asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) the aggregate amounts of loan and share capital, respectively, which his Department has permitted United Kingdom registered and controlled mining companies, operating overseas, to raise in the United Kingdom for existing or new overseas mining ventures during the period 1946–51;(2) the aggregate amounts of loan and share capital, respectively, which his Department has permitted United Kingdom registered companies, controlled and operating overseas, to raise in the United Kingdom for existing or new overseas mining ventures during the period 1946–51;(3) the aggregate amounts of loan and share capital, respectively, which his Department has permitted mining finance houses, controlling mining companies overseas, to raise in the United Kingdom for existing or new overseas mining ventures during the period 1946–51.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the aggregate amounts of loan and share capital, respectively, which his Department has permitted United Kingdom registered mining investment-holding companies, controlling mining companies operating overseas, to raise in the United Kingdom for existing or new overseas mining ventures during the period 1946–51.

It would, I fear, not be possible to supply the relevant information without a disproportionate expenditure of time and effort.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the continued drop in cinema attendances and his assurance to keep under review the incidence of Entertainments Duty, he will, in future, publish monthly returns showing the figures for Entertainments Duty in respect of cinema attendances in 1953, as compared with 1952.

Monthly receipts of Entertainments Duty from cinema admissions are already published in the Monthly Digest of Statistics together with corresponding figures for the preceding 24 months.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a table in HANSARD showing the amounts of Government expenditure on scientific research, on technical education and on the study of industrial techniques and management, for each of the years from 1945 until the latest stated date.

Estimated expenditure on research and development for the years 1948–49 to 1953–54 is contained in the Appendix to the Vote for Grants for Science and the Arts in Class IV of the Civil Estimates for each of those years. I would also draw the hon. Member's attention to the notes at the end of this Appendix. I regret that the other information for which he asks is not available without a disproportionate expenditure of time and labour.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the national income was represented by local rate revenues for each of the years 1947 to 1952.

The percentage of the gross national product represented by revenues from local rates is as follows:

	Per cent.
1947	3·3
1948	3·1
1949	3·0
1950	2·9
1951	2·9
1952	2·9

The figures from which these percentages are derived are stated in Preliminary Estimates of National Income and Expenditure 1948–52 (Cmd. 8803) and in National Income and Expenditure 1946–51.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of a successful building experiment being carried out at Stockton-on-Tees which has enabled the provision of modern cooking, heating and bathroom amenities in old but sound premises which

Financial Year	Estimated product of a penny rate				Amount of rates estimated to be collected per head of population
	England	Wales	Scotland	Great Britain	England		Wales		Scotland		Great Britain
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£	s.	£	s.	£	s.	£	s.
1951–52	1,289	50	198	1,537	7	5	5	2	6	19	7	2
1952–53	1,310	51	204	1,565	7	13	5	11	8	7	7	12

My right hon. Friend is aware of this scheme, which was carried out with the aid of an improvement grant under the Housing Act, 1949. He is convinced that there is great scope for improvements of this kind all over the country, and is considering ways and means of encouraging more applications for improvement grants.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will give the total expenditure incurred by Government funds in respect of the new towns since the inception of the New Towns Act, 1946.

Expenditure under the Act totals £55,741,000.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what proportion of the labour force on sisal estates in Tanganyika is on short-term labour contracts and what proportion is family labour that has volunteered to settle on the estates.

,pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 6th May, 1953; Vol. 515, c. 377] supplied the following information;Approximately 75 per cent. of the labour on sisal estates is on short-term contract. The period of engagement ranges from one card of 30 working days up to one year.Married labour which has settled on the estates is about 25 per cent. of the total labour force but on certain estates the proportion of permanently settled labour is as high as 50 per cent.Government policy is to encourage Africans leaving their homes to seek work to take their families with them if they wish so to do. This policy was enunciated at the beginning of 1952 and there is evidence that it is having effect.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what official committees are now sitting and functioning with regard to economic and political reforms in East Africa and how many members of such committees are, respectively, of European, African, and Asian origin.

,pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 6th May, 1953; Vol. 515, c. 377] supplied the following list of official committees now sitting and functioning to deal with economic and political reforms in East Africa.KENYA(

asked the Minister of Labour the number of persons male and female, respectively, and in age groups, unemployed on 1st June, 1953, at each of the Ferndale, Porth, Tonypandy and Treorchy exchanges.

Employment Exchange	Males					Females
	Under 20	20 and under 40	40 and under 55	55 and over	Total	Under 20	20 and under 40	40 and under 55	55 and over	Total
Ferndale	7	65	91	87	250	9	21	15	2	47
Porth	5	61	61	61	188	3	13	24	1	41
Tonypandy and Y.E.O.	23	70	119	178	390	36	89	51	13	189
Treorchy	7	75	145	170	397	5	50	47	13	115
The figures exclude persons registered as temporarily stopped. The total number in that category at the four employment exchanges was 20.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of unemployed at each of the Ferndale, Porth, Tonypandy and Treorchy exchanges on 1st June, 1953, who have signed the disabled register; and how this figure compares with that of 1951–52.

Employment Exchange	Date (1)	Suitable for ordinary employment (3)	Classified as unlikely to obtain employment except under sheltered conditions (4)	Total (5)
Ferndale	21st May, 1951	225	18	243
	19th May, 1952	187	25	212
	18th May, 1953	176	19	195
Porth	21st May, 1951	154	30	184
	19th May, 1952	166	38	204
	18th May, 1953	119	39	158
Tonypandy (including Youth Employment Office)	21st May, 1951	318	30	348
	19th May, 1952	264	31	295
	18th May, 1953	209	23	232
Treorchy	21st May, 1951	244	38	282
	19th May, 1952	237	39	276
	18th May, 1953	231	31	262

asked the Minister of Labour the number of disabled persons employed at the Remploy Factory, Porth, in 1951–52 and the latest available date.

Figures are not available for 1st June, 1953, but the following table shows the numbers of wholly unemployed persons on the registers of the Ferndale, Porth, Tonypandy and Treorchy employment exchanges and the Tonypandy youth employment office at 15th June, 1953.

The number of registered disabled persons who are unemployed at 18th May, 1953, the latest date for which figures are available, together with the numbers at the corresponding dates in 1952 and 1951 is:

The number of severely disabled persons employed at the Remploy Factory, Porth, was as follows:

May, 1951	100
May, 1952	95
May, 1953	85

asked the Minister of Labour what has been the cost per head in operating the Remploy Factory at Porth, together with the annual loss; and to what factors the loss may be attributed.

It would not be in the best interests either of Remploy Limited or of the disabled employees that information about the operating costs of individual factories should be published. The profit or loss on any factory varies from time to time according to the trading position.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he has approved Inverness County Council's application for a grant towards the cost of construction of the proposed road at Claddach Carinish, Isle of North Uist; and when the work is expected to start.

I have not yet approved this application, but the matter will be dealt with as quickly as possible after the receipt of certain essential information which has been sought from the council. I am unable to say when the county

YEARS ENDED 15TH MAY
£ thousand
——					1949–50	1950–51	1951–52
Capital Receipts
Loans	…	…	…	…	39,123	42,322	51,087
Government grants	…	…	…	…	1,403	1,599	2,481
Sales and other sources	…	…	…	…	1,239	983	1,896
Total	…	…	…	…	41,765	44,904	55,464
Other Income
Rates	…	…	…	…	30,789	32,348	37,150
Payments in lieu of rates—Part V—Local Government Act, 1948	…	…	…	…	1,076	1,084	1,134
Government grants	…	…	…	…	36,815	39,101	44,521
Housing: Rents, etc.*	…	…	…	…	8,363	8,909	9,860
Revenue-producing undertakings*		…	…	…	12,782	12,699	11,844
Miscellaneous income	…	…	…	…	8,651	7,486	9,734
Total	…	…	…	…	98,476	101,627	114,243
Total Income	…	…	…	…	140,241	146,531	169,707
* Gross income apart from rates and grants.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the expenditure of local authorities, other than out of loans for

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the approximate starting date for the water supply scheme for North Uist island; and what the position is regarding the water supply scheme for the northern part of the Isle of Barra.

It is expected that work on the North Uist scheme will start in the late autumn of this year and on the North Barra scheme in the spring of next year.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the income of local authorities, classified according to source, for the years 1949–50, 1950–51 and 1951–52, ended 15th May in each case.

The estimated income of Scottish local authorities in the years referred to, so far as separate figures are available, according to source, was as follows:capital works, under the usual headings for the years 1949–50, 1950–51 and 1951–52, ended 15th May in each case.

The estimated expenditure of local authorities in Scotland, other

YEARS ENDED 15TH MAY
£ thousand
——				1949–50	1950–51	1951–52
Housing	…	…	…	14,926	16,675	19,012
Revenue-producing undertakings	…	…	…	15,073	15,177	16,103
All other purposes	…	…	…	68,175	71,633	81,035
Total	…	…	…	98,174	103,485	116,150
Details of the expenditure by services are not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the income of local authorities from Government grants, classified according to services, for the years 1949–50, 1950–51 and 1951–52, ended 15th May in each case.

YEARS ENDED 15TH MAY
£ thousand
——				1949–50	1950–51	1951–52
Allocated to specific services:
Education	…	…	…	20,954	22,144	25,527
Local health authority services	…	…	…	1,210	1,531	1,661
Children	…	…	…	386	476	575
Housing	…	…	…	4,869	5,108	5,640
Roads and bridges	…	…	…	1,900	1,857	2,415
Fire service	…	…	…	224	303	341
Police	…	…	…	2,377	2,558	2,934
Other services	…	…	…	879	1,083	2,050
Not allocated to specific services (a):
Equalisation and transitional grants under the Local Government Act, 1948	…	…	…	5,419	5,640	5,859
Total	…	…	…	38,218	40,700	47,002
(a) Grants in lieu of rates on Government property are regarded as rate income and are not included in this table.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the figures, from 1948, for rates and for grants, respectively, embodied in the consolidated figure for both given in Appendix II to Command Paper 8813 of 1953.

As some local authorities do not receive Exchequer equalisation grant, and as the proportion of expenditure met from the grant varies in the case of those authorities who do receive it, I regret that the information asked for by my hon. and gallant Friend cannot be made available.

The income of local authorities in Scotland, in the years referred to, from Government grants (including grants in respect of capital works) was as follows:

asked the Minister of Materials if he will have a comprehensive investigation made of the mineral resources of the Highlands and Islands with a view to determining how far their exploitation is commercially possible.

No. The evidence available on the mineral resources of the Scottish Highlands and Islands does not appear to justify the cost of a comprehensive survey. Nor do I know of any evidence as to any particular locality which would prima facie suggest that the expenditure of public money on a local survey would be justified.