asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the amount proposed to be paid in respect of the hill sheep subsidy for the current year.

It is proposed to lay before the House tomorrow a Statutory Instrument fixing a rate of 5s. per breeding ewe. In terms of the Hill Sheep (Scotland) No. 2 Scheme, payment will be calculated on the number of eligible sheep in the flock at 3rd December, 1949, or, subject to certain conditions, and if the applicant so elects, on the number of sheep in respect of which subsidy was paid in relation to 4th December, 1946. The

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland on how many occasions since May, 1949, Glasgow Corporation Housing Committee has put forward plans for the building of houses; the number on each separate date; the areas for construction of the houses; how many of these plans were approved and how many rejected; and the dates of approval or rejection, respectively.

Following is the information:

asked the Secretary of State for War how many armoured vehicles the Army has in Malaya; and what is the explanation of the continuing casualties arising from ambushes of unarmoured vehicles.

It would not be in the public interest to reveal the number of armoured vehicles held by the Army in Malaya. Requirements of these vehicles have, however, been kept under constant review by the military authorities in the Far East who have recently asked for additional supplies. Urgent steps have been taken to comply with this demand; 56 armoured vehicles, including 25 armoured cars, have been despatched and a further 60 will be shipped this month. The repair programme for scout cars is also being accelerated and it is hoped that 25 a month will shortly be going to Malaya.In addition, supplies of armour-plate and bullet-proof glass have been sent, in order to permit the conversion of a large number of unarmoured vehicles and to provide them with a measure of protection. I must emphasise, however, that experiments have shown the impracticability of armouring completely a normal load-carrying vehicle since the weight involved exceeds the maximum load.

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning whether he is satisfied that the amenity interests were fully considered before proposals were made to extend the area of Warcop Royal Armoured Corps ranges; and how far the existing footpath across High Cup Nick and the proposed long-distance footpath along the Pennine Chain is likely to be interfered with.

This question has already been discussed with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for War, and no decision will be made until all the interests concerned have been heard.

asked the Minister of Town and Country Planning if he will use his powers under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act, 1949, to repair the two footbridges in the Washburn Valley which are in dangerous condition and are of great use to the local inhabitants and ramblers.

Responsibility in this matter rests with the local highway authority to whom any representations should be made. My right hon. Friend has no jurisdiction in the matter.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to amend the law so as to deprive the Crown of the right to distrain for arrears of tax upon goods, other than those of the person charged, which happen to be upon his premises.

I will take note of the hon. Member's suggestion.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will arrange for envelopes overprinted "Election Communication," to be exempt from Purchase Tax, as is the case with the contents of such envelopes.

Envelopes of this description, unlike the election communication which they contain, must be treated as stationery and are therefore chargeable with Purchase Tax. So far as any changes in Purchase Tax are concerned, I cannot anticipate my Budget Statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he proposes to take to stop the great amount of Purchase Tax evasion resulting from large buyers of print supplying their own paper, and having it processed.

I cannot accept the implication as to the extent to which tax is avoided in this manner, but the matter is being kept under review.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is prepared to grant the concession of tobacco at reduced rates to all ex-Service men over 70.

I cannot anticipate my Budget statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that valuable dollar earnings are lost to this country because successful authors, liable to Surtax, find themselves unable to accept additional work commissioned from American sources; and whether, before introducing his next Budget, he will review this matter and, in particular, consider relevant legislation in force in other countries under which authors are given special exemption from taxation.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, with a view to improving the opportunities for dollar earnings by British authors, he will arrange, before settling the terms of his forthcoming Budget, to consider the nature of the special legislation in Brazil under which authors and writers are given special dispensation with regard to Income Tax liabilities.

I have noted the suggestions of my hon. Friends and of the hon. Member for the Pavilion Division of Brighton (Mr. Teeling), but I cannot anticipate my Budget Statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware of the inconvenience caused to manufacturers by delays in getting Prototypes from abroad through the Customs; and if he will issue a special instruction to his officials to lessen, as far as practicable, this handicap to British trade.

It is certainly the intention both of the Customs authorities and myself that there should be no avoidable delay, and I am not aware of any failure in this respect. But if the hon. and gallant Member will supply sufficient particulars of the date and port of importation of any Prototypes so delayed, I will have inquiries made.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will consider reducing the current expenditure of the National Savings Committee on advertising and publicity, amounting to £445,000 a year.

I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the Estimate presented on 6th March, which shows that the provision for advertising and publicity on the National Savings Committee Vote for 1950–51 has been reduced to £355,500.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why textiles confiscated by His Majesty's Customs and Excise are not sold by open tender.

With the agreement of the Central Price Regulation Committee practically all confiscated textiles, of which the great majority are price controlled, are disposed of through the Surplus Textiles Corporation, Limited. This method of disposal ensures that the goods reach the public at a proper price.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that Mr. James Dow, of the Long Eaton Cable Company, Limited, 256, Westminster Bridge Road, S.E.1, has been refused concessional relief in respect of Special Contribution under the Tenth Schedule to the Finance Act, 1948, because his two companies, although in substance one business only, do not constitute a group within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1947; and if he will consider amending the Schedule prescribing that a reasonable proportion of dividends received by a working proprietor should be regarded as earned for the purposes of the Special Contribution in order to include such cases.

I cannot anticipate my Budget Statement.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the policy of His Majesty's Government to the importation into this country of finished Japanese textiles.

For balance of payments reasons the import into the United Kingdom of finished Japanese textiles for the home market is not at present permitted.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what finished textile goods, and to what value sterling, have been imported into this country from Hong Kong within the last six months; and what is the future policy of His Majesty's Government in this respect.

Imports of finished textile goods from Hong Kong during the six months August, 1949—January, 1950, totalled £117,000. Details are as follows: Knitted underwear, £42,000; shirts, £29,000; other apparel, £26,000; other finished goods of cotton, wool, silk and miscellaneous materials. £20,000.As regards the second part of the Question, I will keep the matter under examination but I wish to make it clear that any suggestion that protective duties or quotas should be imposed against the Colonies would have far-reaching implications indeed.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when it is proposed to pay compensation for business chattels insured under Part II of the War Damage Act, 1943; and whether it is proposed to apply the same increase of 50 per cent. to the compensation for business chattels as has already been paid for private chattels.

I regret I cannot see any way at present to authorise a general payment of Business Scheme claims. The hon. Member will of course be aware that advance payments are being made where the Board of Trade are satisfied that the replacement or repair of the goods is expedient in the public interest or that payment is necessary to avoid undue hardship. The sum of £43¼ million, exclusive of interest, has already been paid on these grounds.The answer to the second part of the Question is "No."

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware of the continued and growing shortage of Terry towelling and other babies' requisites in North London; and when he expects the position to be improved.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Hastings (Mr. Cooper-Key) on 16th March.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what quantities of spectacle frames have been imported during the past year; and whether he is aware that British manufacturers are now able to supply the needs of the home market.

Separate figures for imports of spectacle frames are not available, but imports during 1949 of frames and mountings for spectacles, goggles, eyeglasses, monocles and parts of such frames and mountings amounted to £106,731. The quantities are not recorded. I am aware that the production of spectacle frames in this country has increased.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many Board of Trade certificates for new factories or extensions to existing factories have been issued since the end of the war, up to the latest convenient date, in the development area of Pembroke Dock.

Since the end of the war the Board of Trade has approved the construction of two new factories and one extension at Pembroke Dock. The two new factories have been completed and were employing 130 workpeople at 31st December, 1949. Building work is still in progress on the extension.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when the accounts of the Raw Cotton Commission to 31st July, 1949, will be published.

I understand that the report and accounts of the Raw Cotton Commission to 31st July, 1949, should be in the hands of the printers before the end of this month.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he has investigated the Bahamas as a source of yellow pine in order to relieve our soft wood timber shortage by obtaining further supplies from this Commonwealth source.

An investigation of the Bahamas timber resources was made in 1947 and the annual cutting rate is being maintained at the highest economic level. Domestic demand, with that from local areas and a direct dollar demand, are more than enough to absorb the quantity produced.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what allocation of the Greenhill Estate, Coatbridge, has now been made.

One of the factories on the estate is already occupied. The other has been allocated to the Ministry of Supply for a vehicle repair depôt.

asked the Minister of National Insurance by how much the basic old age pension would have to be increased in order to offset the rise in the cost of living since 4th October, 1946; and what would be the total cost of this increase.

The official index of retail prices has risen by about 13 points since the new index was introduced in June, 1947. The previous index had shown no change between that date and October, 1946. If the rates of retirement pensions were raised correspondingly, expenditure would be increased by about £33 million a year at the present time, increasing in future years. This would involve corresponding increases in contributions.

asked the Minister of National Insurance how many applicants have been refused the old age pension at 70 because their means exceeded the qualifying figure by under 10s.; what was the average amount by which such rejected applicants exceeded the qualifying figure; and whether she proposes any action to deal with the hardship.

I regret that the figures asked for are not available. I cannot admit that where an applicant's means other than earnings amount to the figures which would disqualify for pension, there would ordinarily be hardship. The officers of the National Assistance Board who deal with these claims can grant assistance in the exceptional case.

asked the Minister of National Insurance why fishermen were refused unemployment benefit between the middle of February and 6th March, when they were out of work through no fault of their own, but because of the strike of the engineers on the Hull trawlers.

Claims made by certain fishermen were disallowed during the period in question on the ground that their loss of employment arose from a trade dispute affecting both fishermen and engineers. The matter is, however, still before the statutory authorities, as some of the fishermen have appealed to the local tribunal against this decision.

asked the Minister of National Insurance why her Department charges an annual fee to users of stamp-impressing machines, as a deposit has to be made with her Department in advance of a sum equal to the estimated contributions for a given period, and since these machines are paid for by the user and their use relieves the work of selling insurance stamps in post offices.

Fees are charged to cover the additional cost of the administrative arrangements required for impressed stamping as compared with adhesive stamping. Allowance was made for the saving in the sales of stamps at Post Offices in determining the present scale of fees, which is considerably lower than that previously in operation.

asked the Minister of National Insurance by how much the National Insurance Fund and the National Health Fund, respectively, fall short of their total expected revenues by reason of the fact that numbers of self-employed persons and others are not in fact paying their contributions.

I regret that the information asked for is not available. Day-to-day variations in the number of contributors, through sickness, unemployment and other factors, make it impossible at any particular moment to make an exact comparison between the income due from contributions and actual receipts. I have no reason to believe that any appreciable proportion of persons liable to pay contributions are evading their obligations.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that the reduction in orders of aeroplanes for the Transport Command at the Bristol Aeroplane Company factory has meant the dismissal of skilled workmen who will experience great difficulty in finding other suitable employment, and discourage young men in the future from entering this industry; and what steps he is taking to reduce to a minimum the hardships caused by these reductions.

I am aware of the redundancies that have been occurring at the Bristol Aeroplane Company, Limited. The machinery of the employment exchange service has been available to those who have registered for employment, and I am pleased to say that over half have already been placed in alternative employment.

asked the Minister of Labour how many disabled persons are registered on the disabled persons register in the Sedgefield division; how many have been placed in employment; and how many are being trained for employment.

Apart from the local offices at Sedgefield and Haverton Hill situated within the Parliamentary division, eight other local offices serve fringe areas in that division and I cannot, without considerable research, identify disabled persons living in these areas. At Sedge-field and Haverton Hill there were on 16th January, 1950, 437 disabled persons registered, of whom 22 were unemployed, including one person classified as unlikely to obtain employment except under special conditions. During the year ended 31st January, 1950, 37 persons were placed in employment from these offices. None is now taking training courses.

asked the Minister of Labour what was the number of registered unemployed, at the latest convenient date, in the town of Milford Haven.

The number at 13th February was 351.

asked the Minister of Labour how many building trade workers were registered as unemployed at each employment exchange in the Falmouth and Camborne Division, and in which particular trades, at the latest convenient date.

I am having the information extracted and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of persons registered as unemployed at the latest convenient date at the employment exchanges of Canterbury, Whitstable and Herne Bay.

The numbers of unemployed persons registered at employment exchanges and youth employment offices in Canterbury, Whitstable and Herne Bay at 13th February, 1950, were as follows:

asked the Minister of Labour how many men who hold the Postmaster-General's first- and second-class certificates on radio-telegraphy are at present unemployed.

I regret that the information is not available.

asked the Minister of Health what steps he is taking to provide motor cars to disabled miners similar to those provided for disabled soldiers.

Motor-propelled tricycles are provided for severely disabled civilians under the National Health Service, but I cannot undertake to provide motor cars.

asked the Minister of Health the number of tuberculosis patients awaiting admission to hospitals and sanatoria at the last convenient date.

At July, 1948, the number was approximately 9,200. Later returns have been received and are being analysed.

asked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the experience now gained as to the working of the hospital management committees and the filling of casual vacancies, he is prepared to review the rules governing the constitution of those committees, with a view to securing more adequate representation.

The appointments are a matter for the regional hospital boards, who are required by statute to ensure that each committee includes members appointed after consultation with certain specified local public bodies. They are not, however, required by statute to undertake such consultations on the occurrence of every casual vacancy.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will now publish in full the terms of his guarantee to the Burmah Oil Company against losses which might be incurred by the continuance after March, 1949. of rehabilitation work.

In March, 1949, His Majesty's Government invited the Burmah Oil Company and Associated Companies to continue the work of rehabilitation for a period after 7th March. They agreed to guarantee the Company against any losses incurred during this period which were attributable to their response to His Majesty's Government's request.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether German resistance to demolition at the Herman Goering Works at Watenstedt-Salzgitter is still continuing; what action is being taken against those responsible for the previous resistance by force and whether he will make a statement.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Attercliffe (Mr. J. Hynd) on 20th March.

asked the Minister of Supply how many fighter, fighter-bomber or bomber aircraft, shown separately by types, have been sold since VE-Day to foreign countries which are not now members of Western Union or of the Atlantic Pact, showing each country separately.

I circulate below a list of foreign countries, apart from Western Union and Atlantic Pact signatories, to which aircraft of the classes mentioned have been sold. It would not be in the public interest to give particulars of the quantities.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is aware of the increasing felling of hardwood, particularly oak trees, in many hedgerows; and what steps he is taking to encourage replanting of these hardwoods, particularly oak, in the hedgerows and small spinneys of England.

I am aware that these fellings are extensive. These trees are, however, usually mature and contribute materially to the timber requirements of the country. It is hoped that many of these trees will be replaced by the usual method of allowing sapling's from the hedges to grow up. Grants are not available for replanting hedgerow trees, but for replanting small woodlands and spinneys a grant at the rate of £12 an acre is paid by the Forestry Commission. A grant will shortly be available for planting poplar trees whether in single rows or in larger blocks.

asked the Minister of Education the number of authorities in England and Wales which have erected or have contracted to erect prefabricated aluminium or metal buildings for use as schools.

Fifty-one.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies for what reasons imports of bacon and pickled porkstuffs from Canada have been banned from entering Barbados.

Imports into the Colony are controlled by import licences which are issued by the Colonial authorities in the light of the general supply and foreign exchange position. The Governor states that, although applications for licences to import these foodstuffs from Canada were refused for a time, licences have recently been issued for the import of certain quantities of pickled pork from Canada.