asked the Minister of Food why the Commonwealth share of United Kingdom imports of wheat decreased considerably in 1954, compared with 1953; and what representations have been received from Canada and Australia about this decrease.

Largely because of the heavy disposals of Commonwealth wheat and flour stocks bought by the Government in earlier years, and partly because of the excellent home harvest in 1954. We are in constant touch with the Governments of Canada and Australia and are fully aware of their points of view on this question.

asked the Minister of Food if he is aware of the: tactics of auctioneers who force up retail prices and take advantage of the guaranteed prices scheme to buy at low prices, and that certain Scottish butchers are advising housewives not to buy butchers' meat for this reason; and if he will take steps to stop this middleman exploitation.

My right hon. Friend has received no evidence to suggest that the auction market system is working badly but I will gladly investigate any information that the hon. Lady may be able to provide.

asked the Minister of Food if he is aware that tea has increased in price by 3s. 4d. per lb. since derationing, and that butchers' meat has increased by 4d. and 6d. per lb. this month; and whether he is now prepared to re-impose controlled ceiling prices on these commodities.

The price of tea has increased because world demand exceeds world supply. The price of butchers' meat has increased in the last few weeks primarily because of the seasonal decline in home production and the public desire to purchase fresh home-killed meat. There is, however, plenty of imported meat. As the reimposition of price control would require the reintroduction of rationing and distribution controls, the answer to the second part of the Question is "No."

asked the Minister of Food whether he can now state when the Inter-Departmental Committee's Report on Slaughterhouses will be published.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend gave to the hon. Member for Dart-ford (Mr. Dodds) on 20th December, 1954.

asked the Minister of Supply if he is aware that the United States Press in December published reports of the de Havilland air-to-air missiles using an infra-red target-seeing guidance device, together with the name of the fighter aircraft in which this device is likely to be installed; and what representations he has made about this contravention of British security regulations.

Yes. I have ordered an investigation to be made into the origin of the report, whose accuracy I am not prepared, for reasons of security, either to confirm or to deny; in the meantime, the question of making representations in any quarter does not arise.

asked the Minister of Supply what arrangements are being made for the resumption of work on the Comet aircraft.

I would ask the hon. Member to await the statement arising out of Lord Cohen's report, which my right hon. Friend the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation hopes to make shortly.

asked the Minister of Health the total acreage of farms operated by hospitals in England and Wales.

About 40,000 acres.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that hospital management committees are being increasingly forced to use free moneys for essential capital work such as sanitary annexes and heating installations because of the inadequacy of capital allocations; and to what extent he has approved this practice.

I see no objection of principle to the use of non-Exchequer funds for such work.

asked the Minister of Health how many hospitals in England and Wales are now allowing the daily visiting of children by their parents; and whether he is satisfied that every effort is being made to facilitate this visiting.

My latest information is that of 1,362 hospitals admitting children, 852 (or 62½ per cent.) allow daily visiting, compared with less than 25 per cent. in 1952. Many others allow visiting on at least three days a week. I am not dissatisfied with the progress being made.

asked the Minister of Health (1) if he will take steps to ensure that, before further clinical experiments on children are undertaken, the nature of such experiments is reported to his Department, so that his medical staff can ensure that there are adequate safeguards against harmful effects;(2) if he will issue a directive to hospital management committees on the ethical principles which should govern the conduct of clinical experiments, with particular reference to the importance of securing the consent of the patient.

:Only the clinician in charge of each patient can say what safeguards are needed. I do not think, therefore, that directives or detailed controls would help in this matter; but I am sure that all concerned will take note of the answers given to the hon. Member on 7th February and today.

asked the Minister of Health over how many children between the ages of two and 16 who are termed to be spastics in the county of Derby the Sheffield Regional Hospital Board operates; how many homes for such children the Board controls; in how many registered certified private homes they have Derbyshire children; how many of the homes are inside the region; and how many children have been taken into the homes for a temporary period so that the parents could have a rest or holiday.

:The information asked for in the first part of the Question is not available. The board controls no institutions for spastic children only, but such children as are also mentally defective are, where necessary, admitted to mental deficiency hospitals. The Board sends mentally defective children from Derbyshire, some of whom may be spastic, to one privately-owned certified institution, which is within the region. A considerable number of mentally-defective children have been admitted temporarily to hospitals in the region; but I cannot say how many, if any, of them have been spastics.

asked the Minister of Health to what extent the use of analgesia is now customary with confinements in hospitals; what recent report he has received respecting its efficacy; and what experiments are now taking place in respect of improvements in the employment of analgesia or a superior substitute.

No special information is available about use in hospitals. The most recent development in this field is the use of trilene, which can now be administered by midwives in accordance with rules just made by the Central Mid-wives' Board.

asked the Minister of Health to what extent mental hospital facilities will be improved in Birmingham under the expanded scheme of hospital expenditure; and what extensions and improvements have been approved or are under consideration for 1955 at Hollymoor Hospital and other Birmingham mental hospitals.

As I told the House on Wednesday, a new mental hospital near Wolverhampton is planned for inclusion in the new programme, but until I have the regional hospital board's proposals I cannot say what other mental hospital schemes will be included. Four schemes at three of the Birmingham mental hospitals, including 80 more beds at Hollymoor Hospital, are already in progress or expected to start in 1955–56.

asked the Minister of Health why the number oil beds in hospitals within the area of the Sunderland Management Committee, unoccupied owing to shortage of nursing staff, has increased from 28 on 1st April, 1952, to 44 at present.

:The figures quoted by the hon. Member are not comparable. In April, 1952, there were in the group 80 beds unavailable for various reasons, including 28 for lack of nursing staff. The comparable figures for the present time are 44 and none.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will increase the capital allocation of the Newcastle Regional Hospital Board for the year 1955–56 to enable it to carry out urgent repairs and alterations for which plans are available.

I would refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave him on 6th December.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will make a further statement on the recruitment of sanitary inspectors, in view of the shortage of qualified men to undertake their present and future added duties.

My right hon. Friend's consultations regarding the recommendations of the Working Party on the recruitment, training and qualification of sanitary inspectors are still proceeding and he is not yet in a position to make any further statement.

asked the Minister of Health what proposals for the installation of radio-telephone equipment in county ambulances have been submitted to him by the Staffordshire health authority; and why he has refused to accept these proposals.

The authority has submitted a scheme to operate from nine fixed stations. My right hon. Friend is advised that so large a number of stations is operationally unsound and extravagant. He is prepared to consider revised proposals.

asked the Minister of Health what proportion of the residents of London were notified as suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis during the last convenient 12 months; and what proportion of immigrants from Ireland were notified as suffering from the same disease during the same period.

During 1954, 4,421 cases were notified in London, giving a provisional rate of 133 per 100,000 population. I regret that the information asked for in the second part of the Question is not available.

asked the Minister of Health what arrangements exist whereby school medical officers or medical officers of health receive information of abscesses and glandular swellings resulting from the B.C.G. inoculation of school-leavers; and whether he will devise a scheme which would ensure that complete information reaches the authorities responsible for the B.C.G. inoculation scheme.

Vaccinated children are seen by medical officers after a suitable interval; in addition local health authorities have been advised to inform the parents that they should see the school medical officer or chest physician if they are anxious about the condition of the vaccinated arm.

asked the Minister of Health with what countries, both inside and outside the Commonwealth, reciprocal arrangements exist for health service.

Following is the information:1.

asked the Minister of Health where the pilot study of urinary excretion of fluoride in children in this country was made; the date of it; how many children were examined; their ages; and whether he will publish full details of the study and of the conclusions reached from it.

:The pilot study of urinary excretion was made in London during 1953 and 1954 and 36 children up to the age of 12 were under examination. It confirmed the results obtained in the United States and New Zealand and made it clear that more extensive studies were unnecessary. Under the circumstances I do not propose to publish the results.

asked the Minister of Health what arrangements have been made after fluoridation is begun in Anglesey to ensure that consecutive records of the fluorine content of urine of children and adults in the fluoridated area and in the control area are kept; how many persons will be kept under observation; and where necessary chemical tests will be made.

It was not envisaged that such examinations should be made generally after fluoridation had started. The Mission which studied fluoridation in North America only raised the question of urinary examinations in connection with the preliminary assessment of the right amount to be added.

asked the Minister of Health what factors have caused the increase in the number of persons suffering from tuberculosis in the County Borough of Sunderland from 839 at 31st December, 1951, to 1,695 at 31st December, 1954.

As I have already informed the hon. Member, the figure for 31st December, 1951, was 1,618 not 839. The slight rise since then does not necessarily indicate an increase in the number of persons suffering from tuberculosis but may be due to improvements in the ascertainment of cases by such means as contact tracing, increased use of mass X-ray facilities and better diagnosis.

asked the Minister of Health the number of cases of poliomyelitis in the West Riding of Yorkshire during 1954; and whether this figure is more or less than that for the previous year.

The number of cases notified in the West Riding of Yorkshire (including the county boroughs) was 141; this was 98 less than in 1953.

asked the Attorney-General the average time now taken by Her Majesty's Land Registry to complete the registration of a transfer of registered land; and how that average compares with previous recent years.

I regret that I cannot give the precise information sought by my hon. Friend as no separate records are kept of the time taken to complete the registration of transfers. My hon. Friend will recognise that some delay is inevitable in view of the very great increase in the number of dealings in property and the difficulty of recruiting staff. My noble Friend the Lord Chancellor is of course anxious to improve the position and efforts are being made to overcome the staffing difficulties. Whenever it is necessary to complete a registration without delay, the case is given special attention and the registration expedited.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what increases in National Assistance allow- ances have been made to residents at an address in London, E.C.1, of which he has been informed, in respect of increased rent demands.

Increased allowances for rent are in payment in five cases, one increase of 3s. a week, two of 3s. 6d., one of 4s. 6d., and one of 6s.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what action he proposes to take concerning Raynaud's Phenomenon being prescribed under the Industrial Injuries Act, 1946, following the report of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council.

I have decided to accept the advice of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council that Raynaud's Phenomenon should not be prescribed.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance the percentage, as related to the total population, of retired pensioners in Monmouthshire; and the comparative percenage for England and Wales.

I regret that as information about the number of retirement pensioners is not available for particular counties it is not possible to make the comparison for which the hon. Member asks.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance the entitlement to war disablement pension of civilians who were injured by enemy action; and how many persons have benefited thereby.

:The Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme made in 1939 provided for compensation for civilians in respect of disablement or death caused by enemy action or arising from Civil Defence duties during the war. The existing provisions are broadly speaking the same as those under the Royal Warrant for the private soldier and his dependants. About 30,700 disabled persons and 17,500 widows and dependants have received awards of pension under the Scheme.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance whether, in view of the difficulties of older people who are late entrants into insurance and who find it impossible to get employment in the late 60's and early 70's, he will consider granting unemployment benefit to these people to help them until they become entitled to their pension.

The arrangements for late age entrants to National Insurance in 1948 were carefully considered when the present scheme was introduced and I do not think they can be altered now.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will propose to the General Assembly of the United Nations Organisation that they should rescind the embargo on the export of rubber from Singapore and Malaya to China, in view of the fact that Britain's trade with China is increasing.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will invite a delegation of Russian Members of Parliament to visit this country, as guests of Her Majesty's Government, in return for their recent invitation extended to, and accepted by, British Members of Parliament.

This matter is still under consideration.

asked the Minister of Works whether he will arrange for pedestrian crossings in the Royal Parks.

:The proposal to have pedestrian crossings in the Royal Parks has been considered from time to time by my predecessors and rejected on various grounds. I propose to go into this question carefully myself with the authorities concerned.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if he will now give a publication date for the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Comet air accidents.

The report was published on 12th February.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he is aware that the lack of precise information as to what is to be the definite line of the Glyntaff-Pontypridd road diversion improvement on A470 is holding up factory development; and if he will cause the permanent improvement line to be brought to finality so that factory development in the area is not impeded.

:I see no reason why factory development should be held up since the line of the Glyntaff-Pontypridd road diversion has been established by an Order made under the Trunk Roads Act, 1946, in December, 1949, and my divisional road engineer is able to answer with sufficient precision questions about the effect of the proposed diversion on development.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what reduction has been made in the number of dockyard thefts reported to the police in England and Wales.

:I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister of Education the number of full-time school dentists in Wales on 1st January, 1949, 1951, and 1954, respectively.

On 1st January, 1949, 1951, and 1954 local education authorities in Wales were employing the equivalent of 61, 45 and 51 full-time dental officers respectively.

asked the Minister of Education if he is aware that some 60 children were unable to gain admission to Broadfield Infant and Junior School, Harlow, at the beginning of the present term and that special arrangements have been made to transport juniors to a neighbouring school; and whether he is satisfied with progress on the school buildings programme for this new town having regard to the abnormal percentage of young children arriving there.

:Yes, but the local education authority is well advanced with a proposal to provide additional school accommodation in this area. Taking the new town as a whole the local education authority is doing a good job in difficult circumstances. For example, two primary schools, each providing at least 560 places, were recently built in twelve months.

asked the Minister of Education the present density of the population of the new town of Harlow in the 0–4 age groups; and whether he is satisfied that the machinery for joint consultation between the local education authorities and the new town development corporation enables the former to be furnished at the earliest possible moment with figures of requirements for educational places in order that they may complete adequate building plans.

On 30th June last there were about 2,200 children below the age of five in houses provided by the new town corporation. I understand that machinery for joint consultation of the kind referred to in the question is working well.

asked the Minister of Education whether he will give his approval for the building of an additional school at New Harlow on part of the site of Netteswell Secondary Grammar School.

I shall consider promptly whatever proposal the Authority submit to me for extra school accommodation for this part of Harlow.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many Kikuyu people have been sentenced to death for receiving stolen property intended for Mau Mau terrorists; and how many of these have now been executed.

pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 8th December, 1954; Vol. 535, c. 44], supplied the following further information: None of the other three cases of offences against Kenya Emergency Regulation 8F (1) involved stolen property.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he has now made a decision about the quota of British films to be shown by exhibitors during the year beginning 1st October, 1955.

Yes. After consulting the Cinematograph Films Council, I have decided not to make any Order this year to amend the Cinematograph Films (Quotas) Amendment Order, 1950, but to leave the prescribed quotas at 30 per cent. for first-feature films and 25 per cent. for the supporting programme, for the exhibitors' quota year beginning 1st October, 1955.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government how many dwelling houses are still under requisition by the Government in Bristol; and what steps are being taken to restore them to their original owners at an early date.

At 31st December last, there were 666 properties accommodating 770 families, held under requisition in Bristol. With regard to the second part of the Question, I would ask the hon. Member to await the statements which will be made in the debate on the Requisitioned Houses and Housing (Amendment) Bill tomorrow.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government the total number of separate dwellings, as at the time of requisition, held on requisition by each Metropolitan borough council;

The information required, estimated from returns supplied by the local authorities concerned, is set out in the following table: