asked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether he hopes to be able to increase the general level of supplementary petrol allowances for business purposes before the end of 1949.

No.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power what special requests have been received from Australia for deliveries of coal to that Dominion; and what reply he has made.

The United Kingdom coal export programme for 1949 provides for the supply of a small quantity of coal to Australia and 51,000 tons have already been shipped. Special requests are occasionally made for Government assistance in procuring particular qualities of coal of which there is an exceptional shortage here. One such request for 10,000 tons of large coal for Western Australia has recently been received and is under consideration.

asked the Minister of Food what proportion of snoek already imported into this country since 1947 remains unsold in the warehouses of his Department.

Fourteen per cent.

asked the Minister of Food why his regulations forbid the delivery of milk to customers before 7.30 a.m.

The object of this regulation, which has been in force for many years, is to economise in labour and other costs of distribution.

asked the Minister of Food what numbers of cattle, sheep and pigs have been killed in this country for home consumption during the first six months of 1949; and how these figures compare with the same period last year.

The numbers of livestock bought for slaughter in Great Britain in the first six months of 1948 and 1949 respectively were as follow:

asked the Minister of Food whether, in view of the improvement in home killings, he intends to increase the meat ration in the near future.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for West Aberdeen (Mr. Thornton-Kemsley) on 6th July.

asked the Minister of Food why his Department were the first to break the statutory price of new potatoes, in view of the fact that this action has caused confusion in the trade and prevented many English farmers from obtaining the control price.

All new potatoes sold by my Department were sold at the prescribed prices, subject to allowance on the usual scale for defective lots. The quantity on which such allowances were granted was under 4 per cent. of the total sold for human consumption.

asked the Minister of Food, in view of the standstill arrangement on fresh purchases from the dollar area, to what extent the supply of essential foodstuffs for this country is likely to be affected.

I have nothing at present to add to the statement made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 6th July.

asked the Minister of Works whether, in view of the damage and inconvenience caused by the lack of railings surrounding St. Stephen's Church, Pill, Newport, he will now issue a licence to enable this work to be completed forthwith.

The difficulty hitherto has been the request for authority to use 10 tons of steel which I am unable to grant. As, however, I have already informed my hon. Friend, a firm of which my licensing officer has since given the vicar particulars may be able to carry out the work at a reasonable cost by the use of wrought iron scrap. If the vicar is prepared to act on this suggestion a licence will be issued at once.

asked the Minister of Works whether Members will have an opportunity to see sketches of the proposed new Colonial Office and a model showing the building in relation to its surroundings.

I have arranged for drawings of the new Colonial Office with a model to be shown in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association's room.

asked the Minister of Works whether he will give the details of how the proposed £80 million expenditure in Wales, which has been licensed by his Department, is being allocated; what period it is expected to cover; and for how many men it will provide work.

The estimated value of all building projects in Wales costing more than £2,000 which are in progress or are known to be coming forward in the near future is now approximately £102 million. I give below a table of figures showing the distribution of this total. At present about 32,700 men are employed on this work. At the present rate of progress the total known work is sufficient to keep them occupied for at least three and a half years.

asked the Minister of Works the amount involved in the building licence sought from his Department by the owners of the property at 92, Union Street, Glasgow, for converting the premises into a furniture shop; and whether any decision has yet been made.

The amount involved in the building licence sought by the lessees of this property is £11,500. My Department have agreed, in principle, to grant a licence when the project has received the approval of the Dean of Guild Court.

asked the Minister of Works if the will now discontinue the vegetable gardens in the foreground of the Tate Gallery and restore the lawns to their pre-war beauty.

Cultivation of the allotments will be discontinued in the autumn. Allotment holders will be permitted to remove their crops until the end of March. 1950, after which date the lawns will be restored.

asked the Minister of Works whether he is prepared to issue a short descriptive booklet about the ancient buildings and monuments supervised by his Department.

A series of regional guides to ancient monuments and historic buildings in my Department's charge, which was begun before the war, is being reprinted and completed. A new volume on North Wales was published last October, a revised edition of that for South Wales will appear shortly, and the three others on England will be re-issued during the next few months. A volume on Scotland is in preparation. A general one-volume guide of a more popular type, to all monuments in the Ministry's charge, is being prepared and will, I hope, be on sale early next year.

asked the Minister of Works what would be the estimated daily saving of water if the public fountains in the London area ceased to play during the water shortage.

The only fountains in the London area for which I am responsible, and which are still playing, are those in Trafalgar Square and Grosvenor Gardens. In both cases the water is re-circulated by electric pumps, and the only loss of water is due to evaporation and a limited amount of spray which may escape the basins. Instructions have been given that so long as the drought lasts, the pressure shall be reduced to avoid the latter, and that the basins shall not be emptied for cleaning.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will now reconsider his refusal to meet a deputation of the North Wales Accident Prevention Federation in connection with Welsh Representation on the Committee on Road Safety.

No. My right hon. Friend received a deputation on this subject recently from the Welsh Parliamentary Party and he is well acquainted with the arguments for the representation of Wales on this Committee. He will bear them in mind when he next reviews the composition of the Committee.

asked the Minister of Transport what decision has been made regarding the proposal that Connel Ferry Bridge be freed from tolls.

My right hon. Friend is discussing this proposal with the British Transport Commission, but no decision has yet been reached.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is satisfied that an adequate supply of spare parts will be available this summer for imported harvesting and other agricultural machinery; and what steps are being taken to meet any possible shortage of such spare parts.

I would refer the hon. and gallant Gentleman to the reply given on 4th July to my hon. Friend the Member for Bedford (Mr. Skeffington-Lodge).

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is aware that horses sold for slaughter are being taken long distances by road and thereby being caused unnecessary suffering; and what steps he is taking to prevent this.

My right hon. Friend is aware that in recent times there has been a tendency for such horses to be carried longer distances by road than formerly, but this need not involve unnecessary suffering. Persons responsible for causing cruelty to animals in transit render themselves liable to prosecution under the Protection of Animals Acts. The Rosebery Committee are no doubt considering whether there should be any further statutory provisions or restrictions on the transport of horses.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs why Mrs. Kastner, 3 Elysium Terrace, Kingsthorpe Road, Northampton, has received no answer to a letter of 1st June addressed to German Section, Military Permit Office, 16 Princes Gardens; and whether he will take steps to see that Mrs. Kastner's application for a permit for her and her German husband to visit her parents-in-law at Bayreuth is expedited.

I much regret that owing to exceptionally heavy pressure this application was mislaid in the Military Permit Office. We have been in touch with Mrs. Kastner and have explained to her the further documents that are required before her application can be considered. As soon as these documents are received her application will be dealt with immediately.

asked the Minister of Supply of how many tons of copper he stands possessed; and at what prices he bought it.

The Ministry of Supply's stocks of virgin copper, including stocks abroad and afloat, amounted to approximately 170,000 tons on 30th June, 1949. It would be contrary to established practice to disclose prices paid under Government contracts.

asked the Secretary of State for Air whether, in the case of personnel discharged from the Air Force for pulmonary tuberculosis, it is his practice to send the necessary précis of case notes, together with X-ray findings, to the civilian doctors who will be in charge.

Yes. They are sent to the chest physician of the appropriate regional hospital board.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he is aware that many of the buildings on Ludham Airfield, Norfolk, have been allowed to deteriorate; that doors have been taken away and windows smashed and considerable general damage done; and if he will cause an inquiry to be made to ascertain who is responsible for the losses involved.

I am not aware of any damage or pilfering on the main airfield site, which is the only site now the responsibility of my Department.

asked the Minister of National Insurance in how many cases have insured persons been deprived of their attendance allowance by reason of their failure to apply for payment within 21 days.

Since April this year 28 days have been allowed after the confinement for making these claims. This period can be extended for good cause. No figures are available as to the extent to which such late claims have been disallowed in whole or in part.

asked the Prime Minister if it is his intention, after he has met the representatives of Commonwealth and other countries, to consult the leaders of the other two main parties on the steps to be taken to deal with the economic situation, in order that a nation-wide response to essential requirements may be secured.

I ask the hon. Member to await the statement to be made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Debate arranged for 14th July.