asked the President of the Board of Trade the number and floor space of factories authorised in the Scottish Development Area from December, 1951, to the latest available date; and what were the comparable figures for the same period of 1950–51.

According to the latest available information, the number of Industrial Development Certificates granted by the Board of Trade in the Scottish Development Area for the periods mentioned by the hon. Member is as follows:

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many factories in the Scottish Industrial Estates, subsidiaries of non-Scottish firms, have ceased operations in the last 18 months.

Within the last eighteen months, four firms which are all subsidiaries of, or were otherwise associated with, companies operating outside Scotland, have ceased production in factories administered by Scottish Industrial Estates Ltd. We have succeeded in finding new tenants for two of these factories and the number employed in these two does not fall far short of the number previously employed in all four factories. The two remaining factories represent less than one-third of 1 per cent. of the total space administered by the Estate Company, but we are continuing our efforts to find tenants for them.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the total weight of cake imported during the past six months from Eire and Australia respectively.

Imports of cakes into the United Kingdom recorded in the trade statistics as coming from the Irish Republic and Australia during the six months ended 30th September, 1952 (the latest period for which figures are available), amounted to 73,000 cwts. and 27,000 cwts. respectively.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether, in accordance with the recommendation of the Waverley Committee, he will increase the grants-in-aid to grant-aided collections for the purchase of works of art;(2) whether, in accordance with the recommendation of the Waverley Committee, he will accept a public obligation to purchase such works of art as their possessors are forbidden to export.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether he has noted that the annual purchase grant-in-aid of the National Gallery is now less than it was in 1865; and if he will increase the grants to grant-aided collections and to the Victoria and Albert Museum;(2) whether he is aware of the continuous depletion of objects of high artistic and historic importance in Britain, as a result of their export to other countries; and what action he contemplates to preserve these treasures for the nation.

My right hon. Friend is aware that the Committee on the Export of Works of Art discussed these points, and he is considering the recommendations made in their Report. He hopes to be able to make a statement in a few weeks' time.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will consider paying interest on unpaid post-war credits.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what sum is outstanding on post-war credits.

About £587 million.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his attention has been drawn to the desire of motor car manufacturers to have Purchase Tax reduced on motor cars to enable the manufacturers to maintain and improve the home and export markets, and to prevent the growth of unemployment in this industry; and whether he will make a statement of his proposals in this matter.

I am well aware of this question, but I am not at present prepared to make any statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the present yield from Purchase Tax on furniture and the percentage of the total domestic output which at present attracts Purchase Tax.

Receipts of Purchase Tax from furniture, including office and garden furniture, amounted to about £2 million in the first half of the current financial year. As regards the second part of the Question, I regret that the information requested is not available.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of making an Income Tax allowance of £50 a year to all parents whose children attend independent schools and thus relieve public funds of the cost of their education.

£7 million a year.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will remove the Purchase Tax on fuel-saving grates and similar appliances.

I assume my hon. Friend is referring to heating appliances operated by solid fuel; these are already exempt from tax.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what he estimates to be the loss in national income in the current year, due to the decline in production, compared with the estimate in the Economic Survey for 1952.

It is not yet possible to estimate what will in fact be the total output for the year ending on 31st of. March next as compared with the hope expressed in the Economic Survey of last April.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury why the staff under heading L of Her Majesty's Stationery Office increased from 2,565 in 1951–52 to 2,656 in 1952–53.

Although the Estimate provides for 2,656 staff, the number in fact employed in the Stationery Office Printing Works is now 2,639. The extra staff has been recruited in the main for dealing with arrears of scientific library binding in accordance with a recommendation of a sub-committee of the Advisory Council on Scientific Policy; to operate a new incentive scheme; and to meet increased demands for the production of postal orders and pension order books. Many order books had to be overprinted as a result of the recent increase in National Insurance benefits.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury why the number of messengers and cleaners at the National Maritime Museum increased from 10 in 1951–52 to 14 in 1952–53.

In April, 1951, there were 10 messengers and cleaners in the National Maritime Museum. Today there are 11. The increase of one cleaner is due to the opening of the East Wing and other rooms of the Museum.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the rules determining the use of the Tate Gallery for publicity purposes; and why the director authorised the set of pictures of an American actress, using the Tate Gallery as a background, particulars of which have been sent to him, which appeared in a national weekly on 25th October.

Permission to take photographs in the Tate Gallery for publication is within the discretion of the Director in the first instance; in cases of doubt the matter would be referred to the Trustees. In answer to the second part of the Question, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the noble Lady the Member for Hemel Hempstead (Viscountess Davidson) on 11th November by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the number of degrees gained by students in non-university institutions and by private study, respectively, during the year 1951–52 together with comparable figures for the year 1937–38.

I assume that the hon. Member is not referring to students of the "schools" of the University of London or of non-university institutions, such as the Polytechnics, which have teachers recognised by the University of London. The number of external degrees given in 1937–38 and 1951–52 by the University of London to the students to which the hon. Member refers was:

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what number of films have been borrowed from the Central Film Library since 1st January this year as compared with the corresponding period of last year; and what film equipment has been taken out of use.

From 1st January to 31st October, 1952, 81,024 films were borrowed compared with 134,430 in the corresponding period of 1951. A charge for the hire of films was introduced from 1st June, 1952; 13,660 films were borrowed between then and the end of October and produced a revenue of £7,558. With the closing down of the Film Distribution Service of the Central Office of Information in March, 1952, 94 mobile projection units and 24 static projectors were taken out of use.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what is the total staff employed in the regional offices of his Department; and how many were so employed in 1938 and 1948.

The Ministry is primarily organised on a county basis, but the counties are grouped in eight provinces, of which Wales forms one. On 1st October, 1952, the number of staff employed in the provincial offices of the Ministry was 1,194. The corresponding figure for 1948 was 916. In 1938 there were no provincial offices in England, but there was a staff of 40 at the Ministry's Welsh Department at Aberystwyth.

asked the Minister of Agriculture why he finds it necessary to employ over 8,000 officials to supervise agriculture and fisheries.

I assume my hon. Friend is referring to the numbers of officials of my Department charged to Vote 8 in Class VI of the Estimates. This represents a decrease of 180 as compared with a year ago. While I am satisfied that the present number is essential to carry out the Government's agricultural and fisheries policies, I shall not hesitate to make further savings where that can be done without loss of efficiency.

asked the Minister of Agriculture why the staff of the Agricultural Land Commission has gone up from 36 in 1951–52 to 47 in 1952–53.

Excluding the members of the Commission and of the Welsh Sub-Commission, the number of staff employed has increased from 30 to 40. The increased staff is required to deal with additional work being undertaken by the Commission and the Welsh Sub-Commission.

asked the Minister of Agriculture how far he proposes to reduce the staff of the county agricultural executives, now numbering 6,425 at an annual cost of £2,636,000; and what increase in agricultural production may be attributed to their work.

During the year ending 1st October, 1952, the number of staff has been reduced by 12 per cent. to 5,962 and will be kept under constant review to ensure that further savings are made where that can be done without detriment to the food production programme. The contribution of these staffs to the great increase in agricultural production over recent years cannot be precisely determined; but their work is essential to the operations of the committees and to the subsidy and other schemes for increasing production which they administer.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if Her Majesty's Government have now decided to take part in establishing a European Foot and Mouth Disease Commission under the auspices of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations to operate an international plan for the control of foot and mouth disease in Europe.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether the United Kingdom will be represented upon the European Foot and Mouth Disease Commission.

The proposal that a European Foot and Mouth Disease Commission should be appointed was made at a conference convened by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations in Copenhagen during September and was strongly supported by the United Kingdom delegate. In accordance with the decisions of the conference, F.A.O. have since been preparing drafts of an agreement for the establishment of the Commission and of a budget. These documents have not yet been received. They are to be discussed at a further international meeting early in December at which the United Kingdom will be represented. We support the principles of the appointment of a Commission with suitable functions and would hope to co-operate in the work.

asked the Minister of Agriculture what percentage of the total cattle population are attested in Wales and in England respectively.

Fifty-eight per cent. in Wales; 30 per cent. in England.

asked the Minister of Agriculture how many cases of anthrax have occurred in Kent during the 12 months ended 31st October, 1952, or the nearest convenient date.

Fifty-six cases have occurred in the 12 months ended 31st October, 1952.

asked the Minister of Agriculture why the cost of the surveys of Great Britain has increased from £2,509,010 in 1951–52 to £2,697,720 in 1952–53.

The estimated increase is due, in the main, to pay additions awarded to the staff from 1st January, 1952, and to the rise in the price of stores. These increases have been partially offset by savings on account of staff reductions and by larger receipts from increased sales of maps and services rendered on a repayment basis.

asked the Minister of Agriculture why he is spending £1,328,000 this year as compared with £1,264,000 last year on the upkeep of farming operations conducted by land settlement associations.

The estimated increase in the expenditure of the land settlement associations arises from increased production and a larger number of tenants, both of which involve the provision of more goods and services. The additional expenditure is, however, more than offset by the expected increase in receipts and it is estimated that receipts will exceed expenditure in 1952–53.

asked the Minister of Agriculture how many Statutory Instruments he has made during the past 12 months abolishing or moderating existing controls.

One, the Agricultural Gangmasters (Revocation) Order, 1951.

asked the Minister of Agriculture which organisations he consulted before deciding to revoke Defence (General) Regulation 62AA; and what advice they gave him.

I did not think it necessary to enter into formal consultations with any organisations, as the regulation was designed to protect temporary war-time allotments which were often unfenced. The regulation suffered from the defect that it created a criminal offence if a dog were allowed to stray on an allotment even if no damage were done. The numbers of these temporary allotments have now fallen greatly and are still decreasing. I do not, therefore, consider that the continuance of this regulation would be justified. Occupiers of allotment gardens will still have legal protection against damage to their property under Section 19 (1) of the Allotments Act, 1922, and also under the common law. It is the policy of the present Government, like its predecessor, to dispense with war-time controls unless there are strong reasons for retaining them.

asked the Minister of Agriculture whether he proposes to continue to enable certain persons, under the Agricultural Goods and Services (Marginal Production) Scheme, to obtain goods and services at half-price, in view of the fact that this scheme is now costing £500,000 a year.

Yes. This scheme is helping farmers to bring into fuller production poor and difficult land and is thus a valuable part of the drive to increase food production at home.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he can give an assurance that the way is now clear for farmers to proceed with schemes for the more efficient and economical marketing of home produce under the Agricultural Marketing Acts; and, in particular, when he will take steps to restore marketing powers to the Milk Marketing Boards.

Yes. Following my statements in the House on 12th June and 24th July last I can give an assurance that the Government is prepared to consider sympathetically schemes promoted under the Agricultural Marketing Acts, 1931–49, designed to meet current needs and requirements for the efficient and economic marketing of home produce. Each scheme, together with any necessary safeguards for the public interest within the provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Acts, 1931–49, will need to be considered on its merits. Three draft schemes, namely those for Apples and Pears, Herbage Seeds, and Peas, have been under consideration for some time and I propose to initiate discussions with the promoters without delay on two of these schemes with a view to their early presentation to the House.The issues raised by the application of the Milk Marketing Board for England and Wales for restoration of its marketing powers include the question of the method for implementing Part I of the Agriculture Act, 1947. These issues are being dealt with in the review of various aspects of long-term policy which I announced early this year and which I hope, in consultation with representatives of the industry, to carry a great deal further before next spring.

asked the Minister of Agriculture if he is aware of the position revealed by recent heavy rains in the area of the headwaters of the Rivers Bade and Exe; and whether he will initiate an immediate inquiry into what operative elements led to the recent disaster.

The Devon Water Board has appointed a consulting engineer to report on the flooding disaster at Lynmouth and a number of his findings, and particularly the meteorological data that he has collected, will doubtless be applicable to the Exmoor area generally. On application from the Devon River Board, I have defined as main river the upper reaches of the rivers Bade and Exe and their tributaries. This will enable the river board to complete the work of clearing debris and other obstructions resulting from the recent floods. The Government is meeting the full cost of this emergency work. The board will also be able to consider what long-term works of improvement may be desirable; and will no doubt make such special inquiries as they find to be necessary.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has yet considered the Report of the Committee on Welsh Publishing; and if he will make a statement.

I shall make a statement as soon as certain consultations which have been undertaken are completed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why the list of places registered and persons holding licences under the Cruelty to Animals Act, 1876, is no longer being published.

The expense of publication is not justified by the extremely small demand. In 1950 the cost of printing alone was over £100; the proceeds of sales was £4 1s.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in view of the Coronation, he will consider advising that an amnesty or a remission of sentence be granted in certain types of cases.

I shall note the suggestion of the hon. Member, but it is only fair to say that there are many objections and difficulties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many senior girls in respect of whom approved school orders have been made in the London area are waiting in the remand home for a vacancy in the classifying school; and what is the average period such girls have to wait before being admitted to the classifying school.

On 31st October, 1952, seven senior girls who had been ordered by courts in London and Middlesex to be sent to approved schools were in remand homes awaiting admission to Magdalen Hospital classifying school. The average waiting period for admission to the classifying school is at present about two weeks.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that the Cumberlow Lodge is continuously full and that senior girls on remand from the London juvenile courts are being sent to Exeter; and what steps he will take to provide adequate accommodation in London and save public expense being incurred for travelling to and from Devon.

The pressure on accommodation in remand homes for older girls in the London area has resulted from a recent and, I hope, temporary increase in the number of such girls brought before the courts. As an emergency measure, girls who are the subject of approved school orders already made by the Metropolitan juvenile courts and are accommodated in remand homes pending admission to the classifying school are being allocated direct to training approved schools, except in special cases; and older girls committed to approved schools by those courts in the future will be dealt with in the same way, for the time being.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will indicate the extent to which crimes of violence have decreased or increased since corporal punishment has been abolished.

Before corporal punishment was abolished as a judicial penalty in September, 1948, the only important offences for which it could be imposed on male adults by the courts were offences of armed robbery and robbery with violence contrary to Section 23 (1) of the Larceny Act, 1916. In 1946 and 1947 there were, respectively, 804 and 842 offences of this nature known to the police in England and Wales; the corresponding figures for 1950 and 1951 were 812 and 633. The provisional figure for the first six months of 1952 is 359.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a list of the numbers of men and women who have enrolled for Civil Defence in each of the counties and county boroughs of England and Wales at the latest date for which figures are available, showing to what extent there is a surplus or deficiency compared with the number required.

I will place in the Library a table showing the present strength of each local division of the Civil Defence Corps as a percentage of the number which the Corps authority concerned was asked in January, 1951, to raise as a provisional peace-time establishment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why the staff of the Carlisle and District State Management District increased from 1,051 in 1951–52 to 1,062 in 1952–53 despite the fact that the purchase of stores and supplies for trading were expected to fall from £1,093,440 to £996,350.

The increase of 11 in the estimate of staff for the Carlisle District is due to changes in conditions of service of industrial staff. The estimates for the purchase of stores and supplies for trading are not strictly comparable, because that for 1951–52 included a sum—none of which was spent—for the new towns, whereas that for 1952–53 relates to the Carlisle District alone.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many local authorities in England and Wales have established reception centres for children, as required by Section 15 (2) of the Children Act, 1948.

Thirty-eight local authorities have established reception centres with facilities for observation of the children's physical and mental condition, a further 13 are in process of providing such centres, and others are planned. Some local authorities have arranged to share centres. For the time being short-stay homes are used for the temporary reception of children in some areas.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what prohibitions or restrictions are still in force under Regulation No. 2BA of the Defence (General) Regulations, 1939.

The only restrictions in force are those contained in the Control of Explosives Order, 1943, which relates primarily to the keeping and sale of gunpowder and safety fuse.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why the net cost of keeping 19,750 persons in prison and 3,500 in Borstal detention centres averages £316 per annum; and if he will take steps to organise the prison services so that the inmates pay for their own keep instead of costing the taxpayers £7,358,205 per annum.

The amount quoted by my hon. Friend is the total net cost of providing and administering prisons, Borstal institutions and detention centres. The items of which it is composed are shown in detail in the printed Estimates. They include the cost not only of keeping the inmates, but of the office of the Prison Commissioners, the provision and maintenance of buildings, the staffs of the establishments, the provision of religious, medical, educational and other services, and in general of the fulfilment of all the obligations which Parliament has laid on the Prison Commissioners by the Prison Acts and the statutory Prison and Borstal rules. This total cost is considerably reduced by the profitable use of the work of the inmates, but in no circumstances could the system become self-supporting.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why the expenses in connection with the provision of attendance centres under Section 48 (2) of the Criminal Justice Act, 1948, rose from £4,000 in 1951–52 to £10,000 in 1952–53.

Because this is an expanding service and the Estimates provided for an increase from seven to 23 centres in the present financial year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Distressed Relatives Scheme is still in operation; how many displaced persons have been admitted to the United Kingdom under this scheme during 1951 and 1952, respectively; and what is the total so admitted since the inception of the scheme.

The scheme is still in operation. Between the 13th November, 1945, and 30th September, 1952, the number of foreigners who can be regarded as displaced persons admitted to the United Kingdom under the scheme was 4,108; of these 179 were admitted in 1951 and 101 in 1952 up to 30th September.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in view of the public concern in regard to football pool betting and the large sums of money regularly contributed, he will take steps to amend the law so as to regulate the terms on which such betting is conducted to ensure the equitable management of such pools and to protect the public from unjust terms of contract or corrupt practices.

I can hold out no prospect of early legislation on this subject.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department who is carrying out the duties of Under-Secretary for Welsh Affairs pending the expected appointment of a successor to the hon. Member for Cardiff, North.

I am.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department the total cost this year of the Fire Service College and the cost per student per annum.

The cost per student week in 1951–52 was £22 6s. 0d.In the present year, the College has been used for three months for special courses for senior officers in problems of war-time firefighting; for the remainder of the year it is estimated that the cost per student week will be slightly less than last year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many licences for experiments on animals have been granted to the scientists employed by the Ministry of Supply.

Thirty-two are at present in force.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in view of the fact that accidents in the home have increased during each of the last three years, he will consider holding a safety week or other campaign to draw the attention of people and children to the need for avoiding such accidents.

I am at present considering methods of giving wider publicity to the need for preventing accidents in the home, and I will certainly bear the hon. Member's suggestion in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will state the average cost per child per week of the care of children by local authorities.

The estimated average weekly cost in 1952–53 of a child in the care of local authorities in England and Wales is £3 18s. 8d.; this figure includes the cost of administration, and of the supervision of children placed privately apart from their parents. The cost of maintenance alone is £3 6s. 4d.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the position in regard to the elimination of finger prints of those members of the police force who retired before Regulation 14 under Police Regulation 52 came into effect.

The requirement that the finger prints of a member of a police force taken in accordance with Regulation 14 of the Police Regulations, 1952, should be destroyed when he retires continues what has always been recognised as proper practice, and I have no reason to think that any finger prints so taken of men who retired before the Regulation came into force have not been destroyed.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is now in a position to make a statement about a possible increase of pension for police widows.

I hope to lay before the House shortly draft Police Pensions Regulations giving increases in pension to many police widows similar to the increases prescribed by the Family Allowances and National Insurance Act and the Pensions (Increase) Act of this year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Metropolitan police officers are known to be waiting for housing accommodation.

There are 1,431 Metropolitan police officers on the waiting list for married quarters.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Metropolitan police quarters for single and married officers were built during the first half of 1952.

186 quarters, all for married officers, were completed in this period.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will give figures showing the changes in unemployment in Grimsby among workers in fish processing and other trades ancillary to the fishing industry during the last three months.

In the groups of industries separately distinguished in our statistics, which include fish processing and other ancillary trades, there was an increase from 79 to 119 between 11th August and 13th October. The figures for November are not yet available.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that sufferers from industrial dermatitis have often great difficulty in finding alternative employment owing to fear that the condition will recur; and whether he will circularise all Government industrial establishments advising them of the facts relating to the chance of recurrence.

The Factory Department have issued a number of circulars about industrial dermatitis, and I am having inquiries made to see whether anything more can usefully be said.

asked the Minister of Health what action he proposes to take with a view to avoiding the annoyance caused by grit emitted from the chimney stack of St. Woolos Hospital, Newport, which has been certified by the chief sanitary inspector as a public nuisance and is causing inconvenience to many local inhabitants in the surrounding neighbourhood.

I understand that a modification of the stoking apparatus, designed to abate the nuisance, is in process of being made.

asked the Minister of Health, in view of the fact that it is injurious to children to wait from 14 to 30 months to have their tonsils removed, what schemes the regional hospital board have ready to reduce the waiting periods at South Shields General Hospital, Ingham Infirmary, Jarrow Palmer Memorial, Haiden Law, Lanchester and Sedgefield General and Durham County Hospitals for operations for tonsils and adenoids; and when resources will be available for this.

I cannot accept without qualification the general suggestion in the first part of the Question. I am informed that at the hospitals to which the hon. Member refers and others in the area, patients requiring tonsillectomy urgently are admitted with little or no delay. The Regional Hospital Board have just completed a survey of the ear, nose and throat services in the region and this will be considered with a view to improvements. The date on which these can be effected will depend on the relative priority accorded in the Board's capital programme.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will make a statement concerning the new functions of the Prince of Wales Hospital, Cardiff, and the hospital at Rhydlafr; and by what dates the changes are planned to take effect.

The Rhydlafar premises, at which it is hoped to begin admitting patients early next year, are intended for a continuance of the present work at the Prince of Wales' Hospital, but on a larger scale. The existing Cardiff premises will probably be used mainly as an out-patients' department.

asked the Minister of Health why patients who use a private ward in a State hospital are not credited with the amount their treatment would have cost if it had been given in a public ward.

Because the statute requires that charges for pay beds must be designed to cover the whole cost of the accommodation and services provided for the patient.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that it is a tradition that hospitals should care for the health of their staff, especially of nurses whose occupation is of the nature of a vocation and who are expected to put the care of patients before the strict interpretation of terms of service; and if he will therefore withdraw the instruction of his Department contained in Circular H.M.C. (52) 52 that nursing staff of hospitals, whether resident or not, shall be charged the fee of 1s. for prescriptions made up in the hospital pharmacy unless they are in-patients of the hospital.

While I certainly do not wish to discourage the proper care of the health of nursing staffs, I am not satisfied that the payment of this charge, which is payable by all other members of the community in similar circumstances, has this effect or that it would be justifiable to make an exception in their case.

asked the Minister of Health what welfare provisions are being made for the staffs of hospitals, particularly with reference to the nursing profession.

Staff welfare is essentially a matter for each individual hospital authority and one that is particularly suitable for consideration by the staff consultative committees which the authorities have been asked to set up. Advice has also been given to them on the supervision of the health of nurses, and I am sending the hon. Member copies of the relevant circulars.

asked the Minister of Health what action he is taking to remedy the unsatisfactory conditions now existing for Plymouth patients of the Didworthy Chest Hospital, South Brent, awaiting thoracic surgery at the Hawkmoor Chest Hospital, who have to wait up to two years for operative treatment.

The position will be improved when the new thoracic surgery unit to be provided at Tehidy Sanatorium comes into use. The Regional Hospital Board are also trying to engage staff to enable some thoracic surgery to be performed at Didworthy.

asked the Minister of Health the number of people in Cardiff who are waiting admission to hospital for treatment for tuberculosis; and what number have been waiting longer than six months.

The figures are 115 and 41, respectively.

asked the Minister of Health what fresh instructions he has issued limiting hospital medical staffs and proposing reductions in hospital domestic staff.

None; though I have opened discussions with the Boards of Governors about the medical staff establishments of the teaching hospitals.

asked the Minister of Health whether additional capital allocation can be made to the Newcastle Regional Hospital Board to enable vital work to be completed.

I regret that the total available to the hospital service does not permit of any further allocations to any Board during the current year.

asked the Minister of Health the average weekly consumption of solid fuel at Peppard Chest Hospital, Oxfordshire.

38.75 tons a week over the last 12 months.

asked the Minister of Health the extent of the shortage of nursing staff in Stoke-on-Trent hospitals.

The estimated number of additional staff required at 30th September last was approximately 140.

asked the Minister of Health what has been the result of his consideration of the suggestion that a separate region and regional hospital board should be created for the Western Area of the South-West Metropolitan Region.

After consulting all the parties concerned in this matter, and having carefully considered all the views expressed, I have reached the conclusion that no substantial advantage would be gained by the creation of a separate Region and Regional Board for the Western Area of the South-West Metropolitan Region.It seemed to me that the criticisms made by those who wanted a new Region could probably be met more economically, and without the loss of the advantages at present deriving from the existence of a single Region, by delegation of powers more freely to the Western Area Committee rather than by creating a new Region and a new Board. I therefore asked the Regional Board to consider how this wider measure of delegation might be achieved, and sought their views on a number of suggestions which appeared to me to be practicable. These suggestions were discussed by representatives of the Board and the Western Area Committee with officers of the Ministry and I understand that the Committee are preparing detailed proposals indicating how, in their view, the suggestions might be implemented and they will submit their proposals for the Board's consideration in due course. I now await the Board's considered views.

asked the Minister of Health if he will now give the Durham County Council permission to proceed immediately with the erection in Jarrow of the urgently needed residential hostel.

asked the Minister of Health if he will now give the Durham County Council permission to proceed immediately with the erection in Durham of the urgently needed residential hostel.

I regret that I cannot yet give aproval to the erection by the Durham County Council of further hostels under the National Assistance Acts.

asked the Minister of Health what action is being taken by him to establish a school for the training of physiotherapists in North Staffordshire; and what progress has been made for the treatment in that area of Parkinson's disease.

I would refer the hon. Member to my letter to him of 10th November on this subject.

asked the Minister of Education what are her estimates of the numbers of new schools on which building work will start in the last six months of 1952 and the first six months of 1953 respectively.

As the educational building programme is related to the financial year, my right hon. Friend cannot give estimates for the periods requested. In the third quarter of 1952 work was started on 171 major school building projects. Another 375 such projects in the 1952–53 programme are due to be started by 31st March.

asked the Minister of Education what are her estimates of the increases in the size of the school population in Staffordshire in the years 1953 and 1954 and of the increased numbers of school places, created by new building, to be brought into use during the same period.

It is estimated that the numbers on the registers of schools maintained by the Staffordshire education authority will increase by 2,500 in 1953, and a further 2,000 in 1954. A number of the new school places which will come into use during that period will be contributed by minor projects of which my Department has not yet been notified. My right hon. Friend must therefore refer the hon. Member to the local education authority for the answer to the second part of the Question.

asked the Minister of Education what is the anticipated total cost of the Wokingham Modern Secondary School; and how much this will represent per pupil.

The gross cost of the school on tender was £166,344, which represents a net cost per place of £215 5s. 4d. Until the final accounts are made up, my right hon. Friend cannot say what the total cost will be.

asked the Minister of Education what is the average cost per place in modern secondary schools completed in the last three years or other convenient period.

Practically all the secondary modern schools which have been completed in the last three years were started in 1949 or earlier. The average net cost per place on tender of schools of this type started in 1949 was £320.

asked the Minister of Education whether she has seen the booklet, a copy of which has been sent to her, entitled "Punishment in Schools," issued recently by the London County Council, in which the total abolition of corporal punishment of children in schools is recommended; and whether she will issue a similar recommendation to all other schools in the country under her jurisdiction.

My right hon. Friend has seen this booklet, but is not aware that its recommendation is as stated by the hon. Member. In any case the question of corporal punishment is within the discretion of local education and school authorities and she is not prepared to take the action suggested in the latter part of the Question.

asked the Minister of Education if she will consider consulting with local education authorities regarding the staggering of school summer holidays.

No. Local education authorities are already aware of the need for doing what they can to help in this matter, both by fixing school holidays to fit in so far as possible with local conditions, and by granting children leave of absence in term time up to two weeks to enable them to go with their parents on their annual holiday.

asked the Minister of Education how many classes are housed in rooms such as church halls, Co-operative halls, other schools and houses away from the main school buildings.

Complete information is not available, but over the last three years approval has been given for the use of accommodation off the school premises for a total of 1,567 classes.

asked the Minister of Education how many classes are housed in rooms not intended as classrooms such as school halls, canteens and stock rooms.

This information is not available.

asked the Minister of Education whether she is aware that the Somerset local education authority has re-affirmed its county council's decision to close 80 per cent. of its nursery schools; and what action she proposes to take.

Yes. Since my right hon. Friend was not satisfied with the explanation which the authority gave her for their action she required them to furnish her with a detailed statement of the position at each of the schools and classes which they had closed. This information she received recently and is at present considering.

asked the Minister of Education why the fees and allowances in respect of State scholarships increased from £1,406,000 in 1951–52 to £1,801,700 in 1952–53.

The increased estimate allows for the increase in the number of scholarships current in the year 1952–53 and for increases in tuition fees and rates of maintenance.

asked the Minister of Education how many trained qualified teachers are still seeking employment; and what action her Department is taking in this matter.

Out of 11,935 newly-trained teachers who left training colleges and university departments last summer 1,297 were reported on 10th September, to be still seeking posts in maintained and assisted schools. A considerable proportion of them will by now have secured posts, and experience of previous years suggests that most of the remainder will find posts in the near future, especially if they are willing to go to any area and do not restrict themselves to one particular type of teaching. My right hon. Friend does not therefore consider that action is at present called for on her part.

asked the Minister of Education if she is aware that despite an increase in the grants to local education authorities from £173,678,000 in 1951–52 to £183,953,000, those who, three years after leaving school, join Her Majesty's Forces, are to the extent of one in five in need of re-education so as to enable them to perform their duties in the Armed Forces; and what steps she is taking to avoid this in future.

My right hon. Friend is aware that about one in five of the National Service men who joined the Army in the year ending June, 1952, were classified as backward, but not illiterate, though these young men, most of whom left school at least three years ago, cannot be affected by an increase in the level of grant-earning expenditure incurred by local education authorities this year. As she has explained to my hon. Friend "backward" is a relative term, but she is constantly endeavouring to raise the general standard of education in the schools.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what was the value of tenders approved in local authority housing schemes, together with the number of dwellings, since October, 1951, and the comparative figures for the period October, 1950, to October, 1951, respectively.

The numbers of houses in approved tenders are shown in table No. 2 of the quarterly Housing Returns. Complete figures of tender prices could not be given without an unjustifiable expenditure of time and labour, but my right hon. Friend would refer the hon. Member to the Third Report of the Girdwood Committee.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will obtain the views of the local authorities in the area before any decision is taken to close down the East London Rents Tribunal.

The decision to close the tribunal has already been taken and my right hon. Friend is in communication with the local authorities.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will state the number of cases dealt with by the London rents tribunals, with the exception of the East London Rents Tribunal, separately, for 1949, 1950, 1951 and to the latest convenient date in 1952.

asked the Minister of Supply what reduction has taken place in production in the engineering industries during the past 12 months.

In the 12 months ended June, 1952, the latest date for which complete figures are available, total production of the engineering industries as a whole was somewhat higher than in the preceding 12 months.

asked the Minister of Food what steps have been taken to build a new sugar beet factory in the southern counties.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. and gallant Friend gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Maidstone (Mr. Bossom) on 11th November.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many bankruptcies occurred in Scotland from October, 1951, to October, 1952; and what were the corresponding figures for the last five years.

The number of persons declared bankrupt by the courts in Scotland in the period 1st October, 1951, to 30th September, 1952, was 127; the corresponding figures for the annual periods ending 30th September, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950 and 1951 were 21, 36, 55, 71 and 102 respectively.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works, as representing the Lord President of the Council, what researches are now being undertaken by the Medical Research Council towards finding a cure for haemophilia; and what is the estimated cost of such research for 1952–53.

Recent work on haemophilia by the Medical Research Council has been concerned chiefly with the preparation and clinical trial of concentrated blood fractions which it is hoped will be more effective in treatment than the transfusions of whole blood or plasma used at present. These products are being tested in a number of different centres and preliminary results have been encouraging. It is impossible to calculate exactly the separate cost of research on this one blood disease, which forms part of a larger programme on the use of blood derivatives in treatment, and any attempt to do so would be misleading.

asked the Minister of Works what would be the estimated cost of supplying fuel-saving appliances in respect of open fires to all Government Departments; and the estimated annual saving in fuel consumption.

About 5,000 improved solid fuel burning appliances have been installed in Government buildings in place of the old type of open grate, but we have not yet had sufficient experience to estimate the saving in fuel. Any such estimating will in any case be made extremely difficult by variations in the weather, the comparative skill of those stoking the appliances, the relatively short period for which the appliances are in use and the types of fuel obtainable. The cost of a convector stove, including installation, averages about £15 per appliance. It is estimated that there are now about 3,000 open fireplaces in Government buildings which could be converted to convector stoves.

asked the Minister of Works what arrangements are being made to enable disabled ex-Service men to view the Coronation procession.

I would refer my bon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Shrewsbury (Mr. Langford-Holt) on 28th October last.

asked the Minister of Works what organisations are being allocated tickets for the Coronation; and what is the basis of the allocation as between London and the provinces.

The categories to be allocated seats to view the Coronation procession are still under consideration. Allocations will be made to national bodies only and the distribution between London and the provinces will be a matter for the organisations themselves.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what progress has been made with the five-year plan for African education in Nyasaland, as shown by increases in funds allocated, in the number of boys and girls, respectively, completing an eight-year course at school, in the number of scholarships awarded to Africans, and in the number of teachers in post and in training.