While disabled she should get disability pension, and if she recovers, why should she not have the right to pension?

This is one of the problems with which we were faced in converting the old scheme into the new scheme. What we have done in effect is to give a very valuable concession to the present 10s. widow pensioner. We appreciate, of course, that there is some difficulty in this matter and we are trying to explain the exact position to widows in these cases, so that they can make a decision. But, from the information I have I understand that the majority of cases are over 50 years of age and, therefore, they would be entitled to permanent pensions.

asked the Minister of National Insurance if he is aware of the widespread confusion among such widows as have qualified for only the 10s. basic pension, but who, despite the printed information from his Department, cannot understand the conditions that determine their right to 26s. at 60 years of age; and if he will cause these conditions to be more clearly and widely known.

As promised in reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Tiffany) on 15th June, an explanatory letter, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy, is being sent to each of the widow pensioners affected. It will, however, be a few weeks before the work of issuing some 300,000 letters can be completed.

asked the Minister of National Insurance whether he will issue bound copies of the entire list of explanatory leaflets issued in connection with the National Insurance Act; and whether he will also issue bound copies of the entire list of regulations issued in connection with the Act.

I do not think it would be practicable to do this at present. The leaflets are not of uniform size, and in the early stages will be subject to revision in the light of experience. Of the regulations, some are still in provisional form and others remain to be made. The matter will, however, be reconsidered at a later date.

In giving further consideration to this matter, will the Minister bear in mind that it is quite easy for us to lose some of the 93 explanatory leaflets which have been issued and that the sooner he can provide a bound copy the better for us all?

asked the Minister of National Insurance why the only appointments offered by his Department to members of the Dorset County Branch of the National Association of Social Welfare Officers are such a long way from Dorset, such as Newcastle-on-Tyne, not one being nearer than Kent; and what steps he is taking to find these employees and their families housing accommodation near their new posts.

At the time when these social welfare officers became available to join the Department there were no suitable vacancies for them in or near Dorsetshire. Since then, however, some such vacancies have occurred, and five social welfare officers from Dorset have been re-assigned to local offices in London, Surrey and Kent. Two have been re-assigned to Birmingham, and one, at his own request, to Bradford, Yorkshire. Further re-assignments will be made as practicable. There is a Ministry welfare officer in each region to give transferred officers all possible assistance in their search for accommodation.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that although nearer postings have been made since I put down the Question these officers are still a long way from home and this does not accord with the assurance given by the Minister when the Bill was being passed? Will he look into the matter again?

Within the limits of the posts available and the time factor we have made every effort to post people to places for which they have asked. As the scheme settles down we will be looking at the position again in order to ease the position where we possibly can.

asked the Minister of National Insurance what pension rights his regulations under the National Health Insurance and Contributory Pensions Acts give to a wife aged 50 years, engaged solely in normal household duties and whose husband is over 65 years of age.

If the husband is entitled to a retirement pension, the weekly rate of the pension may be increased by 16s. a week in respect of his wife while she is under 60; on reaching age 60 she can qualify for a retirement pension, normally at 16s. a week, in right of her husband's insurance; should he die the widowhood benefits of the scheme will be available to her. If the husband is not eligible for a contributory pension, his wife's right to such a pension will depend upon any insurance qualification she may herself have acquired. Unless she was insured under the repealed Acts up to 5th July she can only become insured under the new scheme if she is an employed or self-employed person.

Is it not perfectly obvious that large sections of our people receive no pension rights under this so-called scheme of "from the cradle to the grave"? Will the hon. Gentleman look into the regulations again in order to provide for thousands of poor people who were to be provided for according to the Socialist propaganda which is "put across" in the country?

That is rather a wild statement to make.

It is true.

The point is that the only people who are not eligible are the married women who are engaged on household duties and they, of course, are covered by the insurance rights of their husbands.

asked the Minister of National Insurance whether he will consider sending officials round to some of the factories of the country to explain the working of the National Insurance Act so that he could answer on the spot questions put to him by many of the work- people on difficult points in the working of the Act.

The course suggested by my hon. Friend has already been followed as far as practicable. During the past three months officers of my Ministry in co-operation with the Central Office of Information have been visiting factories to explain the new National Insurance scheme and to answer questions. Managers of local National Insurance offices will be pleased to arrange, wherever they can, for visits on hearing from employers or trade unions.

Whilst thanking my hon. Friend for his reply, may I ask if he has any method by which factory managers are acquainted with this facility, because there is considerable difficulty in understanding the regulations and giving such information would help very considerably in clearing up the position?

We have asked local managers to get into touch with various employers and I hope that sufficient publicity will be given to this answer to help such arrangements to be made.

asked the Minister of Labour how many persons have been subject to the provisions of the Control of Engagement Order in the course of seeking new employment in the first six months of 1948.

Although precise figures are not available, it is estimated that most of 2,130,000 persons placed this year came within the scope of the Control of Engagement Order.

Is the Minister satisfied with the operation of this order? Is he satisfied that it is having the effect of getting people into the essential trades?

Yes, Sir. We are completely satisfied, because out of the total 2,130,000, 260,000 were placed in positions of first preference.

asked the Minister of Labour what were the numbers of vacancies for skilled and unskilled workers, respectively, in the coalmining, textile, engineering, and agricultural industries on 30th June, 1948; and in what areas is shortage of labour most acute.

Separate statistics of vacancies for skilled and unskilled workers are not available centrally, but I will send to my hon. Friend a regional analysis of the total number of vacancies in these industries notified to employment exchanges and remaining unfilled at 9th June.

Would the Minister consider publishing this important statement in the OFFICIAL REPORT?

I have considered that, but it is a Table of 12 lines and 12 columns and I understand it is rather difficult for the OFFICIAL REPORT to carry that. However, I will be glad to have duplicated copies made and placed in the Library for hon. Members to see them.

asked the Minister of Labour what net increases per month of new entrants into the coalmining and textile industries are required during the last six months of 1948 in order to achieve the objectives set out in the Economic Survey for 1948; and how they compare with the actual average monthly increases in these industries during the first six months of the year.

For collieries, 4,200; for textiles, 12,600. The answer to the last part of the Question is 1,200 and 4,000 respectively.

Do not the figures which my right hon. Friend has just given to the House generally reveal that the recruiting programme in the cotton industry has so far failed? In those circumstances, is he prepared to consult the other Ministers concerned with a view to adopting the principle of favoured terms for undermanned industries advocated by the junior Member for Bolton a few weeks ago?

I would be obliged if my hon. Friend would put that question down.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that in the wool textile industry, the increase of 3,500 in the numbers employed in the first four months of this year means that if the target of employing 200,000 is to be reached this year he has to increase the number by 22,000 in the remaining months of this year?

Yes, but the wool textile effort to encourage entry to the industry did not commence until after the end of the fourth month of this year.

Has the textile industry in Lancashire received the additional number of girl workers from the football pools industry, which the Parliamentary Secretary anticipated a few months ago?

I am sure the hon. Member will agree that that question should be put down.

No, the right hon. Gentleman ought to know that.

asked the Minister of Labour how many volunteers for the Lancashire cotton mills have so far been obtained by the propaganda effort in Lancashire factories; how many officials are employed in the effort; how much petrol per week is used by the officials; and what is the total cost to date.

Up to 17th July, 42 women had volunteered to transfer from other work to employment in the Lancashire cotton industry. No additional staff has been engaged for this purpose. It is not practicable to provide the other information asked for.

asked the Minister of Labour what salaries and expenses are drawn by the members of the Catering Wages Commission.

The Chairman of the Commission is paid £1,000 per annum. He is entitled to first-class travel and a subsistence allowance of 30s. per night when travelling on official business. The members of the Commission are paid 5 guineas per day or part of a day when they attend. They are entitled to first-class travel and 30s. for each night away from home.

Will the Minister tell the House what labour shortage there is for these commissions which he is setting up?

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will reopen the Wrexham Training Centre for building workers, in view of the shortage of such craftsmen in Wales.

No, Sir. Should a renewal of building training in Wales be agreed to by the two sides of the industry, adequate facilities exist in the Ministry's two centres at Cardiff and Swansea.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that in answer to a Question of mine on 8th July the Minister of Health replied that the reason for the comparatively slow rate of house building in Wales was a shortage of craftsmen? How then can he justify the continued closure of this training centre—the only one in North Wales?

The training centres in the two towns I have mentioned have facilities adequate for training any labour that may be necessary in the area, and we do not consider it necessary to keep the third one going.

asked the Minister of Labour under what conditions persons employed in agriculture may now enlist in the police force.

An agricultural worker who is accepted for service in the police force is given permission to join the force subject only to the condition that he was born before 1929.

asked the Minister of Labour if he has considered the copy sent to him of a resolution passed by the Confederation of Engineering and Shipbuilding Trade Unions at York on 14th July, 1948, asking that a court of inquiry be set up to investigate the rejection of the claim presented by the unions to the Shipbuilding Employers Federation on 21st April, 1948; and what action he intends to take on this matter.

I have received representations from the Confederation of Engineering and Shipbuilding Trade Unions and I am in touch with the Shipbuilding Employers Federation on this subject.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that there has been no advance in wages in the engineering industry for two years and that there have already been long drawn out negotiations? Will he treat this matter as one of urgency in order to avoid any dislocation?

This particular question has been treated by my Ministry as one of urgency. We are in contact with both parties and I am convinced that there is a desire on both sides of the industry to make an effort to reach a friendly settlement without dislocation.

asked the Minister of Labour if his attention has been directed to the dispute between the Engineering and Allied Employers National Federation and the trade unions federated in the Confederation of Engineering and Shipbuilding Unions; and if he will refer the dispute to a court of inquiry in accordance with the Industrial Courts Act, 1919, and make a statement on its composition, terms of reference and date of meeting.

I am in touch with the two sides on this matter and I am not in a position to make any further statement at present.

While appreciating the spirit which seems to have prevailed according to the Minister, may I ask him if it would not be better if that were reflected in negotiations that would lead to a settlement?

I am anxious that no word of mine should cause any further mischief. The parties are meeting again at our request, or rather they have responded to our invitation to intercede in the matter. I am still confident that if they get together again they will possibly find means for a settlement. Failing that there are other courses open to them which we have suggested.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent sewage is saved in Scotland and used for enriching the soil; and with what general result.

As I told the hon. and gallant Member on 11th May, sewage is used for this purpose in certain areas in Scotland but I have no precise information about the extent of the practice and I should not feel justified in calling on local authorities to supply it.

Would the right hon. Gentleman be surprised to learn that since I raised this matter a few weeks ago I have received some dozens of letters pointing out the dramatic improvement in the production of the soil as a result of using this neglected sewage? Will not the right hon. Gentleman do something really concrete about it?

I shall be glad to have the information which the hon. and gallant Gentleman has but so far as I can judge it disagrees with the experience of the Agricultural Research Council, and naturally I have to depend upon that Council to provide advice in these matters.

Does this practice explain why so many Scotsmen leave home and cross the border?

Will the right hon. Gentleman recall that in his previous answer he mentioned that it was not economic in certain areas to use this particular substance? May we be assured that it will not be turned down on purely economic grounds in view of its vast importance to the soil of the country?

The hon. and gallant Member will also remember that hygienic grounds came into the matter as well as economic ones.

It must be hygienic if it is properly done.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that sewage is actually being exported to foreign countries from South Coast ports? If not, I will give him some information.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) when the canteen at present under construction at Burntisland junior school will be completed; and when a service of meals to school children will be available;

(2) the date when the central kitchen at present under construction at Meadow-field, Burntisland, will be completed; and at what date the central kitchen will be available for cooking meals.

All school meals building work in Fife is carried out by the education authority at their own hand. Arrangements have been made by the authority for the service of school meals from the canteen at Burntisland junior secondary school to start at the beginning of the new school session. The authority estimate that the central kitchen which is under construction at Meadowfield, Burntisland, will be completed and available for the preparation of school meals, towards the middle of 1949.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the number of main meals at present being supplied to school children in Fife.

; In February, 1948, the latest date for which the information is available, two-course midday meals were being supplied to 19,800 pupils attending education authority schools in Fife.

Would it not be a good thing if the hon. Member sought all this information, which seems to satisfy him, from the local education authority, instead of boring us?

Has any reason to be given why a Member should put down a Question to the Secretary of State for Scotland on education and school feeding?

It is a matter for the hon. Member who puts down the Question. I cannot say that a Question should not be put down.

asked the Minister of Pensions why he only grants a pension to the widow of an ex-Service man married after demobilisation if the death, due to injury in the 1914–18 war, occurs after 1939.

When it was decided in 1945 to abolish the requirement that to qualify for pension a widow must have married before her husband sustained his disablement 3rd September, 1939, was fixed as the effective date for widows of both World Wars. It would be quite impracticable in cases of the First World War to give further retrospective effect because it would involve the review of cases where death occurred up to as long as 30 years ago and in the vast majority it would be impossible to obtain the information on which to judge the claim.

Does the Minister agree that the present arrangements cause harsh anomalies and can he do anything to remove the anomalies?

Yes, we are fully alive to the fact that anomalies still exist but, unfortunately, any suggestions which have been submitted for consideration only make the anomalies worse.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that C.S.M.W. Bacon, permanent staff instructor to the Support Company of the 5th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment at Huntingdon, who has been married for 11 years but has been able to live with his family for only one year during that time, has no married quarters or other house near his work for the accommodation of his wife and four children; and what steps are being taken to obtain accommodation for him.

It is intended that this warrant officer shall occupy a permanent staff instructor's quarter attached to the Drill Hall, St. Mary's Street, Huntingdon. This quarter is at present occupied by a person who is not a serving soldier, and application to the court for a warrant of possession is now being made with a view to the return of the quarter to its proper use. Meanwhile the warrant officer's family are temporarily housed in other quarters in Northampton.

Is the Financial Secretary aware that failure to find accommodation for married families has a bad effect on recruiting for the Regular Army? Will he take steps to avoid notoriously bad cases of this kind as far as possible?

We are very much aware of that consideration. That is why we have greatly reduced in the last 12 months the number of premises irregularly occupied in this way and have by other means made more accommodation available.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that large dumps of Army surplus stocks have been lying in the open in Singapore for months past and are deteriorating rapidly, and that these stocks are released periodically at prices considerably below current market value or replacement cost; and what steps he is taking to end the losses thus caused to the British taxpayer.

There is an acute shortage of covered accommodation available to the Army in Singapore. In allocating new building work preference has been given to accommodation for troops living under canvas, at the expense of storage accommodation. Most of the stores lying in the open are ordnance and engineer stores. The engineer stores are mainly bridging and constructional stores, which are normally stored in the open. The disposal of stores when declared surplus is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Minister of Supply, who informs me that such stores when declared surplus are in general sold by open tender immediately for the best prices obtainable locally.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that this method entails tremendous loss and that if some notice of intention to get rid of certain stocks were given it would save a great many orders to America and consequently dollars?

I think that the question of giving notice of disposal arises more upon the Question which the hon. Member is about to ask rather than on the one which he has just asked.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that, owing to the Army's inability in Singapore to advise the controlling authority, import and export office, of the goods which are likely to be available for release in the near future, many permits are passed for the purchase of similar goods from hard currency areas; and if he will take steps to avoid the waste of valuable currency, and the unloading of surplus stocks of similar commodities on the market.

The procedure for disposal in Singapore has recently been reviewed, and is reported to be now working well and expeditiously. Before stores can be released for disposal in any particular theatre, it is necessary to confirm that they are surplus to the requirements of the Army not only locally but in other parts of the world. Until this has been done it is not possible for the local military authorities to know what stores can be released. Licensing of imports into Singapore is a matter for the civil Government. I am informed by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies that no complaint of the kind suggested by the hon. Member has been made by them.

Does the Minister think that if there was a closer working arrangement between his Department and the civil department there could be a considerable saving in value?

I have no reason to suppose that that is so. We have quite recently reviewed this matter and we have no reason to suppose that it is not working well.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the international tension arising from the situation in Berlin, he will now withdraw all A.T.S. personnel from that city.

My right hon. Friend sees no necessity for taking this step.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that if British women Service personnel were withdrawn from Berlin it would help the Russians to believe that we mean what we say, and, secondly, that if war does break out, it will be monstrous to have subjected British women to the treatment to which women throughout Eastern Europe have been subjected by the Russians?

Those supplementary questions appear to me to be remarkably hypothetical. In any event the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief is responsible for the disposition and security of his Forces, and we see no reason to interfere with his discretion.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that casualties, one fatal, occurred on Kessingland Beach, Suffolk, through the explosion of a mine; whether he will take immediate action to have the beach thoroughly surveyed for mines; and if compensation will be paid in respect of these casualties.

I wish to take this opportunity of expressing my sympathy with the parents whose son was killed in this accident. Instructions have been given for the beach to be swept again. Any claim for compensation will be considered on its merits.

While thanking my hon. Friend for that answer, may I ask him if he is aware that very great anxiety is felt at this time by parents, visitors, and the local authority at the finding of so many of these dangerous bombs on the beach three years after the war, and will he give an assurance that the work will be done at once?

I do not follow my hon. Friend's meaning when he says, "So many of these dangerous bombs." There has been this incident, which we have reason to believe may have been caused either by a mine or a mortar bomb. In any event, the beach is to be swept again, and I hope that that will remove any anxiety in the neighbourhood.

When my hon. Friend says that any claim for compensation will be considered on its merits, does he mean that compensation will be paid? If he does, will he say how he can reconcile that with the fact that the War Office has always denied liability in such cases right up to the House of Lords?

No, my hon. Friend is mistaken. In similar circumstances where it has been proved that ammunition left by the Services was responsible for damage, and provided there was no contributory negligence, compensation has been paid.

Is not my hon. Friend aware that the War Office has always claimed that these claims are not maintainable by reason of the general Act that we passed at the beginning of the war? Will he bear in mind, before he says that I am mistaken, that that decision was reached in a case in which I was professionally responsible?

What I am aware of is that compensation has been paid in certain cases.

Will the War Office pay my clients?

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he will now make a statement on the men who were concerned with Private Perring, already sentenced by court martial at Farnborough on 3rd June, and whose trial took place on 6th and 7th July, 1948.

The three men who were concerned in the incidents which led up to the trial of Private Perring were tried by court martial on 6th July. They were sentenced to terms of detention varying from 56 days to 112 days, which were confirmed on 14th July, and promulgated on 15th July. As a result of the incidents which led up to these trials, it was considered that Private Perring should be brought before a medical board as soon as the trials were completed. On 16th July, the medical board recommended his discharge, which is now being put into effect.

asked the Prime Minister if he will set up a Royal Commission to inquire into and consider the pay and conditions of service of officers of the Regular Army.

The remuneration of officers of the Armed Forces was the subject of a very careful review at the end of the recent war, and the results were published in the Post-War Pay Code for Officers in March, 1946 (Cmd. 6750). This new Pay Code was designed as a long-term settlement, so far as possible. The whole matter of officers' remuneration is kept under close review by the Departments concerned, and I do not think it would be appropriate to adopt the hon. and gallant Member's suggestion.

We cannot accept that. Surely, the Prime Minister must be aware of the very grave concern, both in this House and in the country, in regard to the position of Regular commissioned officers today especially junior officers? Will he do something to attract the best types in the country to the Service which needs them so?

That is another matter. What the hon. and gallant Member is suggesting is a Royal Commission.

Yes.

I do not think that is a good suggestion.

I think it is a very good suggestion.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that married officers whose allowances are taxed for the first time are in an extremely difficult financial position, and that whether or not a Royal Commission is the right medium, something has to be done?

Will not the Prime Minister reconsider this? Does he not realise that the conditions at the back of the White Paper in 1945 were entirely different from those of today, and will he not give full consideration to the awful difficulties that face officers, and particularly young officers, especially when serving at home?

This matter is given careful consideration. It is under consideration all the time, but I am not prepared to adopt the suggestion of the hon. and gallant Member which is to set up a Royal Commission dealing with the pay of the officers of one Service.

On a point of Order. In view of the fact that the wife of one young officer has to do charing in order to maintain some sort of standard of life. I beg to give notice that I shall endeavour to raise this matter on the Adjournment at the earliest possible moment.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that the graves of German airmen killed in Britain and of German prisoners who died here were customarily cared for until recently by German prisoners; and it, now that most of these prisoners have gone home, he will see to it that these relatively few graves are cared for reverently, by the Imperial War Graves Commission or otherwise.

In 1941 His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom requested the Imperial War Graves Commission to act as their agent for the maintenance of these graves, and this duty the Imperial War Graves Commission have continued to perform. No difference is made in the standard of maintenance between British and German war graves.

asked the Prime Minister whether in view of the fact that he has recognised the Communist menace by instituting a purge of the Civil Service, he will introduce legislation to extend that purge to other national services.

No, Sir.

Is it not becoming increasingly obvious that the Prime Minister does not mean business in attacking the Communist menace, and will he at least extend the purge to the B.B.C.? May I have an answer?

In view of the publication by the Labour Party of the Communist Manifesto, and the tribute paid by the Labour Party to Marx and Engels for the inspiration they gave to the Socialist Movement and working class people, will he stop this purge against the Communists. Will he now stop this purge against the Communists and start a purge against the Tories, in view of the fact that the Communist Manifesto for the publication of which he is responsible, calls for the forcible overthrow of present social relations? I will send him a copy if he has not read it.

I was not responsible for the conditions when the Communist Manifesto was published. I think that what the hon. Member is really pointing out is how far the Communist Party in its present state, has departed from the earlier proposals of the Communist Manifesto.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in order to avoid piece-meal measures, he will, in view of the steadily sinking water level in large areas of the United Kingdom and the development and requirements of new industries and areas due to changes in the density of population, set up a Royal Commission to inquire into the present and future water needs of the country as a whole, to report and to make recommendations.

No, Sir. A body has already been established—the Central Water Advisory Committee—as required by Section 2 of the Water Act, 1945, to advise the Ministers concerned on matters connected with the conservation and use of water resources.

Will not the Prime Minister agree that something more is required to avoid this piecemeal method of dealing with this very great problem, otherwise such disastrous suggestions as the flooding of the Enborne Valley will continue to be made?

I think that this is a much better way of dealing with it than submitting the whole matter to a Royal Commission which may not report for many years.

The Prime Minister will, no doubt, remember that there was a committee, the chairman of which was a Fellow of the Royal Society, and that that committee was sitting and had nearly finished its report when war broke out. Could that report now be published?

I will certainly consider that.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will state the main Departments which administer Forestry policy in this country and describe their main functions.

The Forestry Commission administers forestry policy in Great Britain. The Commissioners are responsible to the Minister of Agriculture and the Secretary of State for Scotland jointly. The main functions of the Commissioners are set out in Section 3 of the Forestry Act, 1919.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that he has forgotten the Board of Trade, the Ministry of Town and Country Planning and other Departments, all of which have a responsible part? If I put down another Question next week, will he give a full and complete answer?

I have given a full answer. The hon. Member is now giving me some information which I have not received before.

asked the Lord President of the Council, whether, in view of the fact that sufficient paper was not available to make the details of the Canadian spy trial fully available to the British public, he will instruct the Central Office of Information to obtain the distribution rights of the film, "Iron Curtain," which is based on the Canadian spy trial, with the object of ensuring that it is given the maximum possible distribution in this country at the cheapest rates.

I have been asked to reply. The distribution rights of the film, "Iron Curtain," have already been acquired by a major company in the United Kingdom, and this is not a matter in which the Government can intervene.

May I make this special request on behalf of the Knutsford Division? Will it be possible for His Majesty's Government to issue special passes or tickets at a reduced rate to all those who by their statements or actions are either Communist sympathisers or fellow travellers on the Government Front and Back Benches?

Is the Home Secretary aware of the danger of this anti-Communist propaganda from America, in view of the fact that, following the introduction of this film, the brokers have come flying into this country?

Is it not a fact that the best informed information rates this film as synthetic "hooey"; and is it not likely to exacerbate the situation which is now so delicate between ourselves and the Soviet Union?

I have read a number of criticisms of this film by writers for the Press and they appear to differ very much in their opinions of it. I have not seen it myself and I do not intend to see it.

Is it not a fact that this film is largely based upon official revelations in Canada.

Since this Question refers to the fact that insufficient paper was available to publicise fully the findings of the Royal Commission into the Canadian spy trial, will the Minister say whether he is satisfied that this has had sufficient publicity and can he say how many copies of the Report were imported?

Not without notice.

Would it not have been a courtesy to this House before answering this Question to find out the answer to my question? The answer is that only 4,500 copies were imported, practically all of which have been sold.