asked the Minister of Food how much home-grown barley his Department purchased between 1st July and 30th September and at what average price; and the average cost of imported barley purchased by his Department during the same period.

1,500 tons at the minimum guaranteed price of £23 10s. per ton ex-farm. The average price of foreign barley purchased during the same period was approximately £30 c.i.f. United Kingdom.

asked the Minister of Food if he has now been able to arrange for the seasonal allowances provided for farm workers during harvest and other periods of over-time work to be issued direct to them if they so desire.

Yes, my right hon. and gallant Friend is arranging for personal issues to regular farm workers in England and Wales next year.

asked the Minister of Food whether he will now make a statement regarding the easement of applications from retailers for licences to sell sugar confectionery.

The licensing of sweets retailers was abolished on 1st October.

asked the Minister of Food if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a complete list of the food price increases resulting from the reduction in the food subsidies, together with the dates on which these increases have been made or are proposed.

Following is the information:

asked the Minister of Food whether it has now been decided to increase the amount of cheese for vegetarian establishments; what will be the new weekly ration; and when it will come into force.

Yes, the allowance of cheese for vegetarian establishments was raised from 1/7th to 2/7th oz. per meal on 10th August.

asked the Minister of Food what changes are contemplated in the cheese ration in the next few months.

asked the Minister of Food when the butter ration will be increased.

I cannot anticipate ration changes. Any changes in the present levels will be announced at the appropriate time.

asked the Minister of Food what progress has been made with the Argentine in respect to a new contract for meat; how much meat has been supplied since the expiration of the old contract; and on what terms.

asked the Minister of Food whether he will make a statement on the progress of the negotiations for the procurement of meat from the Argentine.

The negotiations which are proceeding in a friendly atmosphere cover a wide range of financial and trading matters in addition to meat. New proposals have recently been made by both sides and are now being examined, but my right hon. and gallant Friend cannot make any forecast of the date when a settlement is likely to be reached.Four thousand tons of meat have been shipped since the completion of the 1951 contract. Payment has been made provisionally at the old price, but this will be adjusted when the new price is settled.

asked the Minister of Food what arrangements he has made for the supply of grain from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

A further contract has recently been signed. This provides for the delivery of 200,000 tons of grain consisting of 150,000 tons of barley, 30,000 tons of oats and 20,000 tons of maize. Shipments under the new contract are to commence immediately.

asked the Minister of Food why the maize imported in the first eight months of this year from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics has averaged in price about 15 per cent. more than maize imported from the United States of America.

Because of the scarcity of dollars in many countries non-dollar coarse grains entering international trade frequently command a premium over dollar grains.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when the Government of Mauritius proposes to honour all the commitments which arise from its acceptance of the policy of grants-in-aid to approved secondary schools.

The present policy of grants-in-aid to approved secondary schools is contained in a Memorandum tabled in the Mauritius Legislative Council on 23rd October, 1951, a copy of which I am sending to the hon. Member. The Government of Mauritius is honouring all its commitments resulting from that memorandum, and has not entered into any additional commitments.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware of the overpopulation of Mauritius; and whether he will consider schemes for the emigration of this excess population.

Yes, I am fully aware of this problem. So far, efforts to find a solution by means of emigration schemes have met with no success, but they will be continued.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement regarding the resettlement of the Wameru people of Tanganyika and the opposition to it by the Meru Citizens Union.

I have placed in the Library of the House a copy of the White Paper on the Meru Land Problem issued by the Government of Tanganyika. I cannot add to the comprehensive statement which it contains and I think that it will give the hon. Member all the information which he seeks.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what is the cause and extent of the Mau Mau and other disturbances in Kenya; and if he will make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will make a statement on the present outbreak of violence and crime among certain sections of the Kikuyu tribe in Kenya.

I hope to make a statement after Questions tomorrow, 16th October.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what percentage of the world price of cotton will be paid this year to the Uganda African farmer.

I cannot forecast what the world price of Uganda cotton is likely to be when the marketing season for the 1952–53 Uganda crop opens early in November. The minimum price guaranteed to producers for the 1952–53 season is 50 cents per pound, equivalent to a f.o.b. price for lint cotton of almost 32 pence per pound, including ginning and marketing costs. The actual price to be paid to the producer will be decided at the beginning of the marketing season.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the consent of the Uganda African growers of cotton has been obtained for the use of £200,000 of the Cotton Price Assistance Fund for scholarships for training African civil servants.

No. But when the Cotton Price Assistance Fund was closed at the end of 1951 a Select Committee, which included all the unofficial members of the Uganda Legislative Council, recommended that the excess above the sum of £20 million at which the Fund had been closed should be used for developments for the benefit of the African population of Uganda and that out of the excess £200,000 should be devoted to the particular purpose mentioned in the Question.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence if he will make a statement on exercise "Mainbrace."

I have been asked to reply. The aim of this exercise was to test the forces of the Supreme Allied Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic, in co-operation with the forces of the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, in defence of the northern flank of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation area, and particularly to exercise the ships and aircraft of the N.A.T.O. countries taking part, in tactical co-ordination over an extended period.The exercise, which was conducted by the Commander-in-Chief, North, Admiral Sir Patrick Brind, took place from 13th to 23rd September. Some 220 ships and a considerable number of aircraft took part, the United Kingdom contribution including a battleship, a cruiser, 4 aircraft carriers, 16 destroyers, numerous smaller craft and a considerable number of aircraft. In addition, an aircraft carrier and 2 cruisers from the Commonwealth navies took part.As will always be the case in naval operations, the weather, which was at times bad, affected certain phases of the exercise which was, nevertheless, most successful in thoroughly testing the organisation, communications and all else involved in N.A.T.O. operations.At the close of the exercise a conference, arranged by Admiral Brind, was held in H.M.S. "Eagle" at Oslo, attended by the King of Norway, the Crown Prince, members of the N.A.T.O. Council and the two Supreme Commanders, Admiral McCormick and General Ridgway. The Commander-in-Chief, Eastern Atlantic, and the Air Commander-in-Chief, Eastern Atlantic, Admiral Sir George Creasy and Air Chief Marshal Sir Alick Stevens, were also present, as were the N.A.T.O. and national commanders serving under them. This conference enabled the fullest exchange of views to take place between the senior officers taking part in the exercise. It is too early for the results to be fully assessed, but the lessons learnt will be studied with care and embodied in future plans, equipment and training.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence the present policy of Her Majesty's Government on the exposure of National Service men to military hazard in Korea.

So far as the Royal Navy is concerned, where one of Her Majesty's ships to which a National Service man has been posted is engaged in Korean waters, the National Service man shares the same duties as the regular.The War Office policy is that no soldier, whether a Regular or National Service, may serve in Korea until he is at least 19 years old and has had at least six months' service, including adequate training. National Service men play their full part alongside the Regular soldiers.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence what is the average period served by National Service men in Korea and Malaya, respectively.

So far as the Royal Navy is concerned, this information is not readily available, since ships spend only limited periods in the operational zones. At present, the number of National Service men serving with the Far East Fleet is very small and their total period of service in the Far East averages about seven months.Over the past two years the average period spent by National Service men in the Army in Korea and Malaya has been about 11 months and 17 months respectively.There are no R.A.F. National Service personnel in Korea. R.A.F. National Service personnel in Malaya serve an average of about 15 months there.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence whether he will now make a statement after his review of the retired pay and widows' pensions of officers subject to the old scales.

I regret I am not yet in a position to make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for War what are his latest estimates of the numbers and proportion of National Service men found to be illiterate or semi-illiterate on joining the Army; and what steps he is taking to deal with the problem.

Of 121,648 National Service men who joined the Army in the year ending June, 1952, 850, or about 0.7 per cent. were found to be illiterate, although of sufficient mental capacity to be accepted for service. It is hard to estimate the numbers of semi-literates, but of the same intake 24,330, or about 1 in 5, were classified as E.S. 71 or 72, i.e., the next lowest educational category. Special classes for both illiterate and backward men are held in units and in education centres.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the fact that he was an ex-Far East prisoner of war had been recorded on the medical sheet of Fusilier Dawson, who died whilst on Z Reserve training in September.

Yes.