asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what organisations, or persons, were officially consulted in connection with extensions to central institutions providing technical education; and what arrangements he has for obtaining advice on such matters from industry and from other sources;(2) what are the main industrial activities and types of production which recent, current and contemplated extensions to central institutions providing technical education are designed to assist and strengthen.

The governing bodies of central institutions providing technical education include representatives of the leading industries in the regions they serve, and are well able to assess the needs of industry in their area. They also maintain close relations with the professional organisations, and with Regional Advisory Councils for Technical Education which were set up in 1948 to advise education authorities and managers of Central Institutions on the development of technical education.The extensions completed or under construction will provide additional accommodation for the training of students who intend to enter the civil engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, mining, textile, chemical, pharmaceutical and building industries. The extension contemplated at Paisley Technical College will provide accommodation for the teaching of mechanical and electrical engineering and chemistry. The proposals submitted by the managers of the central institutions for my approval were carefully considered by my expert advisers in the light of a post-war increase of 100 per cent. in the number of full-time students.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what decision he has reached on the recommendation of the Advisory Council on Education in Scotland that the present grant regulations be rescinded and new regulations issued which would make all voluntary organisations in the field of further education eligible for direct grant.

This is one of many recommendations contained in the Report on Further Education, all of which are receiving consideration. I regret that I cannot yet say when I shall be in a position to announce a decision on this particular matter.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps Her Majesty's Government are taking to reduce the cost of piers; and whether they will allow the Royal Engineers to assist in this work.

The cost of pier works is determined by labour and material costs and while all plans submitted to me are examined with a view to securing the utmost economy, I can see no way of effecting a major reduction in the level of costs. Present Service commitments would, I am afraid, preclude any assistance being given by the Royal Engineers.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware that, despite the additional number of houses let by local authorities each year, the overall number of houses to let is decreasing; and what steps he proposes to take to prevent this scarcity of houses to rent.

I am not aware that this is so, but if the hon. Lady has any evidence I shall be glad to consider it.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what complaints he has had regarding shortage of steel during the past six months; and if he is satisfied that the share allotted to Scotland will prevent short-time and unemployment in the heavy industries.

I have received representations from the Scottish Council (Development and Industry) and from representatives of both employers and trades unions in steel using firms, and have discussed them with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Supply, who is taking all possible steps to alleviate the present shortage of steel.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many applicants there were from Scotland for an award for the study of management in the United States of America; and how many were granted an award.

There were 48 Scottish applicants this year for awards for the study of management in the U.S.A. under the Mutual Security Agency Scheme and 12 applicants for awards for the study of production technology and management. Of these, six have been nominated for the former and five for the latter.

asked the Minister of Pensions how many widows of the 1914–18 war are receiving pensions under Article 19 of the Royal Warrant.

There are 187 pensions in payment to widows in the class covered by Article 19 of the Royal Warrant.

asked the Secretary of State for War the basis on which he assessed the cost of training a jet fighter pilot; and whether he consulted the Secretary of State for Air before he announced the result of his assessment.

I gave the figure of £98,000 to illustrate the cost to the State of the training and flying experience of a highly qualified pilot, a squadron leader of some five or six years' experience. This estimate included some £15,000 for his training as a jet fighter pilot and £70,000 for the cost of subsequent operational flying: the remaining sum covers pay, allowances, etc.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether it is his intention to make arrangements to enable members of the Home Guard to carry out ceremonial duties during the Coronation.

The participation of the Home Guard, as of other members of the Armed Forces of the Crown, in the ceremonial duties during the Coronation is at present under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for War if British prisoners of war in Communist hands in Korea are being supplied with British newspapers in addition to the "Daily Worker" provided by their captors.

The Chinese and North Korean authorities will not accept newspapers for these men and I understand that the "Daily Worker" is the only newspaper which they provide.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is now in a position to let the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North have a reply to his letters of 22nd April and 10th June respecting the case of 21183194 Gunner W. Copeland; and what is the present position and the reason for the delay.

The contents of the hon. Member's letter of 22nd April were considered by the superior military authority, who reviewed the proceedings on 16th June and decided that the sentence on this soldier should stand. Since then the proceedings have been despatched to the War Office, but have not yet been received.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the court-martial sentences on 22331472 Fusilier Taylor and other soldiers of the Northumberland Fusiliers have again been reviewed; and whether he will make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is now able to state the result of the review of the court-martial sentences on Private Hamilton and other soldiers of the Northumberland Fusiliers.

Yes. These sentences were reviewed last month and the superior military authority directed that they should be suspended from 3rd July.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he will consider a special review of the sentence passed on Driver J. J. Robins on 31st August, 1951, for desertion on account of the domestic circumstances involved in this case.

No. This sentence will be reviewed in the normal course next month when these circumstances will be taken into consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many soldiers have volunteered for service in Korea during the last 12 months.

Such applications may be dealt with within the unit and are not all centrally recorded. I do not think that the work of collecting these figures would be justified.

asked the Secretary of State for War under what circumstances two soldiers of the Royal Scots were arrested in East Berlin; and why they are now to be charged for being absent without leave.

Two privates were reported absent from this unit from 30th June and, after arrest by East German police in the Russian zone, were returned to the British zone on the following day. Under a garrison order all troops who cross into the Russian zone render themselves liable to disciplinary action.

asked the President of the Board of Trade on what new factory projects in the North-East Development Area building has commenced since 1st November, 1951; and what is the floor space, given separately, when completed.

Since 1st November, 1951, building has started on five new factory projects exceeding 5,000 sq. ft. The areas of these are 12,000, 14,000, 19,000, 340,000 and 10,000 sq. ft., respectively.

asked the President of the Board of Trade why an additional sterling allotment has now been made for the import of fruit pulp, how much of this allotment will be available for the import of blackcurrant pulp and pulps of other soft fruits grown in this country; and whether he is aware of the disturbing effect which this announcement has had on the price negotiations now proceeding for the sale of this year's soft fruit crop.

In Notice to Importers No. 488 dated 15th April, 1952, the Board of Trade announced that the value for which import licences would be issued for the period 1st July, 1952, to 30th June, 1953, would be:Fruit pulp (including bulk frozen fruit) other than the following varieties:Apricot, grapefruit, peach, pear and pineapple and not containing more than 50 per cent. by weight of commercial sweetening matter, namely, sugar, invert sugar, honey, molasses, solid or liquid glucose and all similar starch conversion products (e.g. malt syrup) and any mixture of such materials:£ (c.i.f.)1,000,000This announcement made no provision for the five special varieties named above.In Notice to Importers No. 506, dated 3rd July, 1952, the Board of Trade announced that the quota for all fruit pulps has now been fixed at £1,250,000 of which £500,000 will be for the five special varieties and £750,000 for other fruit pulp. These figures compare with imports in the year July, 1950, to June, 1951, estimated by the Ministry of Food at nearly £2 million, of which imports for the five special varieties accounted for some £800,000. Licences to a total value of £1 million have already been issued and additional licences to a value of £250,000 will be issued shortly.The quota announced in Notice to Importers No. 467 dated 19th November, 1951, for imports of fruit pulps expired on 30th June, 1952, and it was necessary to make an immediate announcement to enable importers to place contracts for the current foreign crop.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware of the serious effect which the high cost of petrol is having on production and marketing costs of agricultural and horticultural products; and if he will now give further and favourable consideration to the proposals put forward by the National Farmers' Union for a rebate scheme in respect of petrol used only for agricultural vehicles working on the land.

As I explained in the House on 30th April, full account was taken of the Budget increase of duty on petrol in framing the current price schedules for agricultural products. Apart from any other consideration, it would not be practicable to set up a rebate system in respect of the separate quantity of petrol used for products outside the scope of the Price Review.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many meetings have been held by the committee set up by him to study the anomalies connected with Purchase Tax and, in particular, the hardships caused to retailers; and how soon he anticipates that this committee will make its report.

I assume that my hon. and gallant Friend is referring to the committee which it is proposed to set up to consider the question of retail stocks on a reduction of Purchase Tax. The committee has not yet been set up, but I hope to be able to announce its appointment before very long.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the effect of the recent appeals to the workers to exercise restraint in making claims for increased wages.

The statement I made to the National Joint Advisory Council on 15th May was followed by a discussion between the Economic Committee of the T.U.C. and my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister of Labour and myself on 24th June. I have no further statement to make to the House about wage claims at present.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury if he will consider giving instructions to Government Departments that, in future, when civil servants have occasion to write to business concerns or private individuals, they should sign themselves, "Your obedient servant," instead of, "Yours faithfully."

No. The form used in particular letters must be appropriate to all the circumstances of the case.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government, in view of the inadequate sound-proofing of flats on the Moredon Estate, Swindon, and elsewhere, owing to his Department's regulations, what he is doing to remedy the defect.

This matter is not covered by regulations. In this case, as in others, my right hon. Friend's officers and the local authority's have been in consultation to find a remedy, but this is not easy. The whole subject is under examination with the help of the Building Research Station.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of the concern felt by the overcrowded peoples of the East London area at the sprawl of the metropolis into the Green Belt; and whether, to provide full and adequate living facilities for these people, he will increase the housing and industrial building allocations to the new towns of Harlow and Basildon and encourage their development in all ways possible.

My right hon. Friend will continue to encourage the rapid

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government when he proposes to make available to Members the terms of the circular he proposes to issue to local authorities for their guidance in the selling of council houses.

My right hon. Friend will arrange to make copies of the circular available in the Library on the same day as it is sent to local authorities.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what further action he has taken, or will take, to confer with local authorities who have no further land available for building, in respect of their large lists of applicants for housing, who have no possibility of securing accommodation in the areas where they now reside.

My right hon. Friend's Department has already had discussions with various local authorities who are faced with this problem, and is ready to do so further where that would help. But the first step is for the authorities themselves to confer with the local planning authorities in whose areas it seems likely that land could be made available for the

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government how many houses have been completed and how many were under construction at the latest convenient stated date for the new towns of Harlow and Basildon; and if he will give similar figures for factories and industrial buildings, together with the total number of building workers engaged on these undertakings.

The position at 30th June, 1952, was as follows:relief of their housing needs. Some, he understands are now doing this, and no doubt more will do so when the Town Development Bill becomes law.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government the number of houses the Cardiff City Council expect to build for letting in 1952; the number of people on the waiting list the number of licences to build they have issued, and expect to issue, in 1952; and the number of applications for such licences.

The housing progress of individual local authorities is shown in Appendix B to the published Quarterly Housing Returns, and I am unable to add to the information contained therein. Nor am I able to prophesy how many houses will be completed in Cardiff in 1952. My Ministry does not maintain a record of the number of applications received by individual authorities.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of the lack of industry in the neighbourhood of the Harold Hill housing estate; and what action he proposes to take, in conjunction with the appropriate Departments concerned, to encourage suitable industries to go to this area and thus provide local employment for the residents.

Yes. Suitable London firms wishing to go to this area are given industrial development certificates, though there is difficulty in some cases in obtaining building licences, due to the present need to concentrate industrial development in the most urgent requirements. More licences will be made available for factories in this area as it becomes possible to do so.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of the hardship caused to owners of private property under requisition by local authorities by the low rental paid by such authorities; and if he will now take steps to ensure that as long as such requisitioning continues the rental paid shall bear relation to the market value of the property and to the value which the house would have to the owner if he were permitted to occupy it himself.

The rental compensation payable in respect of property held under requisition by local authorities is assessed in accordance with the provisions of Sections 7 and 8 of the Requisitioned Land and War Works Act, 1948, and I have no power to increase it.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of the hardship which is being caused to the owners of private property requisitioned by or on behalf of local authorities, in some cases over 12 years ago; and if, in view of the improved rate of house building now operating, he will now consider indicating to local authorities a date by which they should aim at the final derequisitioning of all private houses now under their control.

A Working Party consisting of representatives of the London County Council, the Associations of Local Authorities, and my Department, are already examining the whole problem.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what progress has been made in the areas within the Battle rural district during the last 12 months in the provision of main water supplies; what projects are in hand for the next 12 months; and whether he is satisfied that every use is being made of available resources and powers.

Mains are being laid in the parishes of Battle, Peasmarsh, Ashburnham Guestling, Fairlight, Pett and Icklesham, and work will start soon in Playden and Rye Foreign. New sources of supply have been developed in Ashburnham.My right hon. Friend cannot say yet which schemes will start during the next 12 months, but pipes have been ordered for work in the parishes of Udimore, East Guldeford, Icklesham, St. Thomas the Apostle, Guestling, Ore, Ticehurst and Burwash.The reply to the last part of the Question is "Yes."

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government when the village of Aust, Gloucestershire, will be provided with a water supply.

Work for supplying this area is in progress, but unfortunately it will be some considerable time before the mains can reach Aust.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what schemes for the provision of piped water have been completed in the county of Norfolk during the last 12 months; and what schemes are proposed to be commenced during the next two years.

My right hon. Friend regrets that the information asked for in the first part of the Question is not available. He cannot forecast what schemes will be ready for authorisation in the period stated, but the local authorities have in preparation 46 schemes, estimated to cost £1,739,000, for the provision of piped water supplies. Of these schemes, 15, to cost £191,000, have been approved in principle and 5, to cost £117,000, have been given starting dates.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will approve the application made to him by the London County Council to grant equal pay to certain grades of staff employed at rest centres managed by the London County Council and financed by Government grant.

The Council's application has only just reached me. I will give it careful consideration.

asked the Minister of Works whether he has completed the research begun by his predecessor into the possibility of placing in Westminster Hall a plaque commemorating the State trial there of Sir Thomas More and others.

Yes, and arrangements have been made for a portable stand containing a list of the more notable trials, including that of Sir Thomas More, to be placed in Westminster Hall.

asked the Minister of Works whether he is aware of the shortage of cement in parts of Cornwall; what is the reason; and what steps he is taking to remedy the situation.

Yes. Very heavy demands have put a severe strain on the available loading space at the works from which cement is shipped to the West. The cement companies are now sending extra supplies to Cornwall.

asked the Minister of Works if he is aware of the number of building workers who travel daily out of Macclesfield to work; and if he will look for means to give these men employment in or near the borough.

No, but I understand that it is very small. Outstanding vacancies for building workers, both in the borough and in the adjacent zone far outnumber the unemployed.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works, as representing the Lord President of the Council, what information his Department has regarding the quantity and quality of dolomite in the Kishorn area of Ross-shire.

An examination of deposits of dolomite near Kishorn, in Ross-shire, was carried out by the Geological Survey of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research in 1949 in collaboration with Messrs. Colvilles of Glasgow. Selected areas were examined in detail and bulk samples were taken for analysis. The results indicated that there is at least 15,000,000 tons of good quality dolomite reasonably accessible and almost unlimited resources of lower grade material.

asked the Minister of Works what expenditure has been incurred on repairs and redecorations of the various Royal Palaces since 1945; and what has been the nature of these repairs and decorations.

The Royal Palaces maintained by the Ministry of Works include those occupied by the Sovereign, such as Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, and other Palaces which are not in the occupation of the Sovereign, such as Hampton Court, Holyrood House, Kensington, Kew, Marlborough House and St. James's.The total expenditure incurred by the Ministry on the maintenance of all these Palaces and estates since 1945 was approximately £1,080,000. It would take a great deal of labour to analyse this expenditure, but it covers extensive war damage and structural repairs, minor alterations and additions, internal and external painting and washing down, and day-to-day maintenance.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence whether he will authorise an increase of pensions for men and women who left the Services between 1st July, 1948, and 1st September, 1951.

As my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury announced in moving the Second Reading of the Pensions (Increase) Bill on 24th June, it is the Government's intention to grant the full increases in retired pay and pensions provided in that Bill to retired officers and other ranks pensioned under the regulations in force before 1st September, 1950.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence how many British personnel are serving in the Korean theatre of operations in each of the three services, respectively; and how many of these are National Service men.

I regret that it would not be in the public interest to give information in the detail asked for by my noble Friend, but there are at present about 20,000 men of the U.K. Forces serving in the Korean theatre, some 6,000 of whom are National Service men.

asked the Minister of National Insurance the number of temporary assistant inspectors in his Department currently being declared redundant; the grounds for such redundancy; and to what extent these changes are leading to a reduction in the staff of his Department employed in administering the National Insurance scheme.

The answer to the first part of the Question is 58. As the result of recent economies in staff there has been a reduction of over 100 in the executive grade to which these officers belong.

asked the Minister of National Insurance if he will now make a statement as to the progress of negotiations with the New Zealand Government for a reciprocal agreement on pensions.

Under arrangements already in force, persons who are entitled to retirement pensions, widows' benefits and certain other benefits under the United Kingdom schemes of National Insurance can receive these pensions and benefits in New Zealand. There have been negotiations for a reciprocal agreement with New Zealand on retirement pensions and widows' benefits, but those negotiations were interrupted on account of a review by the New Zealand Government of their Social Security Scheme.We understand that it is the intention of the New Zealand Government to resume negotiations as soon as circumstances permit.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General whether he is aware that the application of Mr. P. E. Walter, of 125, Monks Road, Lincoln, to open a sub-post office on the Monks Tower estate has been refused; whether he is aware that such refusal will cause unnecessary hardship to the people living on this estate; and if he will reconsider this decision.

It is not the normal practice to open a new post office in town districts at a distance of less than one mile from an existing office; there is already a post office about half a mile from the Monks Tower estate, and I regret that the opening of an office on the estate itself would not therefore be justified.

asked the Minister of Labour what was the number of unemployed, male and female, in the employment exchange areas of Durham City, Spenny-

asked the Minister of Health the total number of beds set aside for mental defectives in each hospital region in England and Wales at the latest convenient date; the number of such beds occupied; and the number of persons awaiting admission, showing, separately, adults and children.

The figures are given in the table below. Column 2

The following table gives the information desired:shows how many beds ought to be provided, on standard, in space available; column 3 shows the number of beds which could be made available if staff could be found for them; this shortage of staff exacerbates the overcrowding; column 4 shows the number of beds actually in use. The waiting list figures are taken from returns from local health authorities, whose areas sometimes fall in more than one region; in the latter cases the lists have been apportioned to regions in ratio of the populations of the local authority areas.