asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty what is the number of naval officers employed in the superintending electrical engineering departments at the Admiralty, the Royal Dockyards and on overseeing duties in industrial establishments in the United Kingdom respectively; and to what extent it is the policy of the Admiralty to increase the number of naval officers employed in these departments to supersede civilians.

As regards the first part of the Question, the answer is, none in the Department of Electrical Engineering of the Admiralty, one in the Dockyard Department Headquarters, 12 in home yards and eight on overseeing duties. As regards the second part of the Question, my hon. Friend will be aware from earlier answers that as a corollary to the introduction of the Electrical Branch into the Royal Navy much of the professional work at present allocated to civilian electrical engineers will eventually be performed by naval officers. I am unable at present to say precisely how far this process will go because that question is under discussion with the staff side; but the naval proportion will probably be about two-thirds when the process is completed several years hence.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty what is the number of naval officers employed by the Admiralty Dockyard Department at the Admiralty, in the Royal Dockyards and on overseeing duties in industrial establishments all over the country.

The number of naval officers engaged on work for the Dockyard Department is 79 and they are distributed as follows: six at the Admiralty; 65 in the Royal Dockyards; eight on overseeing duties. The officers on overseeing duties will only be needed so long as it is necessary to place some radio repair work with contractors. In addition, there are 53 naval officers regularly employed on overseeing duties by the Engineer-in-Chief and the Director of Naval Ordnance.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty where it has been decided to sink the "Implacable."

It is intended to sink the "Implacable" in the Hurd Deep, northwest of Guernsey.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty to what extent the proposed naval exercise area in Lyme Bay will involve the dropping of depth charges and gunnery practice; and whether he has considered the adverse effects this may have on the local fishing industry and the trade of the local ports and holiday resorts.

The Royal Navy have used the sea area in question for many years without complaint. The purposes for which it will continue to be used and the conditions governing its use, will remain substantially unaltered, and there are, therefore, no grounds for anticipating any adverse effects on the local fishing industry or the trade of the local ports and holiday resorts. Although at one place the perimeter of the area touches the coast, the firing of naval guns takes place many miles out to sea. Gunfire practices are of limited frequency and are not expected to involve guns above medium calibre. The use of depth charges is normally confined to the detonation of a strictly limited amount of explosive at infrequent intervals in a very small area, some 14 miles south-west of Portland Bill.

asked the Postmaster-General what degree of priority for the instalment of telephones is now given to farmers.

Farmers as a class are given priority in common with the essential requirements of Government Departments, public utilities, health and life-saving services, and firms engaged on production and distribution for export or for saving imports. Where extensive new line construction is required, the Post Office would seek the view of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries before deciding to provide a telephone.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that a telegram dispatched from the West London Post Office at 11.51 p.m. on 13th June and addressed to Marylebone High Street was received by the Central Telegraph Office at 10.32 a.m. on 14th June and was not delivered until 11.45 a.m. on that date; and what is the reason for the delay of over 12 hours in the transmission of a telegram from West London to North-West London.

I am sorry that the telegram in question was delayed in transit. A telegram sent to another address in London so late at night would not normally be delivered before 9 a.m. the next day. As the address was given incorrectly as N.W.1 instead of W.1 there was unavoidable delay in ascertaining the correct address and re-transmitting the message to the appropriate delivery office.

asked the Postmaster-General if a plan has been worked out by his Department steadily to improve the postal services so that at an early date they will be up to the standard of pre-war services with earlier deliveries and later collections as an essential part in improving the standards of business efficiency and productivity of this country.

My Department has a definite plan of steady work for maximum efficiency within the present framework of postal services; the provision of earlier deliveries and later collections is bound up with national manpower resources.

asked the Postmaster-General whether his attention has been drawn to the recent resolution of the Association of British Chambers of Commerce, a copy of which has been sent to him, urging the immediate restoration of an extended postal service, particularly later evening collections, to be provided locally where reasonable and practicable; and what action he proposes to take.

Yes. I would refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for East Nottingham (Mr. Harrison) on 22nd June.

asked the Postmaster-General what factors are preventing a return to the pre-war late collection postal facilities; and whether he will state the increased cost in wages and other expenses in reintroducing such a service.

I regret that the restoration of pre-war late collection facilities is precluded by the over-riding necessity to conserve national manpower. The estimated overall cost of restoring such facilities would be of the order of £1 million a year.

asked the Minister of Defence what steps he takes to ensure that, in the case of personnel discharged from the Services for pulmonary tuberculosis, the necessary précis of case notes, together with X-ray findings, are sent to the civilian doctors who will be in charge.

Perhaps my hon. Friend will await the answers to the Questions on this subject that he has addressed to the Secretaries of State for War and Air, and to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty.

asked the Minister of Food when he intends to cease bulk buying of tea and allow the London tea auction rooms to restart.

So long as supplies of tea are insufficient to meet demand, I think we must retain bulk buying. Later we can consider our method of procurement on its merits.

asked the Minister of Food if he proposes to control the prices of home-grown apples.

Unless there are enough apples to keep prices to the housewife reasonable, I shall have to retain price control. This year's crop prospects are still uncertain, so I am afraid I cannot as yet give any decision.

asked the Minister of Food whether the slaughter of horses for food is increasing or decreasing.

I am afraid we have no information about the slaughter of horses for human consumption.

asked the Minister of Food what are the comparative costs for road and rail transport of fat stock from Carlisle to a representative Lancashire town; and what are the losses in weight and the average casualty losses by the two methods of transport.

, pursuant to her reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 27th June, 1949; Vol. 466, c. 52] supplied the following information:The charge for road movement is related to the class of stock concerned and the distance travelled; I am sending the hon. Member a copy of the schedule of charges.Payment for movement by rail is not so related and is calculated at a flat rate of 4s. 10.69d. per animal for the entire journey. A direct comparison based on the foregoing is, however, misleading as the rail movements are rarely door-to-door and incidental expenses are normally incurred. But it has been calculated that if 705 sheep and 50 calves were moved between Carlisle and Liverpool (as actually happened in February last, partly by rail and partly by road) the movement would cost about £88 if entirely by road and over £185 if entirely by rail.Records of liveweight losses are not maintained. An effective check on weight losses is achieved by comparison of the estimate of dressed carcase weight made in relation to the live animal with the actual weight ascertained after slaughter. Experience shows length of time in transit to be the principal factor affecting weight. In any movements involving rail transport, the time on rail normally accounts for the greater part of the travelling time. In the period from the beginning of 1948 until 25th June, 1949, casualties during transit by rail and road from Carlisle occurred only amongst sheep: one in 4,000 became a casualty on rail, and one in 6,000 became a casualty on road.

asked the Secretary of State for Air what flying schools, sponsored by his Department, are situated in close proximity to large urban areas where it is necessary for the aeroplanes to be continually flying low over the houses.

The only R.A.F. flying schools near large urban areas are reserve flying schools. These schools should so far as possible be close to centres of population so that reservists can attend regularly. The aircraft from these schools fly low only when they are taking off or landing.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he has considered representations made to him by residents living in the proximity of Wolverhampton Airport about the low flying by training aeroplanes; and with what result.

These representations have been carefully considered and a reply has been sent. I regret that some low flying is unavoidable when aircraft are landing or taking off from the airport and that it would not be practicable to remove the reserve flying school.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he is aware that the Norfolk County Council have been endeavouring for three years to obtain facilities for the making of additional smallholdings at Ludham Airfield, Norfolk; and if he will take all possible steps to ensure that the land will be made available at an early date.

After consultation with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, it was agreed in April, 1948, that land at Ludham Airfield should be purchased with a view to its development as smallholdings. Since then my Department has been negotiating purchases from several owners, and as soon as all these have been completed the land will be vested in my right hon. Friend, who is responsible for the detailed arrangements with the Norfolk County Council.

asked the Minister of Pensions whether he will now announce his decision in regard to the claim to a pension by the mother of 4200387 Fusilier Peter Haley, who was killed in action on 15th March, 1945, full particulars of which case was sent to his Department by the hon. Member for Central Newcastle, on 12th May, 1949.

Yes. I regret I am unable to grant Mrs. Haley a parents' pension and I am writing to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he has yet reached a decision regarding compassionate release for 22087615 Private L. Freeman, King's Somerset Light Infantry, full particulars of which were sent to his Department on 22nd June, 1949, by the hon. Member for Central Newcastle.

Inquiries are still proceeding in this case. When a decision has been reached I will write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the number of additional valuers employed by the Chief Valuer, Inland Revenue, to deal with claims for loss of development rights under the Town and Country Planning Act, 1947, and to assess development charges arising from that Act.

It is estimated that of the total professional staff of 1,300 in the Valuation Office, the equivalent of about 250 are at present employed in determining development charges. None are yet employed in dealing with claims.

asked the Prime Minister under which Department the pool of Government vehicles available for the use of other Departments is held; and whether he will direct Departments to take greater advantage of this pool instead of using taxpayers' money to hire privately-owned vehicles to be used for official activities.

Official car services are maintained by the Ministry of Supply in London and in each of the regional towns. These pools are available for use by any Department. With regard to the second part of the Question, it is sometimes more economic to use hired vehicles as an alternative to maintaining the official fleet at a figure sufficient to meet all demands at peak periods.

asked the Minister of Health how many houses have, by his instructions, been allocated during the last two years, respectively, by the Thame Urban District Council to agricultural workers; and if he is satisfied that his directions have been carried out.

The Thame Urban District Council have allotted to agricultural workers the tenancy of three of the six houses completed this year; neither of the two houses completed in the previous year was so let. I have no reason to think that adequate consideration has not been given by the council to the priority accorded to agricultural workers.

asked the Minister of Health whether medical officers of health are instructed or requested to send to his Department information as to the condition in regard to immunisation of all cases of, and deaths from, diphtheria; or how does his Department ascertain the condition of the cases and deaths as far as immunisation is concerned.

I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of a circular issued to local health authorities on this subject on 9th May last.