asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he is aware that the supplies of steel allocated to the shipyards of Aberdeen are insufficient for their needs; what steps he is taking to increase the allocation to them; and by how much.

The shortage of steel at Aberdeen shipyards was due not to inadequate allocations but to the shipbuilders' inability to obtain the steel which they had been authorised to acquire. I hope that the new steel plate distribution scheme announced by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Supply on 20th April will effect an improvement in the plate supplies to these firms.

Is the Minister aware that, whether it is due to shortage of allocation or to any other reason, the result is the same for the shipbuilding yards, and that leaders in the shipbuilding industry say that they have full order books which they are unable to discharge owing to shortage of steel, that Britain is in that way losing her place as a shipbuilding nation and that unemployment is being created? Will the Minister see that adequate supplies of steel are forthcoming to enable Britain to maintain her place in the world's shipbuilding markets?

The question of the supply of steel is, of course, one for the Ministry of Supply and not for me. With regard to the case of Aberdeen, I am aware of the difficulty there has been there, and Aberdeen will get its share of the 10, 000 tons of plate which are being imported by the British Iron and Steel Federation from Austria.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty what ship-repairing refits and overhauls were carried out on British merchant ships in foreign ports during the years 1951, 1952 and to date in 1953, expressed in tonnage and costs; and what were the tonnage and costs of foreign merchant ships refitted and overhauled in Great Britain by ship-repairing firms during the years 1951, 1952 and to date in 1953.

Since 1949 there have been no restrictions on British merchant ships carrying out repairs in soft currency countries abroad, and the information asked for in the first part of the Question is therefore not available. As regards the second part of the Question, I have no information on the cost of repairs to foreign ships in the United Kingdom, nor can I give the annual tonnage handled. I have available, however, figures showing the tonnage of foreign ships in hand at the end of each month. The average gross tonnage was: in 1951, 193, 000; in 1952, 178, 000; and in the first three months of 1953, 166, 000. These figures represented about 8 per cent. of the total load in the ship-repairing yards.

Will the Minister not agree that it is, to say the least, unfortunate that we have not the figures, since it is the contention of ship-repair workers, or those responsible for them, that we send a lot of repair work abroad because it is done there more cheaply, which is against our ship-repair workers here? Can the Minister do anything to get those figures so that we can know whether there is that balance of one as against the other?

Such figures as I have available would not go to show that, but rather that the balance of advantage lies with the repair yards in this country.

Could the Minister say whether there has been any diversion from English to foreign ports, and if so, whether these have been only emergency measures adopted at the ports where the ships were?

As regards diversion, I am not sure what the hon. Gentleman has in mind. Owners are free—

I want to know whether we are diverting work from English ports to foreign ports or whether the repairs that have taken place in foreign ports have been emergency repairs which could not be avoided.

Under the last Government restrictions were taken off the repair of British ships abroad but, as far as we know, these are considerably less than the foreign ships which are being repaired here. The 8 per cent. represents something in the nature of 30 ships.

Can the hon. Gentleman explain the fall in each of the three years he quoted for work in English yards?

No, Sir. That might be partly due to the end of the very big repair programme after the war which has now been completed.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty to what he attributes the decline in foreign orders for British ships; and how much work British yards now have on their order books, excluding yards specialising in tankers.

Orders for ships from foreign owners have declined, as have orders from British owners. The decline may be due both to the expansion of capacity abroad and also the late delivery dates that can be offered by British yards, owing to their full order books and to the shortage of steel plate in the last few years. It is difficult to distinguish between yards specialising in tankers and other yards, as most larger yards now build some tankers. Orders for ships other than tankers now stand at 2, 717, 000 tons of which 905, 000 tons are for foreign owners.

Though there has been a general decline in new shipbuilding orders, is it not the case that our proportion of export work is lower, according to the latest list, than for the last six years? Is there any particular reason why British shipbuilding yards are not building as great a proportion as they were for export?

All ships are built strictly in rotation and the order is that in which they are placed on the order books. The proportion of foreign ships being built will go up in the near future, as will be seen from the figures I have given.

Is the hon. Gentleman sure that we are not losing any orders because of the difficulty of obtaining sufficient steel plate, particularly on the Tyne and the Wear? We know that the ending of the steel control is to take place, but there is the difficulty of the voluntary control. Will the hon. Gentleman make representations to the Ministry of Supply to ensure that there is sufficient steel plate going to our shipbuilding yards to keep this very important industry at home?

The Admiralty have been in constant touch with the Ministry of Supply on this question of steel plate and everything possible is being done, but we must remember that the order books are still very long, representing something between three and four years' work, which must affect new orders.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty how many ships of Her Majesty's Fleet will visit Welsh ports during the summer months in connection with the Coronation.

A total of 18 ships will be visiting 15 Welsh towns this summer in connection with the Coronation celebrations. I am letting my hon. Friend have a list giving details of these visits.

Is the Minister aware that the officers and men of these ships will have a splendid welcome in these ports, as I am sure they will if the answer to Question No. 7 is as satisfactory as the answer to this Question?

Do the "Welsh towns" include the City of Cardiff?

Yes, there is a ship going to Cardiff.

Are any ships going to the Tyne, where they are built?

I am having a list placed in the Library, giving all the details of all the ships and all the visits, as I feel sure that it will interest hon. Members in all parts of the House.

; Is the hon. and gallant Gentleman making certain that North Wales is not forgotten?

If there are any which require large repairs, will they be sent to Leith?

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty how many ships of Her Majesty's Fleet will visit Scottish ports during the summer months in connection with the Coronation.

A total of 41 ships will be visiting 37 Scottish towns this summer in connection with the Coronation celebrations. I am letting my hon. and gallant Friend have a list giving details of these visits.

Will my hon. and gallant Friend bear in mind that this announcement will give much satisfaction in Scotland? Would he consider publishing the list rather than giving it to individual hon. Members?

As I said in answer to an earlier Question, I will put the list in the Library.

Could not my hon. and gallant Friend publish it, because putting it in the Library is not quite the same thing?

I will certainly give consideration to that.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty on which previous occasions when Members of Parliament have been invited to attend the Royal Naval Review at Spithead they have had to ballot for tickets; and what is the reason for the ballot for tickets for the forthcoming Naval Review.

There is no question of Members of Parliament not being able to attend the Coronation Review at Spithead this year; the only ballot that took place was to decide for reasons of economy which Members should go in the liners and which in one of Her Majesty's ships. A ballot has been held on a number of occasions in the past to allot the available accommodation for Members at a Naval Review; the Reviews held in 1902 and 1924 are examples.

In view of the fact that this is for economy, can the Minister say how much money he anticipates saving by this method, as I understand there will be about £2 million spent nationally in connection with the whole of the Coronation?

I cannot give the exact figure because it is not normal to give these figures for chartering liners, but, as the hon. Member will know, to charter additional liners would cost a considerable sum.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty what arrangements are being made for leave to be granted to the crews of ships concentrating for the Coronation Review, particularly in cases where ships have been based in remote ports.

Arrangements have been made for the ships' companies of ships returning from foreign service to be given seven days' leave in the United Kingdom before the Naval Review.

Would the hon. and gallant Gentleman take into account the fact that many of the ships concentrating in Portsmouth will have members of crews who could live ashore whilst the ships are there? Will he take that into account and provide special facilities, particularly where families have been separated for considerable periods?

Yes, that certainly will be given every consideration, and I am quite sure that as much leave as possible will be given while the ships are in port.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if his attention has been drawn to the new field radar link system demonstrated near Southampton recently which serves adequately to confirm the success of radio-relayed radar, and which by 20-mile hops can be extended over an indefinite distance; if he is aware that this system is similar to a television radio-link and has been developed by Decca Radar; and if he will take steps to use it to relay television to viewers in the city of Aberdeen.

The principle referred to is well known. I am afraid that these developments in no way affect my previous statements on television policy.

Is it not terribly invidious that the latest devices of science can be used to bring Coronation television to foreign countries, but not to North-East Scotland? Will the Assistant Postmaster-General stop ostracising North-East Scotland in this way?

I can assure the hon. and learned Member that I am not ostracising anyone. The principle of the radio link is well known. That is the type of link between Manchester and Kirk o'Shotts. The factor which decides this problem is not the type of link but the question of capital investment.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what foreign broadcasts are given by the British Broadcasting Corporation, the country or area for which each service is intended, and the daily duration of each service.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the information given in Appendix VII of the B.B.C.'s Annual Report and Accounts for 1951–52 (Cmd. 8660) on pages 115 and 116. The information there given will, I hope, serve my hon. Friend's purpose. There has been little change since the Report was published.

Is my hon. Friend aware that there is still a wavelength allocated for broadcasts to Northern France, which seems quite useless when we in Northern Ireland share a wavelength with the north-east of England?

I think that goes outside the original Question.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what broadcasts the British Broadcasting Corporation makes for our Forces overseas; and what is the approximate locality for which each service is intended.

Since the information is lengthy, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Can my hon. Friend tell me whether there is a service provided for the Forces in Korea in this lengthy list?

Yes, Sir. The question of the number of hours of service to each place rests with the War Office or with the Service Department concerned. But in the case of Korea I understand there is a service every day of 4¾ hours.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if he is aware that the British Broadcasting Corporation is departing from its obligatory impartiality by presenting in its programmes and publications only those views opposed to sponsored and/or commercial television; and, as this matter has become a party political issue, if he will consider what remedial action should be taken.

I am not aware that the B.B.C. has acted partially in this matter, but if my hon. Friend has any evidence on the point I shall be glad to consider it.

Will my hon. Friend confirm that in a matter of a party political controversy, which this question of commercial television is, the B.B.C. must not broadcast or publish a view of its own; and further, that if it does publish the views of anybody else, either in its broadcasts or publications, it must publish both sides with impartiality?

Yes, Sir, that is correct.

Does the Assistant Postmaster-General know that the last time I was invited to take part in a B.B.C. programme the suggested discussion with a Conservative was sponsored television, but we had to call it off, because the Conservative Member concerned was not in favour of sponsored television?

On a point of order. I seek your guidance, Mr. Speaker, on a point of order which concerns Questions. I was not in my place at the beginning of Question time today, but I have been advised that during Question time the hon. Member for Cardiff, South-East (Mr. Callaghan) alleged that when he last appeared on television a Conservative hon. Member refused to discuss sponsored television on the ground that the said Conservative hon. Member was against sponsored television.

I do not wish to raise the rights or wrongs of an hon. Member of this House discussing private conversations with a B.B.C. producer, but if the allegation applies to me, and I did appear with the hon. Gentleman in his last television programme, it attributes bad faith to me in that I voted in this House for sponsored television. I would like your guidance as to whether I can put it on record that I did not decline to discuss this question because of lack of faith in sponsored T.V. Any assertion to the contrary is quite untrue and I would ask the hon. Member for Cardiff, South-East to withdraw it.

The hon. Gentleman was not in his place, but it will be within your recollection, Mr. Speaker, that the supplementary question I asked was to this effect: "Whether the Assistant Postmaster-General was aware that on the last occasion when I was asked to have a discussion"—but not on the television or on the radio. I purposely did not identify the hon. Gentleman, and I did not indicate whether this was in connection with television or sound radio; not did I say that the broadcast actually took place. I said that the subject had to be dropped. There was nothing to be concluded from what I said, until the hon. Gentleman chose to wear the cap, whether it was he that was concerned or whether in fact the discussion actually took place.

As the hon. Gentleman now chooses to identify himself, let me say at once that it is quite true that the occasion in question, which would not have been known had not the hon. Gentleman made this intervention, was when we both appeared together on television last time. If he now asserts that he is in favour of sponsored television, I certainly accept that. We must take it up in another place. It would be wrong for me not to. I assure the hon. Gentleman that when he reads HANSARD he will agree with me that there was no way of identifying him in this connection.

I heard the supplementary question asked, and I do not think anyone was identified by it. I hope that the hon. Members will contrive to clear this matter up between themselves.

With very great respect, Mr. Speaker, surely when vague allegations are thrown out in this fashion and advantage is taken of the Privilege of this place to make a charge which is, when it appears in black and white, one of bad faith, the hon. Gentleman who makes the charge should have the good grace to withdraw it when an explanation is afforded?

I cannot take that view. I heard no charge made against the hon. Gentleman, and for my part I should not have thought that he was connected with this matter at all. Points of order regarding charges of this sort must be supported more specifically than that. I hope that the hon. Gentlemen will come to an understanding about this matter and clear it up. I cannot allow the time of the House to be occupied any further with it.

I certainly accept what the hon. Gentleman says about commercial television, and I put it on record that the reason why we had the discussion was that I understood that the hon. Gentleman did not support the priniciple of commercial television.

There is nothing in that. Perhaps the hon. Member for Cardiff, South-East was misinformed.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what additional capital will be made available to the British Broadcasting Corporation in the near future to enable them to extend their television facilities.

I would refer the hon. Member to my answer on 6th May to the right hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Ness Edwards).

Would the Minister confirm that his reply means the B.B.C. will be allowed to use their capital resources for developing both their low frequency stations and high velocity programmes—

High velocity?

—before any facilities are given for commercial television?

That was not the question I was asked. I gave a full answer to the question I was asked last Wednesday.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General for an assurance that the provision of a separate wavelength for the North-East will take precedence over a wavelength allocation for sponsored television.

I would suggest the hon. Gentleman should await the first report of the Television Advisory Committee and the decisions taken on it, but I see no reason why there should be any competition between sound and television broadcasting.

Can the hon. Gentleman say when he expects that report to be published? Will he also be a little more specific, because there is great feeling in the North-East on this matter? They desire an adequate wavelength to serve their purposes and are much more interested in that service being provided first before sponsored television.

The report is in the hands of the printers. So far as I can gather there will be ample space on different bands for television whether commercial or B.B.C. programmes and also v.h.f. broadcasting.

Is not this a matter of the allocation of resources, and surely my hon. Friend's Question is a reasonable one? He asks that the allocation of resources to the provision of a separate wavelength should take precedence over commercial television.

What the hon. Gentleman has asked is that the provision of a separate wavelength for v.h.f. broadcasting shall not be interfered with by sponsored television. I think I can give him that assurance.

Would my hon. Friend consider laying a copy of the report of the Television Advisory Committee in the Library, if there is to be delay in the printing of the report.

If there is likely to be any unreasonable delay I will consider that.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General whether the British Broadcasting Corporation has yet made any proposal for a very high frequency scheme whereby the present bad reception areas will be assured of adequate sound radio reception.

The B.B.C. have made tentative proposals: firm plans for v.h.f. broadcasting must await the decisions ultimately taken on the question of modulation after the Television Advisory Committee has reported.

When does the Minister expect that report to be to hand?

That is the second report of the Television Advisory Committee. They are now considering that technical question as a matter of urgency.

Can the Minister indicate when he hopes the Committee will arrive at some decision?

I would not like to be definite, but we hope it will be before very long.

Is it not a fact that this is a very serious matter? There cannot be any development of v.h.f. until the type of modulation is determined, and unless we get that very quickly, this promise about commercial television is far from being implemented.

I do not anticipate that there will be any undue delay. The right hon. Gentleman the Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Ness Edwards) is quite right. The first thing to be decided is which type of modulation shall be used.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if, when national re- sources allow, he will give precedence to the provision of very high frequency sound broadcasting for bad reception areas such as Anglesey over the licensing of commercial television.

I cannot at present add anything to the Government's statements in its White Paper on Broadcasting (Cmd. 8550), and in the debates on the subject.

Is the Minister aware that sound reception in many parts of Wales. including Anglesey, is very bad indeed? Will he consult now with his engineers to see if there is any improvement which can be effected?

There are many parts of the country in which reception is not good. It is due to a variety of reasons. One is interference from abroad.

Would the hon. Gentleman agree that there is no technical reason why this problem cannot be solved if it is tackled with a will to solve it?

There is no technical reason why all sorts of problems should not be solved. One of the difficulties in this and other directions is the amount of our capital resources we are prepared to devote to the subject.

Can the hon. Gentleman say which foreign station interferes with Anglesey?

I should require notice of that question.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what estimate the British Broadcasting Corporation has made of the capital cost of providing adequate sound radio reception over the whole of the United Kingdom, including a separate wavelength for each region.

I presume the hon. Member is referring to the use of very high frequencies. The B.B.C. has not yet sent to my noble Friend any reliable estimate of the cost of providing V.H.F. stations for those parts of the country where reception is unsatisfactory nor will they be asked to do so until the Television Advisory Committee has recommended the type of modulation which in their opinion should be adopted, and a final decision has been taken on this matter.

Will the Assistant Postmaster-General agree that adequate sound broadcasting should be provided for every region in the country in preference to any attempt to provide sponsored broadcasting?

The plans of the Government on that matter have been set out specifically in Command Paper 8590.

Can my hon. Friend say, on a technical point, whether his mind is moving on amplitude or frequency modulation lines?

My mind does not propose to move on either line until the Television Advisory Committee has given its technical advice.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if, before licensing sponsored television, he has sought an estimate of the cost of an adaptor to enable existing television receivers to obtain more than one programme; and what the estimate was.

No definite figure can yet be provided by the radio industry, but I understand the cost would not be large compared with the price of the set itself.

Could the Assistant Postmaster-General be more precise in his reply? I understand that the cost of the adaptor will be about £17 per set. Will he please tell us whether that is the correct figure?

If the hon. Member understands the figure to be £17, then he knows far more about it than I do, because we have had no communication whatever from the radio industry that it is likely to be anything like that sum.

Is my hon. Friend aware that it is absolutely impossible to work out the price for such an adaptor until the technical information is available and that it is quite unreasonable for hon. Members opposite to publish false information to try to deceive the House and the country?

Will the Assistant Postmaster-General give an assurance to the House that as soon as a price for the adaptor has been arrived at and communicated to the B.B.C., the House will have the information?

The price will not be communicated to the B.B.C. It will be a question of offering the adaptor to the public, and if the public do not want it they need not buy it.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what action his Department has taken on the "Code of the Air," drawn up by a Committee of the Institute of Incorporated Practitioners in Advertising and the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers, which was recently submitted to his Department.

My noble Friend has read this code with very great interest and is grateful to the advertising interests for having submitted it. It will be of great assistance to him in setting out the responsibilities of the controlling body.

Does not my right hon. Friend agree that this code sets a very high standard, a higher standard than that which is maintained by most newspapers and certainly by the B.B.C., and does he not think that if it is adhered to it should set at rest the doubts which have been expressed by hon. Members opposite and, in particular, by the right hon. Member for Lewisham, South (Mr. H. Morrison)?

I should not like to make comparisons with newspapers or the B.B.C., but it is certainly a very strict code which the advertising interests have set out and I imagine that it would remove all reasonable misgivings which hon. Members opposite may have that commercial television is likely to lead to a debasement of standards.

In considering the weight to be attached to these recommendations, will the hon. Member cause investigations to be made into whether either or both of these organisations, or the individual members of them, are subject to foreign control, because that will definitely be a factor which ought to be considered in deciding upon the future of commercial television?

I think the hon. and gallant Member has misunderstood my answer. The question concerns the standard to be set by my noble Friend for the controlling body to exercise when they are controlling commercial television.

Will the Minister say why, if sponsored television is such a good thing in itself, a code of this sort is at all necessary?

Because a pledge was given by the Government that if commercial television were established there would be some controlling body, and because we wish to carry out the pledge. If the right hon. Gentleman will study the code, then if he is fair-minded he will agree that it removes all his misgivings that commercial television must lead to a debasement of standards.

Do we understand that this code submitted by the associations has the approval of the Assistant Postmaster-General?

It is not a question of my approval or non-approval. The code is submitted to my noble Friend and he proposes to make use of it when he is setting out the duties and responsibilities of the controlling body.

Is the Minister aware that there is no system of enforcement even suggested in the proposals made by the advertising associations? Is he further aware that the code is less strict than that of the United States and is likely to prove just as much eyewash here as it has proved there?

Before the hon. Gentleman makes such very sweeping statements about sanctions and control I suggest that he should await the full proposals about the powers as well as the responsibilities of the controlling body, which, in due course, we propose to lay before the House.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General how many telephones were newly installed in Southampton from April, 1952, to April, 1953; and how many applications for telephones are still outstanding.

945 telephones were installed during the year ended 31st March, 1953. At that date there were 1, 671 applications outstanding, including over 400 in course of provision.

Would the Minister say if those whose applications for telephones are still outstanding may expect to receive telephones before very long?

Additional equipment is being supplied and provided in three of the exchanges that serve Southampton this year and, by the end of this year, there should be an appreciable reduction in the waiting list. In the other three exchanges additional equipment will be supplied next year.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if he will arrange for lighting the telephone kiosk at Eton Wick, Buckinghamshire.

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Is it not an abuse of the rights of hon. Members to ask Questions regarding such trivial details affecting the day-to-day administration of such a minute area when much more important questions about other nationalised industries cannot be asked?

That is not a point of order. It is for the hon. Member to judge the relevance and importance of his Question.

The answer to the Question is, "Yes, Sir." The work has already been started.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that I would not have raised this trivial question were it not for the fact that local representations were made more than a year ago? May I congratulate the Minister on having now started this operation?

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what steps he will take to expedite the improvement of the telephone exchanges in the Whitchurch and Rhiwbina areas of Glamorgan, and the provision of telephones in those areas.

Since my hon. Friend's Question on 17th December last, there has been steady progress in overtaking arrears, and the waiting list for telephones has been reduced by 204. I wish it were possible to decrease the waiting list still more quickly. The limiting factor here, as elsewhere, is the amount of capital resources which can be devoted to telephone extension.

Can my hon. Friend say anything about the improvement of existing exchanges?

I think the hon. Member is concerned about the exchange at Whitchurch. There was faulty service— the service deteriorated for a short time —because there was a very extensive plan of cable laying going on.

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General what extra expense and staff would be involved in providing Anmer village sub-post office with money order facilities.

About £6 a year, assuming that the number of transactions was small.

Will my hon. Friend reconsider his decision not to extend these facilities to this post office, particularly in view of the fact that I have forwarded to him a petition from the majority of the parishioners who are most desirous of having this facility?

I will certainly do that. But I must point out to my hon. and gallant Friend that if we extended these facilities to all villages of this size—and it would be difficult to refuse to do so— it would cost £150, 000 to £200, 000 per year.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air the total maintenance expenditure on airfields constructed in Great Britain for the United States Air Force during the years 1951–52 and 1952–53; what are the estimates for 1953–54; and what proportion of this expenditure has been borne by the United States Government.

The United States Government are bearing the whole cost of work done since 1st July, 1951. The figures requested are £850, 000, £900, 000 and £1, 300, 000, respectively.

In view of the fact that our own housing programme and factory development is being thwarted by lack of supplies of cement and other materials, would the Minister put it to the United States that it might be helpful if they brought some of the material for the construction of these aerodromes from the United States and thus left more material for our own essential purposes?

This is all part of the defence programme and it does not interfere with our housing programme.

Could not the Minister in future, in Vote 8, in presenting the House with the Air Estimates, include these figures rather than put in parenthesis the fact that these costs are included in the overall set of figures? Could he do that for the benefit and information of the House?

I will certainly take advice on that and consider it, but of course it is only an estimate.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Air the total capital expenditure on construction of airfields in Great Britain for the United States Air Force in the years 1951–52 and 1952–53; what are the estimates for 1953–54; and what proportion of this expenditure has been borne by the United States Government.

The figures are £9 million, £11 million and £22 million, respectively. The United States Government are bearing about half the cost for the first two years and will probably bear nearly three-quarters of the cost in 1953–54.

asked the Undersecretary of State for Air how many National Service men, desiring to enter the Royal Air Force during the 12 months ended 30th April, 1953, were accepted for service; and how many were rejected.

In this period 33, 264 young men who wished to do their National Service in the Royal Air Force were accepted for the statutory period of two years, and 45, 431 were rejected, about one-third of them on medical grounds.

Is the Minister aware that this is a startling number of rejections? Is he further aware that these rejections are very discouraging to the A.T.C. as an organisation and to the young men concerned, many of whom are members of the A.T.C?

I know there are a lot of rejections, but entry into the Royal Air Force for National Service is competitive and far more people want to enter than we can take. We are therefore able to take only the best.

Will the hon. Member be quite fair to the House over this matter? When 45, 000 men who are called up are rejected by the R.A.F., is there not some other reason for the rejection? Is it not true to say that the R.A.F. generally do not require men for only two years' service and try to persuade them to join up as Regulars, and that when they refuse to do so they are transferred to the Army? Is not that the case?

No, it is not. I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that that is not true. As I said, we are entitled to pick only the best when so many boys want to get into the Air Force and we cannot take them all. We have to reject those we do not want.

Is it not true that this allegation was made: that under the call-up for the three Services the Admiralty want very few, the Army want most and the Royal Air Force want a modicum of the number; and that the R.A.F. do not require such a large number of two-year men but want men to join up as Regulars? Is not that the position?

Of course we want men to join as Regulars, if they will join. We welcome them if they will join as Regulars.

Is the Minister fair in this matter? Have I not sent him a case of a man who wanted to enlist for three years, was sent to a camp in England and, because he would not enlist for five years, was put on the road, given no warrant, and compelled to walk home?

I find that very hard to believe. Of course there are certain trades in which it takes so long to teach a man that it is not worth teaching him that trade if he stays for only two years, because we do not get any productive service out of him. Certain trades of that sort must therefore be reserved for people who are prepared to stay longer. There is nothing unfair about that.

asked the Undersecretary of State for Air what conditions National Service men must fulfil, and what qualifications they must possess, before they are accepted into the Royal Air Force for the statutory two-year period of service.

There is keen competition among young men to carry out their National Service in the Royal Air Force. We can, therefore, accept only those who on the basis of personal interviews, experience, ability tests and their medical examination appear to us most suitable to fill the vacancies which exist at the time.

Is the Minister aware that my right hon. Friend is perfectly correct when he says that recruiting officers are telling recruits that they must join for three years if they want to join the R.A.F., and that they are persuading them to join for three years? Is he further aware that this causes very great difficulty and embarrassment to these boys of 18, because, when they get back to their homes, they find that their civilian jobs are not open to them after service for three years? Will he make that known to the general public, and also make known what the conditions are, in order to avoid unnecessary travel and the waste of time and money in going to recruiting centres?

Recruiting officers do not persuade men to join for three years, but they would obviously be very bad recruiting officers if they did not point out to the men the advantages of doing so. There are many advantages. There are advantages in pay and leave periods, and a wider choice of trades, and many men, having had this pointed out to them, prefer to go in for three years. We have been very careful in every case to ask these people not to give up their civilian jobs until they are certain that they have been enlisted.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that recruiting officers have nothing to do with it at all? The men who are called up do not go before recruiting officers. They are called up, and when they are told there is no room for their services in the Air Force, they are asked to join up as Regulars, which the recruiting officer, I agree, has a perfect right to do. If they refuse, are they not told that their only course is to join the Army, which they do not wish to do?

Certainly, when they arrive, they are interviewed by a recruiting officer. They also have to pass the ability tests, and, according to the results obtained from the ability tests and as a result of conversation and consideration of their previous experience and so on, we can then tell what trades they are able to do. If they are able to do the trade of their choice, then they are perfectly happy, but, if they are not able to do the trade of their choice, they can either come in for a longer period and do a more interesting trade, or they can say "I am sorry, I only want to come in for two years," when we cannot accept them, and so they have to go into the Army.

asked the Minister of Civil Aviation how far the plans for the development of Prestwick Airport have been advanced.

Plans for a new runway at Prestwick are well advanced, and my right hon. Friend hopes shortly to be able to announce when work can proceed.

May we expect a full answer from the Minister if I put down a Question after Whitsun; and, in the meantime, could he say if most of the major difficulties which have been created by the proposed plans for the development of the airport have now been overcome?

In answer to the first part of the Question, may I say that if the hon. Gentleman puts down a Question shortly, my right hon. Friend hopes to be able to make a full reply? In answer to the second part of the Question, as the hon. Gentleman knows, there are a great number of difficulties to be overcome, and they are at present under consideration by the Department of Health for Scotland and the local authorities. It is because they have made some headway that I gave the answer I have just given.

Will the hon. Gentleman indicate to the House what the proposed new development will cost ultimately? Has he any estimate of the total cost?

Perhaps the hon. Gentleman will await the statement which my right hon. Friend hopes to make shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many countries, apart from Denmark, have now notified the United Nations Convention relating to the status of refugees.

Apart from Denmark, Norway is the only country which has ratified the Convention so far.

Could the hon. Gentleman say what steps are being taken by our own Government to encourage the ratification and to do so by setting an example ourselves, in view of the long time that has elapsed since the decision to ratify and actual ratification?

I quite agree with the hon. Gentleman that a considerable time has elapsed, and I will certainly look into this matter again. We are consulting with the Governments of the overseas territories for whose international relations we are responsible to make quite sure that we can ratify subject to the minimum amount of reservations in accordance with Article 42 of the Convention. We should like to ratify, but we want to do so with the minimum of reservations.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will propose to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that he should make inquiries in 'respect of the 8, 000-10, 000 European refugees who settled in China; and make representations to the Chinese People's Republic with a view to their assistance or transference to other countries.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees already has full information about the European refugees in China, and is doing all he can to help them. I have discussed personally with the High Commissioner the question of resettling these refugees, and he is considering various possibilities.

Can we have an assurance that everything is being done helpfully to deal with these most unfortunate people?

Yes, Sir; I can certainly give that assurance. I can also say that we have made a little progress in this matter, but I do not want to raise too many hopes, for fear that we may not be able to bring them to fruition.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what information he has received from the United Nations in Korea about the number of MiG fighters that have reached South Korea since the 100, 000 dollar offer was made by the United Nations Command.

None, Sir.

Does the hon. Gentleman mean to say that there has been no response from Soviet pilots to this 100, 000 dollar offer? Would he give some explanation, and could he further teil us if he has received a protest from Mr. Chiang Kai-shek about the Prime Minister's statement that it is better to be bribed than to be killed, because of the devastating effect it has had on Chiang Kai-shek's Army?

It would appear that, so far, there has been no response to the offer made by the United Nations Command, but, of course, hope springs eternal.

asked the Minister of Food how much bacon he is buying from Canada this year; and how much Canadian cheese and butter he proposes to buy.

No purchases of Canadian bacon or butter have been made this year but 2, 300 tons of Canadian cheese were bought last January. It is unlikely that more dollars will be available for the purchase of any of these products this year.

May we take it that, as opportunity occurs and we have more dollars, we shall seek to restore the traditional trade with Canada in these foods?

I appreciate my hon. Friend's point, but I think he will realise that it is essentially a matter of dollars.

In view of the fact that the British public last year had 81, 000 tons of butter less than they had in 1951, does not the hon. Gentleman think that it is time that the Ministry bucked up their ideas and made available to the people in 1953 the same amount of butter that they had in the last year of the Labour Government?

It is also true that, in 1951, the butter issued was substantially in excess of that received, the balance being taken out of stock, and that last year we took occasion to rebuild those stocks.

asked the Minister of Food the average price now being paid for imported barley compared with 1939.

Present c.i.f. prices range between £21 and £26 10s. per ton according to source, quality and position. In 1939, they ranged between £4 10s. and £5 5s. per ton.

In view of the fact that the hon. Gentleman's statement reveals that barley is now more than four times the price it was pre-war, will the Minister take this matter into full consideration in the examination which he is making in regard to the export price of whisky, because whisky has gone up by only 1s. 8d. a bottle?

All relevant facts will be taken into account, but I would remind the right hon. Gentleman, as I told him on Monday, that imported barley is not used for whisky, and, in fact, last year, only 4 per cent. of our imported barley came from dollar countries.

Of course, I understand that perfectly well, but, surely, the Parliamentary Secretary understands that, if home-produced barley was not used for whisky, he would not have to import any?

I would remind the right hon. Gentleman that the allegations which he made in 1947 and 1949, and which were rejected by his right hon. Friend the Member for Dundee, West (Mr. Strachey), are being re-examined afresh at his request, and I suggest that he might content himself with that for the moment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is yet in a position to make a comprehensive statement on the troubles in Kenya.

As the House is aware, my right hon. Friend leaves for a short visit to Kenya today and, pending his return, I have nothing to add to the statement he made on 29th April.

Is not the Colonial Office keeping in constant touch with this life and death struggle in Kenya, and does the Minister realise that it is his duty to keep the House fully informed about what is happening there?

I can assure the hon. and learned Gentleman that we are keeping fully in touch. My right hon. Friend is going out there and has undertaken to do certain things during this visit. I am sure it would be wiser to avoid making any further statement until he gets back?

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies on what grounds Mr. Peter Evans, a London barrister, has been ordered to leave Kenya.

Mr. Evans has been required to leave Kenya, firstly, because he contravened the condition of his visitor's pass by practising his profession in Kenya, and secondly, because he has been deemed an undesirable immigrant.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that Mr. Peter Evans was informed yesterday by the immigration authorities that he has not been guilty of this contravention since he was paid no fee for his services, and will the Minister say what are the undesirable things which Mr. Evans has done while he has been in Kenya?

With regard to the first part of the hon. Gentleman's supplementary, the fact is that Mr. Evans on arrival on a visitor's pass applied to the Chief Justice for permission to practice, and did not disclose the terms of his entry pass which did not entitle him to do so. This was eventually brought to the notice of the Chief Justice who withdrew Mr. Evan's pass on 9th May, and that, as far as I know, is the position. As regards the question of his being an undesirable immigrant, there is no doubt that since his arrival in the Colony he has been engaged in activities of a sort which could only be regarded as subversive.

What are they?

It is known that he urged Odede to persuade members of the Luo tribe to strike or leave their employment, in order, as he put it, "To bring the Europeans to their knees." There is no doubt that he has done tremendous harm to our cause and set us back several months.

Is the Minister aware that the only important activity of Mr. Evans, apart from his appearance in court, was that he reported incidents in which he thought there had been conduct which was not desirable from some of the forces engaged in crushing Mau Mau and which had also been commented upon by responsible observers before and after. Would the right hon. Gentleman clear up the point, which disturbs the public mind, that Mr. Evans has been described as an undesirable immigrant and asked to leave the country because he has called attention to acts which other responsible people from Kenya and responsible newspapers have also noted?

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising that point. There is no connection whatever between the decision to cancel Mr. Evans's visitor's pass and his recent report to the Governor of the alleged malpractices of the Security Forces. The decision to cancel the pass was taken on 4th May by the Governor, before he received Mr. Evans's report and on the advice of the Principal Immigration Officer four days earlier. It was subsequently confirmed by the Executive Council which, as the right hon. Gentleman knows, includes Asiatic representatives.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he has considered the deliberations of the recent South Pacific Conference at Noumea about the problem of over-population and the suggestion from the Gilbert and Ellice Islands that people should be educated in voluntary family limitation; and if he will suggest to all Colonies that this problem should be considered by them with a view to overcoming widespread poverty and in many cases impending famine.

Comment on the Second South Pacific Conference would be premature until its proceedings have been considered and referred to member Governments by the South Pacific Commission, to which the Conference is an auxiliary body. I do not think that any general exhortation to Colonial Governments is necessary.

Does not the Minister realise that this question of over-population is one of the fundamental problems of the Commonwealth, that it can only be solved by the people themselves, and that they must discuss it if they are to solve it?

I am fully aware that it is a social and economic problem in many of the Colonies. It is above all the responsibility of the local Government who are usually sympathetic to any plans of this sort, but the initiative is really for the people themselves.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement about the assault on Mr. C. Guimgam, chairman of the Hong Kong Football Association, which resulted in Mr. Guimgam's death; and what action has been taken by the Government of Hong Kong.

The circumstances of Mr. Guimgam's death are still sub judice and my right hon. Friend could not properly anticipate the inquiry by a magistrate which begins in Hong Kong on 18th May.

May we take it that in due course, if a Question is put down, the information will be supplied?

Certainly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what action has been taken on the Fiji Legislative Council's request of last December for a commission of inquiry to be sent out from the United Kingdom to inquire into the Colony's population question.

My right hon. Friend has received a despatch from the Governor which he is now considering.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will make a statement upon the progress that has been made in primary, middle and secondary school education in the Gold Coast; and what has been done to provide teachers and buildings for the increased number of children in the schools.

As the reply is inevitably long and contains many figures, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.