asked the Secretary of State for War why soldiers are not allowed to purchase spectacles of a more expensive pattern than the standard provided, in spite of A.C.I. 581, 1948, which states that charges may be made for spectacles which are supplied at an applicant's request and which are of a more expensive pattern than the standard provided under the National Health Service.

As soon as the necessary arrangements can be made, soldiers will be allowed to obtain on part payment spectacles of a more expensive pattern than those provided free to civilians under the National Health Service.

asked the Secretary of State for War why some of the bell wires installed at the War Office were taken out; and how long it will be before the bells, particulars of which have been sent him, are put in working order.

The hon. Member is apparently referring to a case where a bell system was installed irregularly after an application for it had been refused because a bell system was not considered essential. New installations are restricted to essential cases and no question of reinstatement arises.

asked the Minister of National Insurance the total number of persons liable to pay for National Insurance; the numbers actually paying; and the number receiving benefit, respectively, at the most convenient recorded date.

I regret that the figures asked for in the first two parts of the Question are not available. In the week ended 21st December, 1948, the total number of orders issued for payment of benefits under the National Insurance Acts, including retirement, old age and widows' pensions, was approximately 5,900,000.

asked the Minister of National Insurance what was the amount taken over from the accumulated funds of the various friendly societies; how much of this money has been expended and in what way; and what amount remains in hand.

No funds have been taken over from friendly societies: the remaining parts of the Question do not therefore arise.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that owners of let property frequently pay more for repairs than they receive in rent; and whether as a measure of relief he will consider raising the Inland Revenue rates of repairs allowances.

I cannot anticipate my Budget statement.

asked the President of the Board of Trade to what extent his regulations enable Spanish publishers to import British books; and why individual firms are experiencing difficulty in paying for rights acquired by them when a quota of sterling is allowed them for this purpose.

I have been asked to reply. So far as United Kingdom regulations are concerned, British books can be exported freely except for books over 75 years old which require export licences for all destinations. The matter raised in the second part of the Question was taken up in the course of the financial and trade negotiations with Spain last month, when the Spanish Delegation stated that they would recommend implementation of the quota.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will consider relief from Income Tax to all depositors in Post Office Savings Banks up to £500;(2) if he will consider relief from Income Tax of all savings in Trustee Savings Banks up to £500.

I cannot entertain either of these proposals.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when statistical information will be made available as regards Income Tax paid in Scotland.

This information already appears in the Annual Reports of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what grants have been made, either in sterling or dollars, to Eire for the purpose of encouraging the poultry industry there; and what is the total amount of these grants.

I assume the hon. and gallant Member is referring to the special incentive bonus on eggs which the U.K. Government has agreed to pay in certain circumstances. If so, I would refer him to the reply made by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Food to the hon. Member for Newbury (Mr. Hurd) on 4th February, 1948.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total amount of money in Trustee Savings Banks and in P.O. Savings Banks, respectively, for convenient periods in 1945 and 1948.

The amounts due to depositors in the trustee savings banks were £604 million at 30th November, 1945, and £801 million at 30th November, 1948. The amounts due to depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank were £1,758 million at 30th November, 1945, and £1,965 million at 30th November. 1948.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give, in sterling, to the nearest pound, figures for direct and indirect taxation per head of the population in Great Britain, Canada, Australia, South Africa and the U.S.A. for the years ended 31st March, 1947, and 1948; and an estimate of the figure for the year ending 31st March, 1949, on the lines of the answer given on 19th June, 1946.

The following table sets out the position. The figures, which are based on the best information available, include only taxation levied by central Governments and, therefore, exclude State, municipal and local taxes. Local currencies have been converted to sterling at current rates of exchange.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider relieving all dividends on approved staff profit sharing schemes from Profits Tax.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the names of the members of the Economic Planning Board.

The members of the Economic Planning Board are: Sir Edwin Plowden (Chairman), Sir Graham Cunningham, Mr. E. R. Verdon Smith, Mr. J. Tanner, Mr. H V. Tewson, Sir Bernard Gilbert, Sir Godfrey Ince, Sir Archibald Rowlands, Sir John Woods, Mr. E. A. Hitchman and Mr. R. L. Hall.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has any statement to make about the charging of the Special Contribution in Northern Ireland.

The question whether under the terms of the Finance Act, 1948, the Special Contribution extends to Northern Ireland has been under consideration by the Law Officers. The technical position is very complicated, and while there are substantial arguments, including the existence of express references in the Act to Northern Ireland, which support the view that the Contribution applies in that country, there are other arguments, which the Law Officers are inclined, on balance, and with hesitation, to prefer, that support the contrary view. It is clearly undesirable that this matter should be the subject of prolonged and costly litigation and I intend, in the next Finance Bill, to lay proposals before Parliament to remove any doubts and make it clear that the Contribution applies throughout the United Kingdom including Northern Ireland. Meantime in accordance with the view hitherto held, assessments to contribution will continue to be made in Northern Ireland. It will, of course, be open to any individual in Northern Ireland, if he thinks fit, to give notice of appeal against the assessment made on him. He can then either pay the Contribution subject to his appeal and so save himself interest, or he can have his Contribution held over in the knowledge that if his assessment is confirmed interest will be payable from 1st January, 1949. The Inland Revenue are proposing to tell each individual concerned in Northern Ireland what the position is.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury under what circumstances the War Damage Commission are empowered to consider claims which, owing to exceptional circumstances, have been presented after the due date.

Under Section 31 of the War Damage Act, 1943, the Commission are empowered in their discretion to extend the time limit for notifying war damage in particular cases.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury how many cases have the War Damage Commission agreed to reopen where it has been shown that the delay in their submission arose through exceptional circumstances.

The Commission tell me that up to the beginning of October, 1946, all late notifications were accepted if they were supported by a Statutory Declaration. Since then about 75,000 late notifications have been accepted in whole or in part, though increasingly severe restrictions have been imposed as the period of delay has grown longer.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what disbursements of public funds have been made to the British Institute of Management since its formation.

A total of £57,500 has been disbursed out of public funds to the British Institute of Management since its formation; of this total £538 was in the year ending 31st March, 1947, £39,465 in the year ending 31st March, 1948, and £17,500 in the current financial year to date.

asked the President of the Board of Trade to what extent he considers that the present arrangements for the supply of raw materials to the plastics industry are satisfactory.

The plastics industry uses a wide range of raw materials, some of which are in short supply. If my hon. Friend has any particular case of difficulty in mind and would care to furnish me with particulars I shall be glad to make inquiries.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of declining supplies of jute, he will encourage the jute industry to carry through a concentration scheme.

My hon. Friend will be aware of the steps taken to restrict consumption of raw jute to cover the present difficult situation. I do not think it would be advisable to base action upon the assumption that the existing shortage of raw material will continue indefinitely.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what steps are being taken either to manufacture carbon black in this country, or to provide suitable substitutes from home produced tar products.

Plans are well advanced for the erection of plant in this country to produce imported types of carbon black using American processes. One of the companies concerned is considering the possibility of using home produced tar products as their raw material in due course.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that football clubs are only allowed to make bulk purchases of football jerseys of the number of eleven or multiples of eleven; and whether, in view of the fact that it takes fifteen to make a rugby football team, he will take steps to alter this rule.

There is no rule that restricts the purchase of football jerseys to multiples of eleven, but if the hon. Member has a particular case in mind, and will give me details, I will look into it.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that the work of standardisation in the engineering industry is hindered because a large number of British standard specifications are out of print; and whether he will consult with the British Standards Institution to ensure that all possible departmental assistance is given to make reprints speedily available.

I have no evidence that the work of standardisation in the engineering industry is hindered because British standard specifications are out of print. If the hon. Member is aware of any particular cases and will provide me with details, I should be glad to bring them to the attention of the British Standards Institution.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is yet in a position to make a statement about simplification in the licensing of paper.

Yes. I am glad to be able to inform my hon. and gallant Friend that, as from 6th March (the begining of the next licence period) the licensing arrangements for, paper will be considerably simplified. As a result, paper for books, stationery, boxes, cartons, and many minor uses should be freely available without individual licences or quotas up to the full extent of the limits set by the supply position. Details of the changes are being sent to the trade today but, in brief, as from 6th March individual applications will no longer be necessary, and bulk licences will be given to paper makers and importers authorising them to deliver or convert any paper produced or imported by them, with certain specific exceptions. In these exceptional cases, the present practice of granting licences against individual applications will continue; the principal types of paper in this category are newsprint, wallpaper, sack kraft paper, insulating cable paper, grey felt paper, kraft liner board and other types of paper used for fibreboard packing cases or double backed corrugated board, and any paper used for the production of bags. Consideration is also being given to the position in respect of building boards.The existing restrictions on mill production and import licence control over paper and board will continue, while the use of paper for newspapers, periodicals, advertising paper and football pools will still be restricted by the provisions of the Paper Control Orders. Price controls remain unaffected. I should add that, while the improvement in the supply position from non-dollar sources has enabled us to introduce these modifications, it will be necessary for the position to be kept under review and the need to maintain waste paper salvage at the highest possible level remains as great as ever.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many people have emigrated and mainly to what countries and chiefly in what age groups, during the period since the war.

British emigrants travelling direct by sea to places outside Europe numbered about 407,000 in the period January, 1946—September, 1948; the corresponding total of alien emigrants in this period was about 12,000. Figures for 1945 are not available. With the hon. Member's permission I will circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT such details as are available of the destinations of these emigrants and of the numbers in the various age groups.

asked the President of the Board of Trade why three of his officers recently suspended from duty pending an inquiry into allegations against them, have been deprived of pay.

As is usual when an officer is suspended from duty in consequence of a serious allegation of irregularity or misconduct, these three officers were notified that their pay would be withheld in respect of the period of suspension and that the question whether it should be forfeited wholly or in part would be decided after consideration of all the circumstances. One officer was suspended on 23rd December and the other two on 4th January. As salaries are payable at the end of each month, the two latter have not up to the present been deprived of any pay. In the former case, pay has been witheld in respect of the period 23rd to 31st December. Suspended officers are given an opportunity of stating their financial position and applying for some interim payment if the withholding of salary is likely to cause hardship.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the percentage of newsprint now available in Great Britain in comparison to that available prior to 1938.

Detailed figures of the supply of newsprint prior to 1938 are available only in respect of the year 1935. The present rate of consumption is approximately one third of that in 1935 and is likely to increase to about 40 per cent. as from the beginning of 1949.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what are the values respectively, of cotton spinning machinery and cotton weaving machinery produced in this country in 1948; what percentage of each was allocated for export; what percentage has actually been exported; and what percentage has been ordered for installation in the home cotton industry.

I regret that complete information for the whole of 1948 cannot yet be given, but figures for the first nine months are available. They are as follows:

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will allow secondhand rationed clothing to be sold coupon free.

No. Second-hand clothing is rationed only if sold above specified prices. This provision is necessary to prevent the sale of new garments as second-hand, and to keep prices of second-hand goods, which cannot otherwise be closely controlled, down to a reasonable level.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he has considered the resolution that was passed at a public meeting in Manchester on 20th December last in regard to an early recognition of the State of Israel, a copy of which has been forwarded to him; and if he will now make a statement.

This resolution was brought to my right hon. Friend's notice. His Majesty's Government are closely watching developments in relation to Palestine and hope for a successful outcome of the armistice discussions which are at present in progress. The question of recognition of the Jewish State as well as all other aspects of the Palestine problem are under constant review in the light of these more hopeful developments and of the general situation.

asked the Minister of Defence whether he will make a statement on the adjustments of service of members of the Armed Forces called up before 1st January, 1949; and if he will publish a revised programme of release.

I have been asked to reply. Yes. Briefly, the arrangement is that men called up in the first half of 1947 will serve not more than two years and three months. Thereafter two months' intake will be released each month thus gradually reducing the length of service until those called up in November and December, 1948, will serve one year and six months, the same as those called up in 1949 and later. The following table, which supersedes the table which I gave in reply to a Question on 18th December, 1947, sets the position out in detail. Subject to any unforeseen developments that might lead to a revision of the table, these men will, provided their service is continuous, not be retained beyond the last day of the months shown in the column headed "Month of Release." There will be differences in the actual dates of release as between the three Services and as between different branches, categories and trades within each Service so that the actual dates of release will, in many cases, be earlier than those indicated.In the case of intending students who were called up to the Forces before the end of July, 1948, and who, but for the general slow-down in releases would have been released in time to start their studies this Autumn, early release will be allowed if applied for by universities, technical colleges or teachers' training colleges.

asked the Minister of Labour what is the total number of employees now receiving wages or salaries out of Government funds, which would include members of the Civil Service, employees of local authorities and nationalised industries and all other Government employees not in these categories.

Full information is not available. As regards Government Departments, however, I would refer the hon. Member to Command Paper No. 7571 for details of non-industrial staffs and to the reply of my right hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to the hon. Member for Orpington (Sir W. Smithers) on 2nd November, 1948, regarding the numbers of industrial staffs.

asked the Minister of Labour the capital cost of Granton Building Training Centre; its present monthly training cost; and its monthly output of trained craftsmen.

The capital cost (borne on the Vote for the Ministry of Works) of the Granton Government Training Centre was £170,000. The present running cost, which includes maintenance allowances paid to the trainees and certain common service expenditure in connection with an Industrial Rehabilitation Unit recently installed in the Centre, is about £2,500 a month. As to the last part of the Question, this Centre originally trained only in the building crafts, so that the great majority of the 1,263 who have completed their training there in the last two years are in those occupations. At present, as a result of the restrictions on building training, the Centre is in the process of being brought into full use for training of other kinds so that most of the trainees there are at an early stage in their courses, whilst in other cases classes are still in course of arrangement or transfer from an old Centre which is being closed.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will name the factories built in Scotland for the employment of disabled men; and what the proposals are for others in the near future.

I assume that the hon. Member refers to the Remploy factories of the Disabled Persons Employment Corporation. The current programme for Scotland is as follows:

asked the Minister of Labour the number of males and females wholly unemployed in Scotland for over 12 months, including those registered under the Disabled Persons (Unemployment) Act, 1944.

At 6th December, 1948, there were 8,329 males and 980 females on the registers of employment exchanges in Scotland who had been continuously unemployed for more than 12 months. Of these, 2,461 men and 35 women were disabled persons registered under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act. 1944.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations in view of the recent passage of the Republic of Ireland Act, what is the present position with regard to the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 and the Agreements of 1938 which annulled the provisions of Articles VI and VII of the Treaty; and whether he will make a statement.

If I rightly understand the hon. and gallant Member's Question, he is asking whether the passage of the Republic of Ireland Act affects those provisions of the 1938 Agreement between the Governments of the United Kingdom and Eire which annulled Articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty of 1921. In the view of His Majesty's Government, the Act does not affect these provisions in any way.

asked the Minister of Education what progress has been made in consultation with the Ministry of Town and Country Planning and the local authorities, to give school children a practical interest in the care of public gardens, tree planting and similar developments, so that various schools may be allotted definite responsibilities in such improvements.

I am anxious that all children should be encouraged through the schools to take an interest in the amenities of their district and of the countryside generally, and much good work is being done by teachers to this end, especially where schools have adequate space for gardens of their own. I am doubtful whether it would be desirable or practicable for school children to be given particular responsibilities such as the hon. Member suggests, but I should not want to discourage any local experiments.

asked the Minister of Food if he will consider in "Food Facts" advertising, asking housewives themselves to indicate how they are using rations to best advantage, rather than proffering advice which limitations of equipment, points and rations sometimes make impracticable.

The advice proffered in "Food Facts" advertising is based on the supplies available to housewives of modest means and is tested by practical cooks in kitchens having normal domestic equipment. The advice incorporates suggestions by housewives, which my Department is always glad to receive.

asked the Minister of Food what was the total weekly authorisation of supply of milk to the various categories of priority and non-priority consumers during the month of September, 1948; and what was the amount of milk actually distributed weekly during this month to these categories.

pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, Wednesday, 17th November, 1948, Vol. 458, col. 40], supplied the following information:

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power (1) if he will give a list of the estimated additional amounts of coal and fuel oil required per year by the 50 additions which are to be made to existing generating plants throughout the country;(2) what estimate he has made of the amount or percentage of heat, in thermal units generated, which will not be utilised in the 25 new generating stations that are in course of construction or projected throughout the country;(3) how much coal and fuel oil is being used per year in each of the 25 central generating stations which are in course of construction in this country; and how much he estimates will be used when these stations have been completed.

It is impossible at this stage to give precise estimates of the coal or fuel oil consumption for individual new stations or plant extensions which are still in the course of construction. Total annual fuel consumption by power stations will, however, probably be 5 million tons of solid fuel and 60,000 tons of fuel oil greater in 1952 than in 1948. I am informed that the average thermal efficiency of the new stations after allowing for power used to drive station auxiliaries is estimated at 26 per cent.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether he will make a statement about the proposed establishment of a foreign-controlled oil refinery near Southampton; and if he will give an assurance that its erection will in no way adversely affect the trade of British refiners.

I presume my hon. Friend is referring to the expansion of the Anglo-American Oil Company's refinery at Fawley. If this project is carried out the Company will import crude oil to refine here instead of importing refined products to meet their market in this country. It will not therefore affect the position of other oil refiners.

asked the Minister of Health how many regulations, Ministerial circulars and administrative memoranda, respectively, have been issued by his Department since the passage of the National Health Service Act, 1946; and how many of these regulations have been approved and annulled by this House.

I cannot give any figure for this, and the time and labour involved in computing it would not be justified.