asked the Minister of Works how many steel-framed buildings are under construction in London for use as Government offices; and what is the approximate total accommodation which will be so provided.

Eleven steel-framed buildings are at present under construction in London for use as Government offices. The total area of office space which will be provided by these buildings is about 1,340,000 square feet.

Can the Minister say how this compares with the number of steel-framed buildings under construction for industrial offices and profit-making enterprises?

No, Sir, I am afraid I cannot without notice.

Will this type of structure be abandoned when steel output is reduced under nationalisation?

No, Sir. Under nationalisation we hope to increase it because the steel output will increase.

How many tons of steel are being wasted on homes for bureaucrats?

If these buildings are called "homes for bureaucrats," no tons of steel are being wasted because it is absolutely essential to provide these buildings in order that we may de-requisition the great amount of office space which we have under requisition at the present time.

asked the Minister of Works what will be the r61e of his Department in the rebuilding of the cities defined in the Town and Country Planning Act as areas of extensive war damage.

My Department will issue building licences for these cities within the limits of the resources that can be made available, and will generally be responsible for the erection of any new Government buildings that will be required.

Can the Minister, therefore, assure the House that it is not his intention that his Ministry shall become the main contractor in the blitzed cities?

No question has arisen whether or not the Ministry should be the main contractor, but if it were felt necessary to use any labour force under my control for the purpose of doing the work, I should be very pleased to take on the job.

asked the Minister of Works what researches his Department has made as to the best kind of hedge to replace iron railings round London parks and gardens; and with what result.

A number of experimental plantings have been made of both' evergreen and deciduous species. I will let any hon. Member interested have a list. The trial, to be effective, must be a fairly long one, but it is already clear that shrubs such as barberry, cotoneaster and forsythia will not be robust enough. Of evergreens, it looks, I am glad to say, as if yew and holly will stand up to the wear and tear of London park conditions.

Will the Minister publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT the full list, if possible not only in Latin, but also in English? May we take it that he is trying to find a substitute for the rather uninteresting privet which surrounds most London gardens at the present moment?

Yes, Sir. Our experiments are for that purpose. I will certainly, publish the list.

The Minister mentioned yew just now. Has he taken into account that this is a particularly slow-growing hedge?

Yes, Sir. We are using yew in places where there is not the necessity for great height in a short time.

asked the Minister of Works what has been the cost in each year since July, 1945, of buildings for training at Government centres.

The cost of erecting and adapting buildings for Ministry of Labour Government training centres in the financial years since 1945 has been as follows: 1945–46, £1,086,570; 1946–47, £3,131,690; 1947–48, £1,379,754; 1948–49 (to 31st October, 1948), £356,440.

May I ask the Minister whether, in making this expenditure of, on a hurried calculation, some £6 million, he will take steps to see that these buildings are put to an effective use? Will he also satisfy himself that the expenditure is justified, and tell me whether he has had Treasury permission for all this expenditure?

I have had not only Treasury permission but also the permission of this House for all this expenditure. So far as use is concerned, I am certain that the use to which these buildings are being put already, and the use to which they will be put when their need as training centres ceases, is for the great benefit of this country.

asked the Minister of Works whether facilities are being provided for Members of the House of Commons to witness the screening of films and to listen-in to wireless and television programmes in the new House of Commons.

It is hoped to provide facilities for listening to wireless and television programmes when the new House of Commons is completed. No provision is being made for a cinema, but it is intended that the present arrangements will continue by which films of Parliamentary interest may be exhibited in the Grand Committee Room off Westminster Hall.

Will my right hon. Friend ensure that the conditions in that room are much more satisfactory than at present for the exhibition of films, since it is hardly suitable?

I have had no complaint put before me so far, but if the authorities of the House put any complaints to me about the room, I will certainly investigate them and deal with the matter.

Will the right hon. Gentleman consider whether he can spare us, when we go back to our old House, from the loudspeaker programme in the House itself?

Careful consideration is being given to this.

asked the Minister of Works what accommodation will be provided in the new House of Commons for civil servants awaiting their turn of duty in the officials' box.

I understand that the authorities of the House intend to allocate a room for this purpose.

Will the room be close to the Chamber itself, and will it include a ticker-machine so that the civil servants can follow the proceedings in the House?

I have to take instructions from the authorities of the House with regard to that. It is not my decision.

asked the Minister of Works whether he intends to reinstate the eighteenth-century wrought-iron gates on the north side of Green Park, or in their earlier home at Chiswick House.

The gates will be re-erected on the north side of Green Park, as soon as the repairs to them, now in hand, are completed.

But as these magnificent gates, if put back in Piccadilly, would merely be part of a fence, and not used as gates at all, would the right hon. Gentleman consider again, whether, as suggested by the hon. Member for Brentford and Chiswick (Mr. F. Noel-Baker) in a letter to the "Sunday Times" yesterday, they could not be restored to Chiswick House, now acquired by the Government, where they were in the eighteenth century?

My purpose, of course, was to restore them to the place from which they were removed during the war period, but I will certainly give consideration to the suggestion which the hon. Gentleman has made.

asked the Minister of Works when it is proposed to release the Penn Wood Camp, which is part of the Common at Penn Street, near Amersham, Bucks.

The camp will be released when possession has been obtained of the huts at present occupied by squatters, I cannot at present say when this is likely to be.

Will the Minister look at that Question again, seeing that the de-requisitioning of this common, of which the parish has been deprived for all these years, has been under discussion between his Department and the local authorities for two and a half years, and the question of the squatters can be dealt with by the local authority once the Government relax their control over the common?

If the local authority will deal with the question of the squatters and provide them with alternative accommodation, I will de-requisition the place as soon as the squatters are moved out.

asked the Minister of Works how many factories in the Greater London area have been permitted to extend their premises since the end of the war.

Building licences have been granted for the extension of 1,150 factories in the London region since 1st August, 1945.

Is the Minister able to say how many of those factories are on sites scheduled under the Greater London plan for dwelling houses or for open spaces?

No, I am afraid I cannot do so without notice, but where they have been erected it has been with the sanction of the authorities concerned.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether one of the factories concerned in the Greater London area is not the factory of the "Daily Worker"?

A very good factory, and giving increased production.

Is not the Minister aware that that is merely scheduled under the Greater London plan for industrial and commercial use?

I do not know whether that is included as one of the factories here concerned or not.

asked the Minister of Works whether he is aware that the Regional Office of his Department at Cambridge have refused an application by Mr. F. J. M. Wedge, of Keyston, for a licence to erect a workshop, 40 ft. by 20 ft., which he urgently requires in order to carry out repairs and maintenance to tractors and agricultural machinery; what were the reasons for such refusal; and whether he will reconsider the refusal to grant the licence.

Yes, Sir; the application was refused in the absence of support at the time from the Government Departments interested in the undertaking. I have, however, reconsidered the matter in the light of the further information supplied to me by the hon. Member and the licence has now been issued.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether a claim for compensation has yet been addressed to the Egyptian Government arising from the attack by Egyptian aircraft on the R.A.F. aerodrome at Ramat David on 22nd May last, in which four airmen were killed and five were wounded.

No, Sir. The preparation of the claims for compensation both in respect of the loss of British lives and of the damage caused to British aircraft and installations in this unfortunate incident is a detailed and complex matter and has not yet been completed.

Can the Under-Secretary say when it is likely that the claim will be submitted, because the House was informed by the Undersecretary of State for Air as long ago as July that a claim was to be submitted?

I agree that it is time for this claim to be ready, and I think it should be ready shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that the Egyptian Government has been temporarily depriving certain British passengers of their passports during their passage through the Suez Canal on the grounds that these passengers were Jewish; and what protest His Majesty's Government has made to the Egyptian Government against this practice.

I am not aware of any such cases. If the hon. Member will let me have further information, I will make inquiries.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that these cases have been reported in the "Jewish Chronicle" and can be ascertained by inquiries of the steamship company, and may I say also that I understand passengers who arrive by air are put aside as being Jews if they stay overnight?

Perhaps the hon. Member will put me in touch with those passengers.

Could my hon. Friend refer also to a communication which he has received from me on a similar matter and try to remedy that position at the same time?

I am aware of a similar matter, but it is not the matter which is now under discussion.

asked the Minister of Food why he has refused adequate flour supplies to Mr. John Gray, of Wallacetown Bakery, 25, Content Street, Ayr, in view of the fact that Mr. Gray is an ex-Service man himself and employs ex-Service men, whom he will have to discharge unless he gets the extra allocation of flour necessary to keep them occupied.

My Parliamentary Secretary has written to the hon. and gallant Member explaining that Mr. Gray is already getting all the flour to which he is entitled under the Flour Restriction Scheme.

But does the right hon. Gentleman realise that his action in this matter has thrown three of my constituents—ex-Service men—out of work and is also damping down the enthusiasm and initiative of their employer in exercising his normal trade, which he is asked to do on every hoarding in the country?

I am afraid we cannot give him more flour than he has been getting in the datum period which, under the scheme, is last year.

asked the Minister of Food what quantities of maize and barley have been delivered to this country during 1948, and at what prices, under the trade agreement with the U.S.S.R.

Under the Trade Agreement with the U.S.S.R. 187,239 long tons of maize and 430,530 long tons of barley have been delivered to the United Kingdom. The approximate c.i.f. cost was £32 14s. per ton for maize and £32 4s. per ton for barley.

Under the terms of the agreement was it not laid down that Britain should pay world prices for these grains, and during 1948 have not world prices for these grains, as shown by the Chicago market, been going down, whereas we have been paying increased prices; and does this not represent something like £4 million or £5 million of excess expenditure?

No, Sir. The prices under the agreement were agreed at the time and were world prices.

Will the Minister say what is meant by the term "long tons"? Is it the same kind of thing as a "baker's dozen" of 13?

In these negotiations two units of tons are used: short tons and long tons. The long tons are the longer ones.

Is this not an example of the inadvisability of making long-term contracts in a period of falling world prices?

Arising out of the Ministers reply to my supplementary question, is the House to understand that the prices to be paid by this country do not follow world prices and are fixed merely by world prices operating at the time the agreement was made?

It does not follow that other agreements are similar, but with this particular agreement the quantities were bought outright at a price which was fixed at the time of the agreement.

asked the Minister of Food whether, in view of the improved position with regard to the importation of feedingstuffs, he will arrange for an early increase in the present inadequate rations for working horses and ponies.

I have no reason to believe that the present rations for working horses are inadequate.

Surely, the right hon. Gentleman must be aware that horses and ponies cannot do their normal work on their present-day issues of feedingstuffs. One has only to look around the countryside and towns to see evidence of this.

asked the Minister of Food if he is aware that a number of fried fish shops which had only a small allocation of fat when they closed during the war are now re-opening and receiving the higher allocation of four cwt. of fat per eight weeks period; and, in view of this, whether he will raise the fat allocation for all fish friers to a minimum of four cwt.

asked the Minister of Food whether he will now give favourable consideration to applications from fish friers who have no other source of livelihood and who now receive less than four cwt. of fat per allocation period, for this allocation to be increased to four cwt.

The average allocation of fat to existing fish friers works out at eight cwt. per period, so I cannot agree that the allocation of four cwt. to newcomers is excessive. I have raised the minimum allocation to three cwt.—I cannot spare the fats to go further than this now but I will carefully consider making the minimum four cwt. whenever the necessary fats are available.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that he is not answering the point in my Question, and does he not think it unfair that shops which carried on during the difficulties of the war period should now be chained to their datum period allocation, whereas those shops which closed and have now reopened, are doing so on a much more favourable basis?

My hon. Friend should remember that existing shops—to which allocations, as she rightly says, are made on a datum basis—receive on that basis an average of eight cwt. per period, or double, therefore, that of the new consumer.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that he has made no reference to the point which I raised in my Question of the man who has to depend upon his fish frying business for his livelihood? In view of the fact that the Minister recently informed the House that most of these operators with small allocations were only part-time operators, will he give special consideration to raising the allocations of those who are dependent on their fish frying businesses for their livelihood?

It was in view of that consideration that we did raise the minimum to three cwt. and I wish to repeat that as soon as we have the fats, we should very much like to raise it further to four cwt.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that many of these shops which closed down during the war period did so because the men concerned had joined the Forces; and will he continue to see that these men have at least as fair an amount as anybody else?

That is one of the reasons which induced us to allow free entry into the trade.

Will my right hon. Friend bear in mind that it is not the question of the average allocation of fats which matters so much as the grievance involved in individual cases and the discrepancy as between case and case?

Those are both considerations which we have in mind.

In view of the dissatisfaction amongst fish friers, will the right hon. Gentleman receive a deputation from them to discuss the whole matter and try to come to a reasonable arrangement?

Certainly. I have received one such deputation already and I am always willing to receive another.

If the average which my right hon. Friend has mentioned is as high as he says, is it not clear that it would not take a great deal more fat to bring those receiving less than four cwt. up to that level?

It depends on what my hon. Friend considers is a "great deal," but it takes more fat than we have got at the moment.

asked the Minister of Food if any steps are being taken to encourage the production of concentrated orange juice within the sterling area.

Yes, Sir. I am glad to be able to announce that I have recently offered to the West Indian Colonies a ten year contract, in the form of a guarantee to take concentrated orange juice for the Welfare Food Scheme up to a maximum of 5,000 tons a year. This offer the growers and producers in Jamaica, Trinidad and British Honduras have accepted. A formula for the annual revision of prices for the first five years of the contract has been agreed; a fresh formula for the remaining half of the contract will be worked out later on.

Plans are already in hand for a wide-scale expansion of citrus acreage in the Islands and for the installation of factories and modern equipment for the production of juice.

We hope that this long-term agreement will bring us an increasing supply of concentrated orange juice over the next five years, which will enable us to maintain the present distribution to young children and expectant mothers and, at the same time, to reduce our dollar expenditure.

While welcoming that announcement, may I ask my right hon. Friend if, when these additional supplies become available, he will intensify his campaign to make these welfare foods better known and better used, because they are not fully taken up at present?

Certainly. That is a consideration which we have very much in mind.

Will the Minister also consider the possibility of extending the distribution of orange juice to children over five years of age at the earliest opportunity.

That is largely a question of supply.

asked the Minister of Food what are the present stocks of sugar and how much is stored in good storage buildings; and how much is on other sites.

For reasons which have been repeatedly given to the House, I am not prepared to disclose the amount of our stocks. They are at the normal level necessary to maintain the higher rate of distribution beginning on 5th December. All refined sugar and most raw sugar is stored in good warehouses. The remainder of the raw sugar is stored on approved sites under specially constructed covering, which from experience has

asked the Minister of Food what percentages of the total rationed foodstuffs consumed in this country are allocated to individual rations, hotels and restaurants, works canteens and manufacturing purposes, respectively.

Since the answer includes a table of figures, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT. In general, hotels and restaurants get about 3.5 per cent. of rationed foodstuffs.

Will the Minister confirm or deny the strong rumours which are current that much of this sugar is stored out in the open and is deteriorating rapidly?

Having denied that once in my answer to the Question, I now deny it again in my answer to the supplementary question.

asked the Minister of Food what was the last price he paid per ton for whale oil; how many tons he has bought since 1st January, 1948; and what prices he paid.

The only contracts made for whale oil since 1st January, 1948, are for the 1948–49 catch. We have purchased the total production of the United Kingdom and South African expeditions at £90 per ton ex-ship for No. 1 quality. We shall not know the quantity until early in the New Year.

Why was the contract with Messrs. Salvesen, which was agreed at the time at £80, altered to £100 a ton, and why should the Minister gamble with the taxpayers' money and not give a proper account.

The price of £90 a ton is a reduction, not an increase, and I entirely deny the implication in the last part of the supplementary question.

The Minister is evading my question. I understand from the Public Accounts Committee that the agreement was made with Messrs. Salvesen for £80 a ton and it was put up to £100 a ton; will the right hon. Gentleman explain why that was done?

The hon. Member is referring to last year's contract and I am referring to this year's contract. In last year's contract there was a clause which made it necessary to pay the same price as was paid to the Norwegians and that worked out at more than £80 a ton. Therefore Messrs. Salvesen were entitled to the same price per ton.

Is not this the result of bulk purchasing bringing about bulk selling——

Mr. De la Bère.

asked the Minister of Food what reasons led to his recent decision that the price of cocoa beans should be dropped by £35 per ton; and how he has dealt with the profits obtained as a result of selling to the chocolate manufacturers at the previous price.

As I told the hon. Member on 8th November, our selling price is reviewed from time to time to bring it into line with our buying costs. In doing so I am bound to pay some regard to future market prospects and in the new price some account has also been taken of profits realised in recent months.

In view of the fact that the price paid by the Ministry to the primary producers was so very different from the price charged by the Minister to the chocolate manufacturers, can the right hon. Gentleman tell us where the difference has gone over a wide period of months, as that is exercising the minds of many people today?

If the Ministry realise any profit on these transactions, the money will, of course, go to the relief of food subsidies.

Is there not some arrangement in the buying and selling of cocoa which gives the producers some benefit by way of a sinking fund for research and compensation?

Certainly. The West African producers have a very reasonable arrangement.

In view of the fact that this is entirely arbitrary, I shall have to raise the matter again.

asked the Minister of Food is he will consider the revision of the allocation of points goods to retailers, with a view to relating such allocation to the fluctuations of registrations.

Since 12th August last allocations of canned meat, canned fish, canned fruit and canned milk to retailers have been based on their registrations for certain rationed foods, namely, sugar, fats, bacon and cheese, as at 29th February, 1948. The hon. Member's suggestion will be considered in the course of our periodic reviews of methods of allocation.

Is the Minister able to say when he will be able to come to a decision on what he intends to do in this matter?

As the hon. Member sees, we have tied a large number of points goods to registrations, but whether we should go further in that direction is a matter which we are now considering.

When considering this matter, will the Minister bear in mind that in the rural areas, not merely at harvest time but also at sowing time and during the harvesting of sugar beet, there is a very great burden on retailers who need bigger allocations?

That is a separate, but an important, point.

asked the Minister of Food whether he is satisfied that the erection of the factory for the Milk Marketing Board at Langley Bridge, Co. Durham, has been justified; what quantity of milk was treated during the first three months after opening and the last three months for which figures are available; what is its maximum capacity; and when he expects that this will be reached.

I am satisfied that this factory has justified its existence. During the first three months after opening throughput was about 7,800 gallons daily. During the three months, August to October, throughput was about 10,000 gallons daily. The capacity of the factory is 20,000 gallons daily, which should be reached in a comparatively short time, if the present rate of increase is maintained.

While thanking my right hon. Friend for that reply, may I ask whether he is aware that deputations are visiting this factory from all over the country? Are such factories likely to be established in other parts of the country?

I could not answer without notice the question about other parts of the country, but we feel that this factory will justify itself.

Is my right hon. Friend taking steps to safeguard against the waste of buildings and materials which would occur if the Milk Marketing Board and private manufacturers and processers went on manufacturing independently, without more milk being produced?

Certainly, that will be kept in mind.

asked the Minister of Food how many requests he has received for permission to operate mobile canteens in rural areas to provide cooked dinners for infirm elderly people; and if he will ask his food executive officers to consult local education authorities with a view to extending the school meals service for this purpose.

I am afraid we could only give the information asked for in the first part of the Question by making inquiries of every food office in the country. It is impracticable to use the school meals service to provide meals for old or infirm people, but we will gladly allow food to local authorities, or voluntary organisations, such as Women's Institutes or the W.V.S., for this purpose.

asked the Minister of Food why men, rather than women, have been appointed as members of the catering trade working party which is to make recommendations to secure the observance of sanitary and cleaning conditions in the catering trade.

I have appointed, without regard to sex, people who have been suggested to me as being officially concerned with food hygiene and having experience of various branches of the catering trade.

Why are there no women on this working party? Is it that my right hon. Friend is influenced by the fact that men are now better at washing dishes?

We have dealt with this matter irrespective of sex.

asked the Minister of Food whether, now that 500 million lb. of tea have been imported since he announced the cut in the tea ration, he will now increase the tea ration.

Five hundred million lb. is appreciably less than the amount required to meet even the present 2 oz. ration in that period.

Does the Minister remember the pledge given by his Parliamentary Secretary that the tea ration would be increased when supplies became greater? As they are a great deal larger than last year, will the Minister redeem that pledge?

No, but I will repeat the pledge that as soon as supplies become sufficient we will increase the tea ration.

Will the Minister see that sufficient quantities of tea are made available to the Board of Trade for entertaining foreign delegations? The "Daily Herald" shows great apprehension——

That has nothing to do with this Question, which refers to tea rationing.

asked the Minister of Food what proportion of the proposed increased allocation of 22,000 tons of sugar for manufacture will be diverted to the Co-operative Wholesale Society; and what proportion to retail co-operative societies which purchase sugar from wholesalers other than the C.W.S.

When the Co-operative authorities decide the allocation of extra sugar among their societies, it will be delivered through the same channels as their present supplies. The proportions now drawn by co-operative societies from the C.W.S. and from other wholesalers are not known.

Does that mean that certain co-operative societies are to have a double advantage by going to the C.W.S. for wholesale supplies and to others for retail supplies?

Oh no, Sir. It means that it will be delivered in the existing proportions through one channel or another.

Will the right hon. Gentleman take steps to see that what I suggest does not happen?

Is the Minister aware that the co-operative societies cannot get too much in the way of supplies?

asked the Minister of Food what proportion of the proposed increased allocation of 22,000 tons of sugar to manufacturers will be given to biscuit manufacturers with an export trade; and how many are the biscuit manufacturers who will so benefit.

The additional sugar to be distributed in a full year for biscuit production is 12,000 tons. Of this, it is proposed to set aside 20 per cent. for allocation to manufacturers exporting biscuits, in proportion to the volume they sell in desirable currency markets. Thirty-seven manufacturers are known to qualify for extra sugar under this arrangement, but any others who may develop an export trade in desirable markets will also qualify.

Will the Minister make clear whether this extra sugar for manufacturers is to go to making biscuits for the home market or the export market.

Some is for one and some for the other.

When the allocation is to be made, have the manufacturers to apply, or will it be given to them on a basis known to the Ministry of Food?

No. This has been discussed and is still being discussed with the trade interests concerned. They are well aware of it.

asked the Minister of Food whether he is aware that there are more than sufficient onions in this country to satisfy the demand until after 31st December; and whether he will extend the prohibition of imports until after that date.

I have no accurate information of the amount of home-grown onions in good condition still unsold, but such information as I have indicates that the quantity is insufficient to cover our needs to the end of the year. In any case it is not the policy of the Government to restrict imports of onions more than is necessary to avoid glut conditions in the United Kingdom markets and it would be inconsistent with the agreements we have with other Governments to extend the present prohibition as the hon. Member suggests. By far the best way of disposing of the onions would be by means of a reduction of price to the consumer.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the vast majority of farmers find that onions are already to a great extent difficult to sell because of foreign imports? Is he aware that his decision to restrict imports until 15th December was ineffective because it was made too late to prevent the import of onions, and will he please reconsider the whole position in the interest of home growers and consumers?

I cannot agree that the decision was ineffective. A very considerable amount of onions had to be held back by the countries which otherwise would have exported them. I repeat that the only possible solution is the reduction of the retail price to the consumer.

Will my right hon. Friend recollect the experience in August when vested interests were considered and the import of tomatoes restricted, and the prices went up 100 per cent? Will he remember that the housewife is of paramount importance and has a vested interest which should come first?

I am very well aware of that and will give it consideration.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that his original reply to the hon. Member for Huntingdon (Mr. Renton) is calamitous to the areas where onions are grown? Will he bear in mind that these onions have been grown as a result of appeals made by himself and by the Minister of Agriculture to produce more food?

asked the Minister of Food whether he will now give permission for fish friers to serve hot beverages and also bread and butter with fried fish.

I am afraid we cannot allow supplies to fish friers outside the normal catering-licence procedure.

But is there any licence required for serving hot drinks? For certain hot drinks no rationed commodities are required. Why cannot they serve hot drinks?

Where no rationed foodstuffs are in question—and subject to notice—I think they are entitled to serve them.

Is the right hon. Gentleman saying that fish friers can serve drinks such as Bovril, Oxo and black coffee?

I must have notice of the exact position.

Is it not highly desirable that bread and butter should be taken with fried fish, on dietetic grounds?

I have not said that we are going to refuse catering licences to all fish friers. We should not do so, but I do not think we can give them special treatment.

In view of the most unsatisfactory nature of the answer, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the matter on the Adjournment at the earliest opportunity.

asked the Minister of Food what proportions of the 1948 barley crop in the United Kingdom are being used for brewing beer, for distilling spirits, other malting purposes and animal feedingstuffs.

The proportions are approximately as follow: 38 per cent. for brewing, 10 per cent. for whisky distilling, 5 per cent. for malt for purposes other than brewing and 37 per cent. for animal feeding. The balance of 10 per cent. covers seed requirements and production of pot and pearl barley.

asked the Minister of Food why fresh sultanas and fresh Greek grapes have been imported into this country when there is a shortage of dried sultanas and raisins.

Not all varieties of grapes are suitable for drying. But even if all the Greek grapes we import were suitable for drying—which is not the case—the quantity involved would not add appreciably to our dried fruit supplies.

Does the right hon. Gentleman realise that there is such a shortage of dried fruit in my constituency that people have dried the grapes and sultanas and made most excellent dried sultanas and raisins with them? Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that they have had to use fuel to do so, and does he not realise that by importing dried fruit he would be saving sugar?

We certainly prefer to import fruit dried and we try to import the greater proportion of it dried, but I do not think we can prohibit the importation of these fresh grapes.

Could not the right hon. Gentleman increase the importation of dried fruit? Obviously this fruit which was imported might have been dried and imported into this country.

No, Sir. The fact is that some varieties of grapes are not suitable for drying.

These are good ones.

No, I think not.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is aware that farmers have to wait for a year and longer to obtain Ransome multi-furrow ploughs; what proportion of this firm's output is reserved for export; and to what extent production is being held up by lack of suitable steel.

Yes, Sir, but I hope that the steps the manufacturers are taking to increase the output of these ploughs, sevenfold over the next 18 months for the home market, will enable them to catch up on the demand. Less than 20 per cent. of their output of this kind of plough is expected to be exported in 1949, although there is an even longer outstanding demand overseas. Production has been held up by lack of sufficient skilled labour as well as by shortages of suitable steel and components. We shall continue to do all we can to help overcome these difficulties.

Are we to understand that sufficient steel of the right quality is now being made available for the manufacture of these ploughs?

Yes. I have already said that there are other difficulties. That is not the difficulty.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what steps are being taken by the Somerset County Agricultural Committee to remedy complaints by Mendip farmers that damage is being caused to their walls by fox-hunters.

I understand that the Somerset County Agricultural Executive Committee have received no complaints from Mendip farmers of damage by fox hunts.