asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware of the present practice by which, when required to move from one point to another in busy towns, small parties of up to three soldiers are marched in single file along the highway under command of a non-commissioned officer; that this practice involves shouting orders, which is a nuisance to motorists, does not enhance the prestige of the Army nor encourage recruitment and whether he will therefore give orders that in such cases soldiers are to use the footpaths in the same way as civilians.

It has always been the practice for troops to march whilst on duty and they cannot usually do this on the pavement. I do not see that shouting orders need be a nuisance to motorists.

Is the Minister really saying that when, in a town like Woolwich, one or two soldiers have to go to another part of the town for a medical examination it is necessary to put another soldier in charge of them and to march them through the streets, which is a nuisance, I can assure him, to the public generally and to motorists? Will the right hon. Gentleman not go and have a look at the ludicrous situation that is created, which does not enhance the prestige of the Army?

It is very often not one or two but four, five or six, and our experience is that much the best way of getting soldiers to go a short distance is to march them and that a lot of time would be wasted if they went there under their own steam and were late. We are trying to get people through the streets as quickly as possible.

Is the Minister aware that I have had a letter from his Under-Secretary of State which states that from one to three are marched in single file and when there are four to six they are marched in double file? Why does the right hon. Gentleman say that this practice does not apply to one man when the Under-Secretary mentions from one to three?

I did not say that it does not apply to one man, but one man with a corporal is not likely to produce a traffic jam or frighten motorists.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many air compressor machines were offered for sale at Donnington on 27th February; the total purchase price; how many were sold at the auction; how the price realised per machine compares with the cost price; for what purpose the machines were purchased; and how they have been utilised.

None, Sir.

Can the Minister deny that since January, 1955, 1,100,000 gallons of paint have been taken into stock by his Department?

Wrong Question.

I am sorry.

asked the Secretary of State for War the estimated cost of the Military Tattoo to be held in Bermuda from 17th to 21st April, 1956.

The Government of Bermuda are organising this Tattoo and will meet the expenses of any British troops taking part. No charge will fall on Army funds.

asked the Secretary of State for War the present weekly cost of maintaining a National Service man in this country and overseas, respectively.

On average £6 8s. 0d. and £9 10s. 0d. respectively.

Does the right hon. Gentleman not recognise that those figures are lower than those which he gave two years ago? How does it come about that it now takes less to maintain a National Service man? In any case, is the cost not more than it costs to maintain a technological student, and would it not be a good thing to reduce this expenditure?

That opens up the whole question of Her Majesty's Government's policy on defence and defence overseas, which scarcely arises on a supplementary question to this Question.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware of the discontent among soldiers serving in Cyprus due to the high charges for essentials and for luxuries in the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes; and what steps he has taken.

asked the Secretary of State for War what complaints he has received about Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes' prices to British troops in Cyprus; and what action he now proposes to take.

During the last six months only two complaints have come to my notice. Some items, particularly chocolate and sweets, are dearer in Cyprus than at home because of freight charges and a 40 per cent. import duty, but others are much cheaper. A local overseas allowance is paid to compensate for higher prices.

Is the Minister not aware that there has been considerable publicity in the Press to the effect that our troops are dissatisfied over this matter? Can he give a categorical assurance that these allegations are baseless, and that the troops are quite satisfied with present charges?

I know the British Army well enough to know that it always complains about N.A.A.F.I. prices. I also saw the article, which I think was in the News Chronicle. It said that a bar of chocolate, which I call a slab, costs 11d., and a bottle of beer 1s., but it omitted to say that it was a quart bottle and that cigarettes cost 1s. for twenty. I admit that certain prices are higher in Cyprus because of local import duties, but the local overseas allowance is worked out to cover those charges.

asked the Secretary of State for War why the paint was removed from coal buckets at Chelsea Barracks so that they could be varnished instead.

This has certainly not happened since the present battalion has been at Chelsea Barracks, and I can find no earlier evidence about it.

If, as appears to be the case, the keeping of buckets clean and unscratched is a major problem, could not the right hon. Gentleman arrange with his right hon. Friend the Minister of Fuel and Power to see that coal is delivered to Army establishments by the National Coal Board in little cellophane packets?

At first sight the suggestion of the hon. and gallant Gentleman sounds impracticable. I would say that, so far as I am able to find out, the practice complained of has not happened in the past.

Could my right hon. Friend elicit from the hon. and gallant Member for Brixton (Lieut.-Colonel Lipton) the reason for these continual gibes against the Army which, after all, gave him the title which he seems to like to use?

rose—

Order. The Minister is not responsible for eliciting information from the hon. and gallant Member for Brixton (Lieut.-Colonel Lipton).

asked the Secretary of State for War, in view of the substantial stocks of paint sold as surplus from his Department, what is the purpose of placing orders for 1,100,000 gallons during the past twelve months.

The figure quoted by the hon. Member is the quantity taken into stock since 1st January, 1955. Six hundred and ten thousand gallons of paint have been ordered during the last twelve months. The types of paint included in this order were entirely different from those recently put up for sale.

Will the right hon. Gentleman state what type of paint it is necessary to stock in such huge quantities, and in view of the recent experiences of the tremendous loss to the taxpayer, why are such big orders placed to retain paint in stock for a long time? Is the Minister not aware that the paint manufacturers have huge stocks of paint and that it is easy to get, at very little notice, the type of paint which the Army is buying? If only steps would be taken it would be possible to get rid of the jiggery-pokery about surplus sales which is now going on.

The hon. Gentleman will appreciate that this question has arisen only recently, and is a consequence of the run down in the size of the Army, due to the abolition of A.A. Command and so forth. The types of paint concerned are not those normally used by householders, but those used for ammunition, jerricans and tentage, and also for painting buildings and for various specialised needs of the Army. I admit that this is a problem, but I would stress that it is one which has arisen from the reduction in the size of the Army and as a result of the long cycle of ordering paint between sixteen and eighteen months in advance of its world-wide use.

asked the Secretary of State for War if, in order to provide an immediate inducement to Territorial Army volunteers, he will now grant the increased bounty of £20 after one year's volunteer service.

No, Sir. Improvements have recently been announced, and I cannot go beyond them.

Does not my right hon. Friend appreciate that this small concession from his Department would do a great deal to encourage volunteers to stay in the Territorial Army?

All this matter was gone into with great care, and an announcement has been made. I cannot go further than that.

asked the Secretary of State for War why 22985643 Private Bell is still detained in custody.

This soldier is awaiting trial by court-martial on several charges, the most serious of which is desertion.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that this man alleges that he has in his possession a discharge certificate, and will the Minister, under the circumstances, do everything he can to expedite the settlement of this matter?

Yes, Sir, I want to expedite it as quickly as I can. The fact is that the soldier has this certificate but that there are two Private Bells in this Battalion and, unfortunately, the adjutant thought that this man was the other Private Bell.

Can my right hon. Friend tell me which Private Bell my constituent is?

I think he is No. 22985643 Private Bell.

Does my right hon. Friend appreciate that the number which he has quoted is the number on the discharge certificate in the possession of my constituent?

Then I am afraid that in my haste I have read out the wrong number. [Laughter.] It should be No. 22845669 Private Bell.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what facilities his Department offers to encourage the British motor industry to compete successfully in overseas markets against the growing challenge particularly of Germany.

All the services of information, help and advice provided by the Board of Trade and overseas officers for exporters generally are available to the motor industry; so are the facilities for export credit insurance offered by the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

Does not the Minister think that the best thing he can do is to lift the embargo on exports to China? Is it not a fact that the Americans are pouring cars into China whilst they insist that we retain the embargo? Is it not time that the Minister woke up to facts of life and looked after the interests of the workers in my constituency and also of those of Coventry, which adjoins it?

As has frequently been explained by my right hon. Friend and myself, the export to China of nearly all types of motor cars is freely allowed. The embargo is upon commercial vehicles.

Bearing in mind all the excellent service provided by Her Majesty's Government for exporters generally, can the Minister say why the motor car industry is not doing better in the export trade?

We discussed that matter the other day during the employment debate, and it has been covered by my right hon. Friend frequently in Answers to Questions. It goes much wider than this Question.

Is the Minister aware that we have had no reply to those observations and that this is why I have put my Question again?

Would not the best thing be to encourage the motor industry by discouraging any further wage increases that put up costs?

asked the President of the Board of Trade what action he is proposing to take with regard to the Report of the Monopolies and Restrictive Practices Commission on the supply and export of pneumatic tyres.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what action the Government proposes to take arising out of the Report of the Monopolies Commission on tyres.

None, Sir, for the present. As my right hon. Friend said during the Second Reading debate on the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill, we do not propose to make Governmental decisions on matters which are now to be made justiciable.

Does the Minister realise that this is a serious matter, and that the evil to which the Monopolies and Restrictive Practices Commission has drawn attention is aggravated by the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill, because that will legalise individual resale price maintenance in circumstances where, in the case of tyres, it is equivalent to collective resale price maintenance, which is condemned by the Monopolies Commission?

The hon. Gentleman has singled out one only of the four main recommendations in the Report of the Monopolies Commission. The one to which he refers was in fact only a five-to-four decision of the Monopolies Commission.

Can the Parliamentary Secretary say how and when, under the procedure which he is proposing, any action will be taken about the tyre industry at all?

Yes, Sir. Of the four major recommendations to which I have referred, two are specifically provided for in Part II of the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill. My impression is that the other two will be registrable and so justiciable under Part I.

Can the Minister give any date by which any action will be taken?

A great deal sooner than the right hon. Gentleman himself prophesied during the Second Reading debate on the Bill.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when the Monopolies and Restrictive Practices Commission's Report on Radio Valves, Television Tubes and Electronic Equipment will be published; the cost of the inquiries so far; whether the Radio Wholesalers Federation were invited to give evidence; and whether he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend expects to receive the Commission's Report in the second half of this year, and it will be published as soon as possible thereafter. It is not possible, without a disproportionate amount of work, to make an estimate of the costs of particular inquiries. It is at the discretion of the Commission from what bodies it invites and receives evidence.

Can we have an assurance from the Minister that when this Report is in hand he will not say that the Government will not take action because the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill is pending? If there are some recommendations, will he assure us that the Government will at least give consideration to them, for action on them?

The hon. Member makes an assumption in that supplementary question. I said that we hope that the Report will be received in the second half of this year. The hon. Member should not assume that the Bill will still be pending at that time.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the amount and value of the exports of English wheat for seed made to France in the past three months.

I regret that the information is not available. Exports of wheat for seed are not separately distinguished in the Trade Returns.

Can my right hon. Friend help us by giving us the figures for wheat as a whole? Will he also tell us whether the full market price has been paid for the seed wheat sent to France, as he will remember that we had considerable difficulty over the importation here of subsidised French wheat last autumn?

I cannot answer either of those questions without notice, and I do not think that the second one is for me. It is a question for the trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that the 50 per cent. initial deposit on hire purchase of sewing machines is a hardship to poor people and is having a serious effect on employment in the industry; and if he will reduce the initial deposit to 20 per cent.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the fall in production and export of sewing machines resulting from the latest hire-purchase Regulations, he will reduce the initial deposit on this labour-saving household necessity from 50 per cent. to 20 per cent.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will reduce the initial deposit required under his Hire-Purchase Regulations on sewing machines from 50 per cent. to 20 per cent.

No, Sir.

Is the Minister aware that although the Singer Sewing Machine Co. exports over 80 per cent. of its output, this penal impost on an essential domestic article will increase both costs and prices and thereby reduce exports and defeat the object which we are told the Government have in mind? Will he therefore look at the matter again?

I cannot accept the hon. Member's description of the hire-purchase restrictions as a penal impost and I see no reason that the good record of this industry in the export field should not be maintained. Of course, all these matters are under constant review, and in that we have been aided by the hon. Member's representations on previous occasions.

Does my hon. and learned Friend not realise that the other company manufacturing sewing machines is being seriously embarrassed in its efforts to increase its exports of these machines, and that if the Regulations are left as they are, such efforts as the company is making are most unlikely to be as successful as he would like them to be.

All industries pray in aid the desirability of a very large home market as a reinforcement for their export trade, but experience shows that some diminution of the home market is not always at the expense of the export trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that on 16th March last more than 30 per cent. of the members of the National Union of Furniture Trade Operatives had been either discharged or were working short time; and if, in order to prevent futher deterioration of the employment situation, he will reduce the initial deposit on hire purchase of furniture to 15 per cent.

I am aware that there is some short-time working in the furniture industry, but my right hon. Friend does not intend to relax the hire-purchase restrictions on furniture.

Is the Minister aware that the position which, as he indicated, is already serious, is very rapidly getting worse? Will he not therefore give some assurance that this matter will be looked into or at least give an indication of the level of production which is expected of the furniture industry?

The hon. Member will appreciate that the level of production of this industry must be looked at in the context of the substantial increase over the last year or two. As for the effect of the hire-purchase restrictions, furniture is still subject to only a 20 per cent. minimum deposit.

Is the Minister aware that 200 furniture workers in Cardiff have been on short-time employment during the past two weeks? Is he telling them that they must give up their craft and find some other way of earning their living?

I think that the hon. Member has a Question down about that to another Minister.

On a point of order. In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the reply, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the matter on the Adjournment.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the volume and value of imports of pears from Australia for 1953, 1954 and 1955, and the corresponding figures for 1938.

As the answer contains a number of figures I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that imports of apples from Australia during the past three years have been at a level of only two-thirds of the imports in 1938; and what steps he proposes to take to encourage importers to buy more apples from Australia and less from foreign countries.

Imports of foreign apples are closely restricted by quota for balance of payments reasons, whereas those from the sterling area are free of quota restriction as well as free of duty. Foreign apples have represented such a small proportion of our imports during the main Australian marketing season that they can have had little, if any, effect on the level of our imports from Australia.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that it is not the volume of the imports of dollar apples which causes so much concern to many horticulturists as the fact that they are always imported at a time to coincide with the marketing of the English crop, thereby causing the maximum possible embarrassment to growers in Worcestershire and elsewhere?

The Question asks about Australian apples, and the marketing season is quite different.

Before importation plans for next season's apples are made, will my right hon. Friend's Department make arrangements to see that the growers in the home industry are consulted?

That is another question. This Question is about Australia and the Australian marketing season.

Are not the suggestions of the hon. Member for Kidderminster (Mr. Nabarro) quite contrary to the doctrine of Conservative freedom?

asked the President of the Board of Trade by how much existing small duties on imported timber have been reduced to meet the representations made to him by a number of other countries.

The tariff negotiations in Geneva, which I assume my hon. Friend has in mind, are still in train and, as my right hon. Friend said on 26th January, we cannot anticipate their outcome.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that already it is difficult enough for home producers of timber to sell their products, and if steps are likely to be taken as a result of these discussions which will reduce those small duties it will make it still harder for them to sell their products?

We have consulted, in confidence, trade associations and bodies likely to be interested in the outcome of the requests which we have received.

asked the President of the Board of Trade why he estimates the receipts from the sale of iron and steel scrap in 1956–57 at only £30,000, when the cost of recovery and transport of the scrap is expected to be £945,000.

The total proceeds of sale of scrap metal shown in the Board of Trade Estimates Class VI Vote II for 1956–57 are £30,000 in subhead Z and £2,350,000 in Extra Exchequer Receipts shown in page 33.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware of the serious effect on the Lancashire cotton industry of the recently-announced policy of the United States Government that increased quantities of United States cotton will be sold abroad at special prices; and what representations Her Majesty's Government have made to the United States Government on the subject.

For some time the Lancashire cotton industry has been suffering from the uncertainty caused by the existence of large stocks of surplus cotton in the United States, and the doubts about the plans for their disposal. The United States Government have not yet announced the terms of sale for the substantial quantities of surplus cotton which they intend to sell at competitive prices for delivery after July, 1956. It is therefore not yet possible to estimate the full effect of their decision.

Her Majesty's Government attach importance to the United States Government's assurance that it is their intention to effect sales in an orderly manner so as to avoid disrupting world market prices. Every opportunity has been taken to make our views known to the United States Government, and we shall continue to watch the situation.

At a time when Government policy has deliberately created depression in the engineering industry, is it not very serious to have this increasing sign of depression in the cotton industry, too? Can the Minister say what has been the result of these representations to the United States?

There is no depression in large parts of the engineering industry, and I do not accept what the right hon. Gentleman said. Our representations, including representations by an industrial mission which was prompted by us, have been continuous and pressing, and I have no doubt that they have had some effect on the views of the United States Government.

Would not my right hon. Friend agree that the release of these surplus stocks of American cotton must ultimately result in a lower world price of cotton which in turn should make it more difficult for the Indian Government to continue its policy of directly subsidising the price of cotton to Indian spinners, thus enabling Indian mill owners to flood this country with cheap cotton goods? Would he not agree that that, at least, would be to the advantage of Lancashire?

It is certainly true that an artificially high world price for cotton increases the gap between the price at which the Lancashire industry is able to get its raw material and that at which the Indian industry gets its raw material. To that extent a reduction in the artificially high world price of cotton will help the Lancashire industry, but there are, of course, other considerations, which I am sure my hon. and gallant Friend knows.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware of the grave concern felt by British exporters to dollar markets upon learning that dollar funds have been used for purchase by the National Coal Board of opencast coal-mining machinery from the United States of America, at a cost of $3,000,000 approximately, when equivalent British machinery was available at slightly longer delivery; that the drag-line excavators concerned are now out of commission on the North-East Coast, representing great losses, and whether he will arrange to form a special committee of representatives of the Ministry of Fuel and Power, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Board of Trade and the Treasury, to assure that British machinery is preferred to United States machinery by nationalised industries, dollar funds adequately conserved, and a policy embraced of "Buy British."

On a point of order. Before this inordinately long Question on the Order Paper is answered, Mr. Speaker, may I ask whether it is still the rule of order that hon. Members may not make speeches on supplementary questions; and if it is, then is it not equally out of order to make a speech on the Order Paper?

There is a rule of order against inordinately long Questions on the Order Paper. I did not think that this Question was inordinately long. I would not call it a speech; it is more like an essay.

As regards the first two parts of the Question, I have nothing to add to what was said in reply to my hon. Friend on 22nd March. As to the last part of the Question, the existing arrangements for inter-Departmental consultation on import policy and the issue of import licences, which apply to imports by the nationalised industries as to those by private traders, are in the Government's view entirely adequate. Accordingly, my right hon. Friend considers there is no need to set up a special committee of the kind suggested.

If my right hon. Friend refuses a committee of this sort, what steps will he take in future to prevent bureaucratic blundering of the type manifest in this situation? Is he aware that not only has there been a great dissipation of hard-won dollar resources, but there is also a loss of tens of thousands of tons of coal weekly at a time when the National Coal Board has an accumulated deficit of £37 million? Is that of any concern to him? [HON. MEMBERS: "Speech."] A jolly good one.

The principle upon which this import licence for dollar machinery was given was stated in answer to my hon. Friend by the President of the Board of Trade on 22nd March. I really cannot see how it would have helped in the matter of the deficit of the National Coal Board to have forced it to accept machines six months later than the machines it got in this manner.

Is the Minister really satisfied that existing machinery is working satisfactorily, when it is remembered that dollar imports are ever increasing and adding to our economic difficulties?

It depends whether the right hon. Gentleman is referring to the coal machinery, or to the machinery of Government. It is certainly true that the coal machinery broke down, but it is expected to be repaired very shortly. We are satisfied that the machinery of Government is working very satisfactorily.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in his forthcoming Budget, he will consider the possibility of changing the present 10 per cent. pool betting duty on all bets placed on the totalisator at greyhound race tracks to a 10 per cent. duty on winning bets only.

I am prepared to consider all suggestions concerning such fiscal changes, but the hon. Member will not expect me to anticipate my Budget statement.

May I thank the Chancellor of the Exchequer for the kind way in which he has replied to that Question? Will he bear in mind the fact that, generally speaking, the ordinary working man does not so much object to taxation as to unfair taxation when he finds that the rich do not pay the tax and the poor do? Will he see to it that both rich and poor are equally treated in this respect?

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that Mr. Leslie Newing, of Hamilton Road, Deal, a 60-years-old master builder for almost thirty years, has been forced into bankruptcy by the operation of the credit squeeze; and how far it is the Government's policy to allow small businessmen to be forced into bankruptcy by the operation of the credit squeeze.

The information available to me on this case does not support the implication that the insolvency was attributable to the restriction of credit. It is, of course, no part of the Government's policy that small traders should be forced into bankruptcy, but I could not agree that they should be wholly exempted from the present restriction of credit.

Is the Chancellor of the Exchequer aware that his information is directly contrary to the facts known to the individual concerned? The individual concerned has definitely declared that even as a Tory he regrets that he has been forced out of business by a Tory Government after having been employed as a master man for thirty years? Is it not true that in this case and other cases which could be quoted the Government are forcing small businessmen out of business? Is that not part of the Tory policy?

I have been carefully into this case. The statement of affairs showed that he had 16 preference creditors for £236 and 24 unsecured creditors for £3,067, with a deficiency of some £1,300; he had a secured overdraft of £700, which the bank had asked him to reduce to £500. In those circumstances there is no question of bank credit having been his difficulty. His difficulty was the very large number of creditors, whom he was unable to meet, on a much higher scale.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether it remains the aim of the Government to achieve a £300 million a year surplus on the United Kingdom's balance of payments.

Yes, Sir. It remains our aim to achieve a substantial surplus of this order so that we may, over the years, meet our varying obligations.

Now that the Government have disowned responsibility for either maintaining full employment or stimulating the export trade, can we at least be assured that they recognise some responsibility for the balance of payments?

The right hon. Gentleman, by his usual method of innuendo, has made a false deduction from a false premise.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will give an undertaking that contributions by business firms to the new campaign for a reduction in Government expenditure will not be accepted by the Board of Inland Revenue as admissible business expenses in the assessment of Income Tax and Profits Tax.

Contributions by a business firm to such a campaign would not be regarded by the Board of Inland Revenue as an admissible deduction in computing trading profits for taxation purposes.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has now had an opportunity of considering representations made to him as to the desirability of extending Income Tax concession to self-employed persons who wish to make adequate provision for their retirement; and whether he will take action with regard to this matter in the next Finance Bill.

I must ask my hon. and gallant Friend to await my Budget statement.

Would my right hon. Friend not agree that it is practically impossible, with the present penal rate of taxation, for self-employed people today either to provide for their own old age or for their families' old age? Is it not terribly unfair that this section of the community should be penalised in this way? Is it not high time that a Conservative Government remedied this gross injustice?

I hope that my hon. and gallant Friend will be content to await my statement on the Budget, which is not a very long time away.

In the meantime, will the Chancellor bear in mind the very great injustice and inequality which results under the present Income Tax laws between those who can and those who cannot make provision for their retirement?

I think that that was the point of the Question.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the University Grants Committee has made it a condition of continuance of grant that tuition fees in universities should be increased; and whether this was done with his authority or after consultation with him.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 22nd March to the hon. Member for St. Pancras, North (Mr. K. Robinson).

Will the Chancellor of the Exchequer bear in mind that that reply was very ambiguous? If it meant anything, will he say whether it meant that it is the policy of the Treasury to secure by one means or another a very substantial increase in university fees paid by university students?

I have looked at the reply again, and I thought that it was very clear. It made it clear that the University Grants Committee did not make it a condition of a continuation of grants that fees should be raised, but that the universities were now considering proposals aimed at producing greater uniformity of fees. It also made it clear that although the Chancellor of the Exchequer had been informed of the proposals, my approval to them was not required.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the last sterling balance release was made to Egypt; how much it was; when the next payment is due; and what amount is now outstanding.

The last published figure for the amount outstanding was £128 million, in October, 1955. Since then £20 million were released to Egypt on 2nd January, 1956, and a further £20 million is due to be released in January, 1957.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that while Egypt continues to behave in the antagonistic way in which she has been behaving towards this country, there is no reason whatsoever for releasing the sterling balances? Will he stop the release on that ground alone?

There are very large questions of commerce and financial policy involved. If we set up as a central banker, we have to meet the deposits of those who bank with us.

Does the Chancellor of the Exchequer agree with the view so often expressed by the present Prime Minister that financial concessions to Egypt should be dependent upon the political policy followed by the Egyptian Government?

Concessions and the ordinary operation of central banking are two quite different things.

Is there not one aspect of commercial policy which should be taken into consideration, namely, the refusal of the Egyptian Government to allow the free passage of shipping through the Suez Canal?

There are many aspects, and that was why I was only indicating to my hon. Friend that this is a difficult matter to deal with precisely by question and answer. These are very large questions, and I content myself with giving my hon. Friend the facts.

Is the right hon. Gentleman not aware that while it is no doubt very proper that we should stand by the financial agreement, there is no necessity in present circumstances for repaying the sterling balances at a faster rate than that provided under the agreement?

That is another question. I was asked what was the plan under the agreement, and I gave the figures.

In view of the way in which these balances were originally established, will my right hon. Friend look at the matter again, with a view to starting discussions with the Egyptian Government to review the whole problem of the sterling balances?

That is another question. I must point out that this country is governed by its agreements. In the July, 1951, agreement, in the Exchange of Letters, it was definitely laid down that Her Majesty's Government had no intention of scaling down the total amount of the sterling balances. Whether that was right or wrong, I would be very unwilling to go back on a definite undertaking given by the Government, even a Government of another complexion.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that the hire-purchase restrictions and Purchase Tax have created intermittent unemployment among the furniture workers of Bristol to the extent of three days a week for 350 workers, and that a number have been forced to leave the trade and if he will take steps to remove the two chief causes of this slump.

I am aware that some workers have left this trade and that there is some short-time working, part of which is attributable to the seasonal decline in demand. As to the last part of the Question, I would refer the hon. Member to the statements made on behalf of the Government in the debate on employment on 20th March.

Is the Minister aware that 25 per cent. of the furniture trade operatives in Bristol are either unemployed or on short time, and that the same proportion applies to the whole of the country? In view of the serious effect that this is having upon workers, employers and the country, will the right hon. Gentleman not have second thoughts about what he has been doing?

All these matters require careful consideration, but I would point out that whether we operate by physical controls, which I understand is the view of the party opposite, or by monetary and fiscal controls, the object of this whole exercise is to make such a redeployment of industry that we shall be able to increase our exports in a way to make our country solvent.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will take steps to ensure that the incidence of entertainment tax falls equally and equitably on all forms of sport, whether amateur or professional.

I will bear the right hon. and learned Member's suggestion in mind, but I cannot anticipate my Budget statement.

While not expecting the Chancellor to anticipate his Budget statement, may I ask whether it is not a fact that Entertainments Duty is having a crippling effect upon many forms of professional sport, and that a number of professional football clubs are today faced with bankruptcy? Therefore, will the Chancellor of the Exchequer not at least undertake to re-examine this problem very carefully?

Yes, Sir, I will carefully examine it.

Would my right hon. Friend not agree that equality may not necessarily be equitable?

Might not the Chancellor be able to do this if he took adequate steps in his next Budget to see that members of the entertainment profession did not owe hundreds of thousands of pounds to the Income Tax authorities? Robert Newton has died owing about £36,000 Income Tax.

Will the Chancellor give at least as much consideration to football as was given by his predecessor to cricket?

And to boxing?

Far be it from me to distinguish between these admirable sports.

Does the right hon. Gentleman not feel that the time has come when Entertainments Duty on sport should be abolished altogether?

I repeat that I must not be asked to anticipate my Budget statement.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangements with regard to pensions increase are to be made for retired officers of the London Passenger Transport Board who were previously employed in local government tramway undertakings and do not at the present time receive any pensions increase.

I understand that these officers have already had their pensions increased in respect of that part of them which is attributable to service under the local authorities concerned. This was done under Regulations made by the Treasury, at the request of the local authorities, in 1953.

If the Pensions (Increase) Bill becomes law, and if requested by the appropriate pension authorities, the Treasury will be prepared to make regulations permitting increases to be paid corresponding to those of the Bill.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that I have had considerable correspondence with him on this question, and that the London Passenger Transport Board, now the London Transport Executive, is continuously dodging its responsibility? While we appreciate that the Minister will give the Executive this power if it requests it, will he not ask the Executive to do the decent thing and make the approach, so that these pensioners can receive the same benefits as their colleagues who were formerly employed by the various councils?

I do not think the Treasury should go so far as to interfere between employers and employees or pensioners in a case like this. What the Treasury can do is to make the requisite regulations empowering the pensions increase to be paid if one of the pensions authorities asks for it.

In view of the fact that the details are not known and of the unsatisfactory nature of the answer from the Transport Executive, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the matter on the Adjournment.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware of the resentment felt by the Institution of Professional Civil Servants at the failure of the Royal Commission on the Civil Service to make recommendations to improve the conditions of pay of the technical classes in the Civil Service; that anomalies result from this failure; and whether he will, nevertheless, take steps to remove the anomalies.

The Royal Commission made suggestions for an improvement in the pay of the technical works, engineering and allied classes, but indicated that a thorough review would require a prolonged specialised study which it could not undertake. The Institution of Professional Civil Servants has presented a pay claim, which is under consideration.

Does the Minister not think that it would be very desirable for this claim to be considered as soon as possible, in view of the professed desire of the Government to improve the status and scope of the technical classes?

Perhaps I did not make it sufficiently clear that the claim is under consideration. A delegation from the I.P.C.S. has already been received by the Treasury. In the circumstances, I think it would be wrong for me to say anything more at this stage.

While I do not wish to prevent civil servants from obtaining their due reward, is it not about time that something was done for another impoverished class—namely, Members of Parliament.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what progress has been made in the Government inquiry into the financial structure of local government; and if he will make a statement.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will extend the derating provisions of the Local Government Act, 1929, to theatres and music halls.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether, in view of the representations which he hay received from a group of county borough treasurers, he will now revise the Exchequer equalisation grant formula, and abolish industrial derating.

The review of local government finance, which I announced earlier, is now well under way. Meanwhile, I do not wish to make statements on particular aspects of this problem.

While I fully understand my right hon. Friend's desire not to make statements on particular aspects of this matter, does he realise the considerable anxiety of local authorities, particularly those which have had difficulties in revaluation, that a statement should be made as soon as possible? Will he give an assurance that there will be no possible delay in this matter?

There will be no avoidable delay.

In his consideration of this matter, does the right hon. Gentleman appreciate that theatres and music halls, particularly those outside the West End of London, fulfil all the requirements and conditions for which the 1929 Act came before the House?

When considering this matter, will the Minister bear in mind the Private Member's Bill which was passed in the House only recently on this subject?

It has not escaped my notice.

Is the Minister aware that county boroughs such as Huddersfield, which previously received nothing from the Exchequer equalisation fund and which now receive a grant, nevertheless acknowledge that there is need to revise the formula? Is he aware that there is widespread agreement that industrial de-rating is quite illogical?

The hon. Member will not expect me to anticipate the result of the review.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware that there are thousands of caravans of all kinds in the British countryside with a lack of adequate sanitary facilities; and to what extent it is his policy to encourage the development of official caravan sites under the authority of local councils.

Local authorities, when granting licences for the use of caravans, can impose requirements for securing proper sanitation. Circumstances may render it desirable for local authorities to provide sites, and a number have done so with my right hon. Friend's approval. He is considering if there is any further advice he should give to local authorities on this problem in general.

Is the Minister aware that since local authorities began this hopeful experiment to rid the countryside of these blots, the Government's financial policy has discouraged them enormously? Will he consider giving financial help in what is a very worth-while attempt to clear the countryside?

Is the Minister aware that the caravan position has become very serious throughout the country? Owing to the need for homes, young couples are encouraged to buy caravans, and sites are given by farmers or landowners. Then the local authority steps in, as happened in a case just outside Birmingham, when a number of caravan dwellers were forced on to the side of the road because they had nowhere to go, and were prosecuted because their caravans were at the side of the road. The local authority then had to find them accommodation.

This is a very real problem. Local authorities have to fulfil both their public health and their housing duties.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he is aware that some local authorities are purchasing land at site valuation consequent upon the issue of a demolition order and then reselling at a price greatly in excess of the purchase price; and if he will introduce legislation to prevent this.

The consequence of a demolition order is to require the demolition of the house concerned. It does not involve the purchase of the land by the local authority.

Has the right hon. Gentleman given consideration to the case which I submitted to him wherein the transaction of reselling land arising from the operation of a demolition order resulted in a 200 per cent. profit being made, and which, of course, caused public disquiet? Has the Minister any statement to make about that?

If the hon. Gentleman wants me to make a statement about a particular case, perhaps he will put down a Question on the Order Paper. I have not sufficient information on that case to form a judgment as to how it could have arisen.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what public Acts and Regulations govern the price at which local authorities dispose of land and property.

The only specific statutory provision is Section 79 of the Housing Act, 1936.

Does my right hon. Friend deny that local authorities can acquire land or property under a compulsory purchase order at a district valuer's valuation and that if either that land or property is not afterwards required they can sell it to the highest bidder? Is that not very unfair to the previous owner?

That, of course, is one of the difficulties of the two-price system.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will place a model of St. Paul's Precincts Rebuilding Scheme in the Library.

The Corporation of the City of London has kindly agreed to lend this model, and I have arranged for it to be placed in the Upper Waiting Hall immediately after the Easter Recess.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government on what date he proposes to hold a public inquiry into the Chandles compulsory purchase orders, numbers 1 and 2.

The inquiry into the Chandless No. 1 Compulsory Purchase Order has been fixed for 29th May. I have not yet received the Chandless No. 2 Order, but if it arrives soon the inquiry can probably be held at the same time.

Is the Minister aware of the desperate housing shortage in Gateshead, and that the slum clearance scheme which is under consideration will go a long way to relieve the problem in that borough? Can the Minister give an assurance that after the hearing there will be no further delay in proceeding with the project? May I also ask him whether Gateshead is one of the cities on his list for visiting, because he will certainly be welcome there to see the slums?

I can assure the hon. Gentleman that we shall give a decision as quickly as possible after the inquiry has been held. I would add that I cannot accept invitations to go everywhere.