asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will publish as a White Paper the reports on germ warfare in China by the Japanese sent to his Department in 1944 by Dr. Joseph Needham.

No such reports were received.

asked the Minister of Food what special action he proposes to take to ensure that the special bottled Coronation beers to be produced by the brewers comply in gravity, measure and price with standards the public are entitled to expect during the celebrations.

None.

asked the Minister of Food to make a statement with regard to the shipments of meat from New Zealand to this country and which have been transhipped to Germany.

No such transhipments have been made except to meet the requirements of the British Services personnel stationed there.

asked the Minister of Transport what inquiries he has made into the extent to which road accidents are caused by drivers whose vision is to some extent defective but still within the limits specified for the issue of a driver's licence.

A joint panel of the Medical Research Council and the Road Research Board have considered this question in the report about to be submitted to the Road Research Board. A good deal of further research into this difficult matter will be necessary.

asked the Minister of Transport to make a statement upon his regulations concerning uncontrolled zebra crossings, in view of the decision of the Divisional Court in Leicester v. Pearson.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has noted the implications arising from a recent decision in the Divisional Court of Queen's Bench, in the case of Leicester v. Pearson; and whether he will redraft the Pedestrian Crossings (London) Regulations, 1951, so as to avoid any dubiety as to the absolute rights of pedestrians on zebra crossings.

It is the duty of the driver of a vehicle to give way to a pedestrian at an uncontrolled crossing if the pedestrian is on the crossing before the vehicle or any part of it has come on to the crossing. The decision of the Divisional Court in Leicester v. Pearson does not affect this duty of the driver, and I do not think that there is any need to amend the Pedestrian Crossing Regulations.

asked the Minister of Transport what consideration has been given to the use of "cats eye" studs on zebra crossings.

This point was carefully considered by the Committee on Traffic Signs which reported in 1944. They recommended that reflecting studs should not be used for this purpose. Their reasons are, I think, sound.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is yet able to assess the effect of zebra crossings on road accident figures.

Zebra crossings have almost certainly reduced pedestrian accidents. In the first nine months of this year pedestrian casualties were about 3,000 less than in the corresponding period of 1951, a decrease of 7¼ per cent.

asked the Minister of Transport what road improvements are to be put in hand and completed in London before the Coronation.

In present economic circumstances, road improvements must mainly be confined to small safety schemes. Fifty-one such schemes are being put in hand at black spots in the London County Council area, and it is hoped that most of these will be completed before the Coronation.

asked the Minister of Transport by what statutory authority a police notice has been placed near Blackfriars Bridge indicating that omnibuses only can use that part of the Victoria Embankment along which trams used to run.

There is no statutory authority for this sign. The City Corporation are about to ask my right hon. Friend to make regulations under the London Traffic Act, 1924, to deal with traffic here and he will then authorise the necessary signs. In the circumstances, we do not propose to ask for this sign to be taken down.

asked the Minister of Transport how many road schemes submitted by Welsh local authorities have been refused loan sanction since June, 1952, to the most recent date.

Seven.

asked the Minister of Transport the amount of money spent on the reconstruction, upkeep and making of roads in Britain, in each year since 1938.

The available figures of expenditure on public highways are contained in the Reports on the Administration of the Road Fund for the years 1945–46 to 1950–51. The report for 1945–46 contains figures for 1938–39 and, in Appendix I on page 12, the only figures available for the war years, which relate to the payments made by my Department from the Road Fund towards maintenance, improvement and new construction of trunk and classified roads. These figures do not include expenditure by local highway authorities, who bear the whole cost of work on unclassified roads and a proportion of the cost of work on classified roads. I am sending copies of the reports to the hon. Member. The report for 1951–52 will be laid before Parliament this week.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware of the inconvenience caused to the inhabitants of Thorne by the collapse of the canal bridge; and whether he will hasten the erection of a temporary footbridge.

I am aware that this bridge has collapsed. The highway authority is in consultation on this matter with the Docks and Inland Waterways Executive of the British Transport Commission, who are the owners of the bridge. I will ask the Commission to keep the hon. Member informed of progress.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will give a general direction to the British Transport Commission under Section 4 of the Transport Act, 1947, to make available to farmers the acreage now unused as a result of the closing of railway branch lines.

I understand that the British Transport Commission are already ready to make available by sale or letting sites and land which are no longer required for the Commission's purposes following the closing of branch lines. No question of a direction therefore arises.

asked the Minister of Supply what contracts he has made for the import of iron ore during 1952 from Sierra Leone.

None. Iron ore is not imported by the Government.

asked the Minister of Supply whether he will place further orders and contracts with engineering and other firms in Brighton to help alleviate local unemployment.

Orders are not allocated on a geographical basis. Firms wishing to be invited to tender for defence contracts should apply to be included on the Ministry of Supply's trades lists.

asked the Minister of Supply how much steel is now being allocated and delivered to Scotland for shipbuilding and how much for other purposes and, of these allocations and deliveries, how much goes to Aberdeen for shipbuilding and for other purposes, respectively.

Steel is not allocated by towns or regions, I regret, therefore, that statistics are not readily available on a geographical basis.

asked the Minister of Supply to give an assurance that progress payments on armament contracts will continue to be paid in the usual way until the end of this financial year.

Wherever contracts provide for progress payments, these will of course be made.

asked the Minister of National Insurance for what reasons he refused to meet national officers of the National Spinsters Pensions Association, who desire to plead the needs of older single women.

Having already received a deputation on this subject from Members of all parties in this House, I informed the Association that in my view no useful purpose would be served—and indeed false hopes might be raised—by my acceding to their request.

asked the Minister of National Insurance how many injured persons were, by 31st December, 1950, in receipt of a life pension under the Industrial Injuries Act; and, of these, how many were receiving their pension on account of dermatitis following irritation by dust or liquids.

The answer to the first part of the Question is about 9,000, and to the second part about 80.

asked the Minister of National Insurance by what amount the Industrial Injuries Fund increased in the year ended 31st March, 1951, as compared with the year before; what was the total expenditure in that year; and whether he will now consider increasing the benefits under the Act.

During the financial year ended 31st March, 1951, the balance in the Industrial Injuries Fund increased by £19,940,367 and the total expenditure from the Fund during that year was £16,925,885. The answer to the last part of the Question is "No."

asked the Minister of National Insurance whether he will reconsider the peculiar needs and difficulties of recipients of the 10s. non-contributory pensions; and if he will consider increasing such pensions.

I assume that my hon. Friend has in mind the 10s. pension payable to certain widows whose husbands were insured under the repealed contributory pensions Acts. I would refer him to the reply given on 27th October to the hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Hale).

asked the Minister of National Insurance if he has now given further consideration to the long-standing grievances of sufferers from Reynaud's disease whose claims for benefit under the Industrial Injuries Act are not admitted by his Department, although such claims were at one time admissible under the Workmen's Compensation Act; if he will make a statement on the matter; and if he is now in a position to pay the claims as from the date on which such claims arose.

I would refer the hon. Gentleman to my replies to his Question on 30th June, the present position is explained in a letter I have received from the Chairman of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council to which it still stands referred. The following is the letter:

"On 21st March, 1950, your predecessor referred to the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council for consideration and advice the question whether Raynaud's phenomenon of occupational origin (popularly known as "white fingers" or "dead fingers") should be prescribed under the National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act, 1946, in relation to insured persons engaged in any occupation involving the use of vibrating tools.

The Council referred the matter to their Industrial Diseases Sub-Committee, who have now submitted an interim Report to the Council.

Notwithstanding help and advice in the course of their investigation from several authorities, notably the Occupational Health Committee of the Medical Research Council who convened for the purpose a special conference of eminent physicians and physiologists, the Sub-Committee have felt hampered by a lack of adequate factual evidence on certain aspects of Raynaud's phenomenon and by the difficulties they have encountered in trying to obtain such evidence. Without it, they find it hard to reach a conclusion as to whether or not prescription would satisfy the conditions in Section 55 (2) of the Act. The main problems are, first, that Raynaud's phenomenon occurs widely among the general population from causes unassociated with the use of vibrating tools and that not all vibrating tools can be admitted as causing special exposure to a risk of it; where a worker using a vibrating tool has developed Raynaud's phenomenon, therefore, it may be very difficult to decide satisfactorily whether it is due to the use of the tool. Secondly, it appears that, while the disability caused by Raynaud's phenomenon is occasionally substantial, in the great majority of cases it is trivial, often amounting to no more than temporary inconvenience, and is in any event not easy to assess satisfactorily because the attacks are usually seasonal, intermittent and of short duration—for example, half-an-hour on cold mornings.

The majority of the Sub-Committee feel unable to make any recommendation at present, and before submitting a final Report they wish to await the results of a survey of cases of Raynaud's phenomenon which is to be carried out this winter at the instigation of the Occupational Health Committee of the Medical Research Council. Mr. C. R. Dale, however, considers that a sufficient case has been made out for bringing within the Industrial Injuries scheme any cases of substantial disablement from Raynaud's phenomenon which would have qualified for benefit under the "injury by accident" provisions of the Act if the Industrial Injuries Commissioner had not held that occupational Raynaud's phenomenon is the result of a process and not of an injury by accident.

In the circumstances, the Council do not consider that any useful purpose would be served by submitting a formal Report to you at the present stage. In view of the time which has elapsed since the question was referred to them, however, they wished me to inform you of the position which has been reached."

asked the Minister of National Insurance if he will have printed in the OFFICIAL REPORT an analysis of the 200 cases of those in receipt of a life pension under the Industrial Injuries Act on 31st December, 1950, listed as suffering from diseases other than pneumoconiosis.

At the end of 1950 about 200 life disablement pensions were in payment under the Industrial Injuries Act for prescribed diseases other than pneumoconisis. The following table shows the approximate proportion of them in payment for the different prescribed diseases:

asked the Minister of National Insurance the percentage of insured persons in Great Britain who were absent from work owing to sickness on 21st October, 1952, giving the respective percentages of males and females separately.

I cannot add anything to what I said in reply to my hon. Friend's Question on 20th October. It may be some time before final percentages can be worked out, but I will write to him as soon as they are available.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the restrictions placed by electricity undertakings on the production of electricity by gas works.

I am not aware of any such restrictions.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power when he expects to announce his decision as to the making of Regulations to ensure for pensioners of gas and electricity undertakings, formally owned by local authorities, the benefits of the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1952.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power when he will decide as to whether he will make regulations under the Electricity Act, 1947, to prevent further hardship to ex-municipal pensioners.

I have this question under consideration, but I cannot yet say when a decision can be announced.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power what steps he is taking to see that the West Midlands Gas Board is supplied with cast iron pipes so that the Board can carry out its responsibility of maintaining a reasonable pressure to outlying districts from the Walsall gas works.

Cast iron pipes of the size required to increase the pressure of gas supplies are not subject to control, and it is for the West Midlands Board to determine in what parts of its area such supplies as it can obtain may best be used.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power why the estimated cost of the grants to local authorities in respect of the costs of administration of the Retail Coal Prices Order and the Coal Distribution Order should have been increased from £950,000 to £1,100,000 in the current year; and how far he hopes to effect economies in this control.

The main reason for the increase was an improvement in the salary and wage scales of the local fuel overseers' staff. The cost of administering the Orders is constantly under review and will be reduced whenever possible.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power what experiments he has made in the use of nutty slack for purposes of domestic heating; what were the results; what estimate he has made of the amount which can be made available; and how far, and when, householders will be able to purchase it.

I have myself experimented with nutty slack and seen it burning satisfactorily when used with other coal, especially in the improved appliances which are now being installed in increasing numbers. Except in Scotland, South Wales, Cumberland, Durham and Northumberland, where the National Coal Board are doing their best to make quantities of other off-ration coals available to domestic consumers, nutty slack is available in all areas. Since 1st December householders have been permitted to purchase as much as they wish from any coal merchant, and the N.C.B. expect to be able to meet all demands.

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power if, in view of the damage to public services caused by mining subsidence, he will amend the Mining Subsidence Act, 1950, to make increased provision for compensation for local authorities.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangements have been made with the Government of Burma for the repayment of Burma's debt of about £27 million.

I would refer the hon. Member to paragraphs (2) and (3) of Article 6 of the Treaty of 17th October, 1947. A Financial Mission from Burma visited this country in October last and discussions on various financial questions are in progress between the two Governments, but I am not yet in a position to make any statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware of the resentment amongst farmers at the operation of the tithe system, which extracts about £2½ million a year, mainly from agriculturists; and if he will introduce amending legislation to remove this burden from the agricultural industry.

No. I think that most people accept the fairness of the system which was set up as the result of the recommendations of the Royal Commission of 1935 and which has now been in operation for 16 years.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the estimated loss of revenue resulting from the sale of goods, such as cars, refrigerators, washing-machines, etc., free of Purchase Tax to American service families stationed in this country.

Under the arrangements made in 1949 between the United States and British Governments, Purchase Tax refunds are made by the Foreign Office in respect of certain articles bought by members of the United States Forces and their families in this country. To date, the approximate total of these refunds is £1,391,000.

asked the Minister of Works whether he can now make available a building licence to enable the improvement at the Apton Road, Potter Street junction, Bishop's Stortford, to be carried out.

I regret that for the time being the resources of the building industry must be used on other capital projects of a more urgent nature.

asked the Minister of Works when it is proposed to remove the anti-tank blocks from Slipe Lane, Wormley, in the county of Hertford.

I regret that I am unable to say when these blocks will be removed. The need for economy has brought the removal of temporary defence works to a standstill.

asked the Minister of Education to give an estimate of the cost of making retrospective to 1944, the provisions of Clause I of the Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, 1952.

I cannot give a reliable estimate as this would require an investigation into the provenance of the pupils first admitted to some 50 new aided or special agreement voluntary schools opened since 1st April, 1945.

asked the Minister of Education how many married medical students are receiving grants under the appropriate scheme.

Of the medical students who are assisted under the Further Education and Training Scheme, 433 are married.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many of the British prisoners of war in North Korean and Chinese hands were prisoners of the Japanese in World War II; and how many of these were compulsorily recalled as reservists.

Of those who are prisoners of war or believed to be so, nine were prisoners of the Japanese in the late war. These men were compulsorily recalled as reservists.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many soldiers, who were formerly prisoners of war of the Japanese, are now serving in Korea; and how many of such former prisoners of war are now prisoners in the hands of the North Koreans.

I regret that the information asked for in the first part of the Question could only be obtained by a special check of the records of all men in Korea. There are eight British soldiers who were prisoners of war of the Japanese now held as prisoners of war in North Korea, and one who is missing and believed to be a prisoner of war.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government (1) which housing authorities in the county of Glamorgan now allocate private building licences for less than one-tenth of their annual housing programmes;(2) which housing authorities in the county of Glamorgan now allocate private building licences for one-half of their annual building programmes;(3) which housing authorities in the county of Glamorgan now allocate private building licences for less than one-quarter of their annual housing programmes;(4) which housing authorities in the county of Glamorgan have granted building licences in respect of schemes of self-help building associations.

This information is not available.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government how many housing authorities there are in the county of Glamorgan.

Twenty-seven.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty why the allowance due to the wife of L.X.F. 885488 Ronald Bond, Royal Navy Special Reservist, called up for training on 1st November, was not paid until 22nd November.

I assume the right hon. Member is referring to Naval Airman L/FX. 885458 Ronald Ernest Boud. Owing to an error in one of the certificates accompanying the application form for marriage allowance, it was necessary to have the application recertified. Payment of the £6 due was authorised by the Admiralty on the 20th November, 1952. I much regret any inconvenience that has been caused.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence if he will consider introducing regulations to enable one postage free Christmas parcel to be sent to officers and men serving in the forces at Kowloon and Hong Kong.

No. This concession is restricted to members of the Forces in combat areas.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department the average length of the sentences passed on first offenders sent to prison at assizes and quarter sessions during the years 1951 and 1939, respectively.

I regret that this information is not available for 1939 and that it could not be provided for 1951 without the expenditure of a disproportionate amount of labour.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what remedy is open to a householder when very wet coke or "Coalite" is supplied, thereby depriving him of the full weight of fuel for which payment has been made.

The householder can report the facts to his local inspector of Weights and Measures who will consider whether any action can be taken. In certain areas there are local Acts under which the wilful damping of coke and "Coalite" is made illegal.

asked the Minister of Health if he will require a medical officer always to issue an official order when he stops the sale of milk which is suspected of being infected, as the farmer can only get compensation when an order exists.

I assume that my hon. Friend is referring to the powers of a medical officer of health under the Milk and Dairies Regulations to stop the sale of milk. Such stoppage cannot be required unless a notice is given by the medical officer of health. If my hon. Friend has in mind any instance in which the application of the Regulations in this respect has given rise to difficulty and will send me particulars, I shall be glad to look into it.