Written Answers To Questions
Friday, 29th October, 1948
Tariffs And Trade (Negotiations)
asked the President of the Board of Trade what steps are being taken to consult industry in connection with the negotiations which it is intended to hold next year under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
The Contracting Parties at their second session at Geneva this year decided that a further round of negotiations should be held at Geneva next April to afford an opportunity to certain additional countries to adhere to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, namely, Denmark, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Finland, Greece, Haiti, Italy, Nicaragua, Peru, Sweden and Uruguay, and to enable certain negotiations left unfinished last year to be completed. In preparation for these negotiations I am consulting the Association of British Chambers of Commerce, the Federation of British Industries, the National Union of Manufacturers, the Co-operative Congress Parliamentary Committee and the Trades Union Congress. Specimens of the letters which have been sent to these representative bodies are being placed in the Library of the House. My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for the Home Department, the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries will similarly arrange to obtain the views of the various organisations representing the farming and fishing industries in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The appropriate Government Departments will also seek such advice as they consider would be helpful from organisations representing industries with which they are concerned (such as the food industries) and from other interested organisations. Any organisation will equally be at liberty, of course, to submit its views to His Majesty's Government.The Joint Consultative Committee for Industry which was set up during the similar Geneva negotiations in 1947, is still in being and will be available for oral discussions as necessary.
asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is in a position to make a statement about the agreements drawn up at the second session of the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
I have made available to the House the Protocols in question and certain other decisions and resolutions of importance adopted by the Contracting Parties at their second session. These are contained in Command No. 7544. The introduction to the Command Paper explains the effect of these Protocols, which are four in number. For the convenience of the House I may say that the first two modify the G.A.T.T. so as to bring some of its main provisions into line with those of the Havana Charter for an International Trade Organisation. Pending the entry into force of the Charter, the Contracting Parties undertake, under the Protocol modifying Part I of the Agreement, to observe the general principles of the Charter to the fullest extent not inconsistent with their existing legislation. Another provision relates ton protective measures for economic development purposes: in so far as these measures are not consistent with the other provisions of the G.A.T.T., they require the approval of the Contracting Parties acting jointly. The procedure to be followed for obtaining such approval will, under the Protocol modifying Part II of the Agreement, be assimilated to that laid down in the Havana Charter which is, in various respects, more elaborate and detailed than that at present provided for in the General Agreement.The two remaining Protocols provide for provisional adherence by Chile to the General Agreement and for certain rectifications of the tariff schedules.In addition, a multilateral agreement was drawn up regarding the grant of most favoured nation treatment to the occupied zones of Western Germany. This has been laid before the House as a separate paper (Cmd. 7539). This agreement, apart from the fact that it covers all the zones of Western Germany and not merely the bizone, follows closely the terms of the notes exchanged on this subject between the United Kingdom and the United States Governments last July (Cmd. 7447) which have already been discussed and approved by this House. These four Protocols and the Agreement about Western Germany have been signed on behalf of the United Kingdom; in the case of the Protocol amending Part II of the G.A.T.T. this signature needs to be completed by a formal acceptance. In view of the wide measure of international agreement reached at Geneva as to the desirability of these changes which, viewed broadly, should not prove adverse to United Kingdom interests, it is proposed to accept them.The Contracting Parties also decided amongst other things that a further round of multilateral tariff negotiations should be held at Geneva next April. This is to afford an opportunity to certain additional countries to adhere to the G.A.T.T. United Kingdom trade interests are, as before, being consulted in preparation for these negotiations, and I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I have given him today in this connection.
Education
Primary Pupils, Carlisle
asked the Minister of Education if he will now give the information, promised by him to the hon. Member for London University, regarding the retention of certain primary pupils in the Carlisle and County High School for Girls in conflict with the provisions of the Education Act, 1944.
As I have already informed the hon. Member, the local education authority have now decided that three pupils who are due to take the selection test in March, 1949, shall be allowed to remain at the school until then, while a fourth pupil, younger than the others, is to be transferred to a primary school.
Examinations
asked the Minister of Education if he will give the names of the representative body mentioned by him on 28th July this year, as having advised him to institute the new general certificate examination; and whether he has given weight to the numerous opinions objecting to that innovation.
I am sending the hon. Member a list of the members of the Secondary School Examinations Council at the time when its report was signed by them unanimously and presented to me. I have carefully considered the representations made to me before and since I took my decision on that report, and I remain satisfied that the comprehensive scheme proposed is in the best interests of the pupils.
Scholarships (Universities)
asked the Minister of Education if he will make a statement indicating the types of schools, whether national or independent, which have been awarded open scholarships at Oxford and Cambridge during the past year, and give the comparative figures for 1938; and whether he will resume the pre-war practice of publishing in his annual reports a classification of these awards according to the types of schools represented.
I do not propose to resume the compilation of this return which was based on university and other documents available to the public. The last year for which it was made was 1937-38 and I gave the hon. Member the figures for that year in my answer of 14th March. 1947.
Rate-Borne Expenditure
asked the Minister of Education what have been the annual additions to the rates in England and Wales in respect of costs of education for each year since the passage of the Education Act, 1944.
Information about the estimated amount of net rate-borne expenditure on education services within the purview of my Department is given each year in the Memorandum on the Ministry of Education Estimates which is presented to Parliament. The figures for such expenditure shown in the Memoranda for the financial years since 1945-46 (inclusive) are as follows:—
| £ | |||
| 1945–46 | … | … | 62,313,000 |
| 1946–47 | … | … | 69,710,000 |
| 1947–48 | … | … | 74,774,000 |
| 1948–49 | … | … | 82,861,000 |
Uganda (Detained Persons)
asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies the result of the quarterly review of the case of the remaining seven men arrested in Uganda and deported in 1945.
All these persons have now been released from detention but six of them are, for security reasons, temporarily prevented from living in certain districts of Uganda. The position will be further reviewed by the Governor in December.
New Industries, Gold Coast
asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what progress has been made towards the creation of new industries through the Industrial Development Corporation of the Gold Coast.
I am consulting the Governor on the subject and will communicate with my hon. Friend as soon as I have received his reply.
Public Health
Common Cold (Posters)
asked the Minister of Health how many types of posters and how many of each type have been issued in the "Trap the Germs in Your Handkerchief" campaign; what is the total cost of the posters; and what is the amount of paper used up to date.
In the period since 1945, eight types of poster have been issued; totalling 490,000 copies, costing (including site hire on buses, etc.) £39,000, and using four tons of paper.
Population And Marriage Statistics
asked the Minister of Health what was the estimated monthly increase in the population of Greater London during the present year; and how many marriages were registered in that area during the same period.
The Registrar-General informs me that he estimates the average monthly increase in the population of Greater London during the first six months of this year to be about 11,600; the number of marriages registered during the same period was about 39,360.
National Health Service
Spectacles And Prescriptions (Cost)
asked the Minister of Health what is the cost to date of the provision of spectacles and pharmaceutical benefits, including medical prescriptions, under the National Health Service Act, 1946.
The actual payments for the provision of spectacles, including fees paid for sight-testing, and for pharmaceutical benefits including medical prescriptions, up to 30th September, 1948, the latest date for which figures are available, amounted to £981,951 and £1,905,447 respectively. These figures do not include the provision of spectacles or medicines through the hospital service.
Dental Services (Cost)
asked the Minister of Health what has been the cost to date of the dental services, including the supply of dentures, provided under the National Health Service Act, 1946.
The actual payments made for dental treatment under the National Health Service Act, 1946, including the supply of dentures, up to 30th September, 1948—the latest date for which figures are available—amounted to £1,232,057. This figure does not include the cost of dental treatment provided through the hospital service.
Hospitals (Vacant Beds)
asked the Minister of Health how many beds in hospitals in England and Wales now remain vacant for lack of staff as compared with the figure of one-ninth given by him for March, 1948; what is the proportion of beds which are staffed but vacant at the present time as compared with the figure of one-eleventh for March, 1948; and what is the explanation of the latter position, in view of the pressure on beds now crippling all the hospitals.
My information is that at 30th June, 1948, the latest date for which figures are available, the number of beds vacant and unstaffed was 57,310; this is a little less than one-ninth of the total beds. The proportion of beds staffed but vacant remained at one-eleventh, which is about the normal proportion of vacancies due to turnover.