asked the Minister of Defence what steps he is taking to identify and segregate that portion of Service equipment supplied under the United States Defence Aid so that such equipment will not be used in contravention of the conditions laid down by the United States of America when providing this aid.

I have been asked to reply.I have nothing to add to the replies given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Defence on 3rd November and 14th November, and by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for War on 20th November and 4th December.

asked the Minister of Defence what changes he is making in the organisation of psychological warfare in the Middle East as a result of the report by the Paymaster-General on his visit to the Suez Canal.

I have been asked to reply.My right honourable and learned Friend's visit to Port Said was not concerned with this subject.

asked the Minister of Defence the numbers of British forces, to the latest convenient date, killed and wounded during the recent operations in Egypt.

I have been asked to reply.Our latest information of British casualties is that 21 were killed and 112 wounded.

asked the Minister of Defence on what date the Arab staff of the "Voice of Britain" radio station resigned.

I have been asked to reply.On 30th October this station was requisitioned by the Governor of Cyprus on behalf of Her Majesty's Government. The staff did not resign, but they refused duty.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, in view of the trend of their recent programmes, he will discontinue the subvention he pays to the British Broadcasting Corporation.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will make a further statement on the situation in Hungary in the light of British relief measures.

There has been, I regret to say, a deterioration in the situation in Hungary since my hon. Friend's statement on 26th November. The Kadra Government have completely failed to win the confidence or support of the Hungarian people. The Workers' Councils maintain their demands for Russian withdrawal from Hungary, independence, neutrality and free elections.The Government are now trying to break all resistance. They have banned the central and regional Workers' Councils, they are carrying out arrests among their members and are making a house-to-house search for arms. A forty-eight-hour general strike has been called. The risk of renewed violence appears to be grave.Private contributions to the principal relief funds in the United Kingdom now total £1,793,000. Approximately 11,000 refugees have now reached the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what treaty or other obligations are in force requiring the United Kingdom to support the United States of America, militarily or diplomatically, in the event of hostilities breaking out between Formosa and the Chinese mainland.

As my right hon. Friend the present Chancellor of the Exchequer told the House on 27th April, 1955, Her Majesty's Government have no commitment, other than such general obligation as might arise from their membership of the United Nations.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether Her Majesty's Government still recognise the 1906 designation of Sinai Peninsula as part of Egypt as the title-deed for Egyptian sovereignty over Sinai.

Her Majesty's Government have never formally stated that the Exchange of Notes between Her Majesty's Government and the Turkish Government in May, 1906, constituted the "title deed for Egyptian sovereignty over Sinai". As the House was informed on 21st February, 1951,

"The grant of the right to administer this territory was confirmed by a firman issued by the Sultan of Turkey to the Khedive Abbas of Egypt on 8th May, 1892, and was later enshrined in Notes exchanged between Her Majesty's Government and the Turkish Government in May. 1906. The eastern frontier of Egypt was never explicitly defined after the First World War, when Egypt became an independent kingdom and by the Treaty of Lausanne, Turkey renounced all rights and titles to territories lying outside her frontiers. Egypt has, however, been in continuous occupation and possession of South Sinai ever since 1922. No Government has ever contested the fact that Egypt exercises effective sovereignty over this area." —[OFFICIAL REPORT, 21st February, 1951; Vol. 484, c. 1263–4.]

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on what date Her Majesty's Government first received evidence of the possibility that Israeli troops might invade Sinai.

The House has already been informed on numerous occasions about the information available to Her Majesty's Government on the partial mobilisation of Israel forces, and I have nothing to add to the Answer given to the hon. Member for West Ham, North (Mr. Lewis) on 27th November.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the numbers of United Kingdom civilians killed and wounded, respectively, in Egypt since the Suez Canal was nationalised on 26th July.

Her Majesty's Government have received no reports that any United Kingdom civilians have been killed or wounded in Egypt since 26th July.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if Her Majesty's Government either directly or through the United Nations in the interest of pacification will offer financial and practical assistance both in respect of the clearing of the Suez Canal of obstruction and of rebuilding the devastated area of Port Said; and whether he will ascertain from the United Nations in what manner persons and organisations in this and other countries can give voluntary assistance to meet human need among Egyptian people affected by recent military operations.

Her Majesty's Government and the French Government have already cleared a channel through the section of the Suez Canal under their control, and have offered the United Nations all the very considerable resources at their disposal for clearing the rest of the Canal.They have also made substantial practical contributions towards the rehabilitation of such damage as was done in Port Said, particularly in the field of public utilities.Persons and organisations in this country who wish to give voluntary assistance in Egypt can best do so by getting in touch with the International Red Cross and other similar organisations who specialise in such work.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will now consider paying compensation to former British officials employed by the Egyptian Government, pending the recovery of this compensation from the Egyptian Government in pursuance of the procedure laid down in the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, 1954.

No. It is clear from the terms of an Exchange of Notes annexed to the Anglo-Egyptian Agreement of October, 1954, that the Egyptian Government have accepted an obligation to assess the reparation due in respect of the claims of ex-officials. Her Majesty's Government have every sympathy for the claimants and will continue to do all they can to ensure that the Egyptian Government discharge their obligations towards them. But they cannot agree that their interest in this matter should extend to accepting financial responsibility for the obligations of a foreign Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what facilities are being given to British subjects resident in Port Said, now being expelled, to ship luggage and movable belongings before the final evacuation of British troops.

The military authorities in Port Said and the sea transport authorities engaged in organising the withdrawal of British forces from Egypt have agreed to do everything possible to transport the personal and household effects of all those British subjects who are being evacuated from Port Said. Full details are not available, but I am satisfied that everything possible will be done to ensure that no one loses his luggage or movable belongings.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when the Primitiva Gas Company was expropriated by the Argentine Government; what action Her Majesty's Government has undertaken to obtain compensation during that period; and why this matter is not being discussed with Mr. Mendez Delfino, leader of the Argentine financial mission.

The Primitiva Gas Company of Buenos Aires was expropriated in 1944. Since then, Her Majesty's Government have made representations to the Argentine Government on numerous occasions, asking that early and satisfactory compensation be paid to the company. Representations in this sense were made to Doctor Mendez Delfino in August. If no settlement of the company's claim has been reached by the time that negotiations with the Mission are resumed, the matter will be raised with Doctor Delfino once again.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, in view of his expressed desire for a more efficient basis for co-operation between the nations of Western Europe, he will maintain and, if necessary, enlarge the work done at Wilton Park in order to promote those ends.

The reasons for Her Majesty's Government's decision to close Wilton Park were stated in reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Norfolk, Central (Sir F. Medlicott) on 29th October, to which I have nothing to add.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will give the names of the members of the United Kingdom Delegation to the present session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, stating which members of Her Majesty's Government have so far attended and which are expected to attend.

The Delegation is composed of four Delegates and five Alternate Delegates. The Delegates are my right hon. and learned Friend, the Foreign Secretary, the Minister of State for Colonial Affairs, Sir Pierson Dixon (Permanent Delegate of the United Kingdom to the United Nations) and Mrs. Walter Elliot. The Alternate Delegates are Lord Lothian, Sir Alec Randall, Sir Gerald Fitzmaurice, Mr. P. M. Crosthwaite and Mr. I. T. M. Pink My right hon. And learned Friend attended meetings of the General Assembly from 12th to 23rd November. The Minister of State for Colonial Affairs was in New York from 15th to 30th November.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will instruct the United Kingdom representative in the United Nations to move for a resolution recommending any nation which sends delegates to United Nations meetings to accept, in return, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and a small personal staff whenever the General-Secretary expresses the wish to visit that country.

Her Majesty's Government consider that visits to member States by the Secretary-General of the United Nations should, in general, be a matter for arrangement between the Secretary-General and the Government concerned. They do not believe anything would be gained by the passage of a resolution in the United Nations recommending member nations to accept the Secretary-General whenever he expresses the wish to visit their country.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs why the Consulate-General, Nice, is being closed down; whether he is aware that the railway journey from Nice to Marseilles, the nearest existing consulate, takes five hours and costs 3,000 francs; and how many British subjects, other than tourists, are registered at the Nice consulate.

It has been decided that Her Majesty's Consulate-General at Nice should be closed at the end of January next in view of the pressing need for economies in Government expenditure. My right hon. and learned Friend is aware that some degree of inconvenience and expense may result for British subjects on the French Riviera; but arrangements will be made to reduce this inconvenience by means of periodic visits to the Riviera by a member of the staff of Her Majesty's Consulate-General at Marseilles.The Answer to the last part of the Question is, approximately three thousand.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what are his proposals for improving the information services dealing with the Middle East.

The position of the information services in the Middle East is under review. A number of measures have been taken to reorganise them with a view to meeting the changed situation in that region.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what procedure is adopted to establish whether patients at the King George's Hospital, Nairobi, can afford to pay the hospital charges.

Patients are interviewed after admission and recommendations from competent authorities are taken into account in deciding whether or not to waive the fees.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that the Governments of Tanganyika and Uganda have lifted certain restrictions on the fishing of Lake Victoria against the advice of the East African Fisheries Research Organisation; that the effect of the proposed change in the size of net meshes will lead to depletion of the stock of fishes and especially of tilapia esculenta, the most important species for food supplies; and whether he will request those governments to reconsider the matter.

None of the East African Governments has yet lifted the restrictions referred to, but I understand that the Governments of Tanganyika and Uganda are about to do so. The Lake Victoria Fisheries Service will keep a close watch on the effects of the lifting of the restrictions and give warning of any signs of damage occurring to the fisheries of the Lake.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how soon it is proposed to review and revise the charges in Kenya under which persons can be subject to the death penalty.

I would refer the hon. Gentleman to my reply to his Question on 31st October. The review of emergency laws in Kenya, including offences and penalties, is not yet complete. No revision of capital offences under the ordinary law in force in the Colony is at present contemplated.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies the terms of reference of the proposed commission to draw up plans for agricultural and other economic developments in each district of Tanganyika.

It is not proposed to appoint a commission for this purpose in Tanganyika. As a result of a petition presented to the Governor by ten African members of the Legislative Council it has been decided in agreement with these members that local plans for increasing agricultural production and for the further development of natural resources should be drawn up by the Department of Agriculture in consultation with District Commissioners, Native Authorities and District Councils. These plans will thereafter be examined by a Committee to be chosen from the members of the Legislative Council.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware that four African members of the Northern Rhodesian Legislative Council voted in favour of a Motion proposed by one of their number, Mr. L. H. Ngandu, Northern Province, calling for a review of the 1890 Treaties between the British South Africa Company and the Northern Rhodesian African chiefs; and what action he is taking in this regard.

Yes; but the Governor of Northern Rhodesia has not made any representations to me. The Motion was negatived by the votes of the other twenty members present and voting.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what recommendations the Government Commission of Inquiry into the conditions of unrest in the copper belt in Northern Rhodesia have made, particularly regarding the exclusion of workers other than daily paid workers from the African Mineworkers' Union.

The conclusions and recommendations of the Commission are in Chapter VII of the Report, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies the number of members of the Northern Rhodesian African Congress who are members of the Legislative Council; the numbers who sit upon other official councils, stating what these particular councils are; and how he will ensure that their views upon future constitutional change will be obtained.

There are four members of the African National Congress in the Legislative Council. I am asking the Governor how many known members of Congress are on the African Representative Council, the six African Provincial Councils, the Native Authority Councils and the Urban Advisory Councils and I will write to the hon. Member. As for the assurance sought I have nothing to add to the reply I gave to the hon. Member on 28th November.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many people in Cyprus, since the present emergency began and as a result of this emergency, were killed or injured by interracial riots there.

Five persons have been killed and seventy were injured in such riots.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies on what grounds and for what purpose the imposition of the death penalty has been extended in Cyprus.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Pembroke (Mr. Donnelly) on 27th November.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many children in Cyprus have been sentenced to whipping since the emergency; what were the ages of the children concerned; by whom the sentence is carried out; and whether medical officers have to be present.

166 persons under 18 years of age have been caned. Of these 18 were under 14 years of age and the remainder between the ages of 14 and 18.The sentences are carried out by noncommissioned police officers. The presence of medical officers is not required by law but they always attend.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the photostat copies of the original of the published material relating to the Grivas diary is now ready to be placed in the Library; and whether it is now possible to publish the remainder of the material.

I said in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for The Wrekin (Mr. W. Yates) on 14th November that I would place certain material in the Library if it was the wish or general desire of the House. I have received no other requests from hon. Members, but I will nevertheless arrange for a great deal of the published material and some additional material which has already been photostated, together with a translation, to be placed in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies on what date civil airlines were forbidden to fly over Cyprus.

On 31st October.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what stage has been reached in negotiations about the constitutional future of Mauritius.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what report he has received of the talks between the Governor and the leaders of the Labour Party in Mauritius regarding the method of the appointment of members of the Executive Council.

I am glad to say that my discussions with the Governor have shown that there is a great deal of common ground on the basic issues involved and I am hopeful that further consultation will enable us to reach decisions which will be generally acceptable in Mauritius.Details of Her Majesty's Government's proposals were set out in my reply to the hon. Member for Rugby (Mr. J. Johnson) on 13th March. In brief, they provided for:

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when he proposes to introduce legislation providing for the integration of Malta with the United Kingdom.

As I said in the House on 13th November, it is proposed to introduce legislation when agreement has been reached with the Maltese Government, in talks which I hope will he held shortly, on the constitutional scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what plans he has for increasing the circulation of the magazine Today in the Colonial Territories.

We intend to review the possibility of increasing the scope and circulation of Today.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies why the Government of Hong Kong proposes to build a hospital in Kowloon with 1,300 beds when it is an accepted principle that even a teaching hospital should not exceed two-thirds of that number.

I cannot accept that principle as applicable in the circumstances of Hong Kong with its very limited building sites.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies to what extent the leased lands on the mainland of Hong Kong have been utilised for house-building for resettlement; how many houses have been built; and what are the rents of those completed.

About 630 acres of land in all have been used for resettlement, of which about 350 acres are in the leased territories. Some 23,300 tenement rooms and 13,800 cottages have been built of which respectively 22,400 and 8,800 are in the leased territories. Room rents are from $10 to $14 and cottage rents from $10 to $30 monthly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in view of the shortage of nurses in the Gambia, what steps are being taken to remedy this; and whether he will seek the assistance of the World Health Organisation to secure the training of nurses for this colonial territory.

The five vacancies have been advertised and every effort is being made to fill them quickly. There are eight Gambian student nurses in training here. A nursing consultant from the World Health Organisation has recently visited the Gambia and it is understood that her report includes a recommendation that the Organisation should assist with the training of nurses here. This suggestion will be pursued.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when the report of the commission of inquiry into alleged bribery and corruption in the eastern region of Nigeria will be laid before the Eastern Region House of Assembly and debated and what legal or other action has been, or will be, taken against any persons involved.

This is primarily a matter for the Government of the Eastern Region, and I have nothing to add at present to my reply of 31st October to the hon. Member for Flint, East (Mrs. White).

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what proportion of the proposed £10 million development programme of the Barbados Government will be subsidised by the United Kingdom Government; and what proportion by private investment.

£724,000 has been made available under the Colonial Development and Welfare Act to the Barbados Government to finance projects in its 1955–1960 development programme. It is hoped that about £4-5 million will be invested by the public in loans raised in Barbados and London. The balance of about £5 million will be found by the Barbados Government.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies to what extent the recommendations of the Duffus and Fairn Commission Reports on Prison Reform in Kingston, Jamaica, have been put into effect.

The extent to which the recommendations in the Duffus and Fairn Reports have been accepted and carried out so far by the Jamaican Government is set out in a Paper laid on the Table of the Jamaican House of Representatives. A copy is being placed in the Library of the House.

asked the Postmaster-General the precise terms and conditions that will govern the use of the £100,000 grant to be made to the Independent Television Authority.

They are as follows:

Subject to Parliamentary approval of the Estimate, the Authority will be authorised to spend the money for the purpose of procuring the inclusion in the programmes of items which in its opinion are necessary for improving the balance of the subject matter of the programmes.

The Authority will be required to include in its Annual Report for 1957–58 a statement showing the use which it has made of the grant and the results in terms of the betterment of programmes which has been achieved.

Issues will be made in arrear, not more frequently than once a month, on submission by the Authority of statements giving for each payment made by the Authority the amount paid, the name of the recipient and the identity of the programme which has benefited. A certificate from the Authority's auditors in respect of all such statements will be required at the close of the year. The grant will not be available for the purpose of reimbursing any expenditure incurred before 1st April. 1957.

asked the Postmaster-General what sums have been advanced to date to the Independent Television Authority.

Advances under Section 12 of the Television Act total £555,000. No grant has so far been made to the Authority under Section 11 of the Act.

asked the Postmaster-General if he will announce the date when the Report of the Ince Committee on Bias in Welsh Broadcasting will be made available.

It is hoped that the Report will be published on Tuesday, 18th December.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware of the situation in regard to radio and television reception of British Broadcasting Corporation services in the West Highlands and Islands; and to what extent this situation is due to shortage of funds on the part of the British Broadcasting Corporation and shortage of wave-lengths, respectively.

Yes. I am aware that reception conditions in the West Highlands and Islands are very poor. The British Broadcasting Corporation has, however, been developing its services so as to benefit, within the limits of the resources available to it, the maximum number of people as early as possible. The cost of providing television service in the areas in which my hon. and gallant Friend is interested would be very high in relation to the population served. The present medium wave sound service could not be improved with the frequencies available.

asked the Postmaster-General why his Department charges such high rentals to the British Broadcasting Corporation for land-lines to repeater stations, especially if the services are to provide adequate reception in the remote areas of the West Highlands and Islands.

Lines to broadcasting stations in the West Highlands and Islands must, I am afraid, inevitably be expensive because of their great length.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will ensure that the few remaining television wavelengths available in Band III, from which wavelengths for an extended Highlands and Islands British Broadcasting Corporation Television Service would have to come, are not all allocated to the Independent Television Service.

No application has been made for allocation of channels in Band III for a B.B.C. television service in the Highlands and Islands, and in any event it will be some time before allocation of all the channels in Band III is settled. Both the B.B.C. and the I.T.A. have applied for channels in this Band.

asked the Postmaster-General what changes are contemplated in the rules on television broadcasting hours.

The Government have decided that within the present maxima of 50 hours a week and 8 hours on any one day, both bodies should, on weekdays, be free to broadcast during the periods they think hest to meet the needs of their audiences. On Sundays it will still be the rule that normal programmes must not start before 2 p.m., and there will be an evening break from 6·15 p.m. to 7·25 p.m.The normal maximum hours may be exceeded, and other rules waived, for certain stated purposes such as religious broadcasts, broadcasts of outside events and Welsh language broadcasts.The revised rules may be introduced from Saturday, 16th February. They will of course continue to be subject to review in the light of circumstances. Copies of the revised rules have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

asked the Postmaster-General how many vacancies for staff in his Department there are at present in the Silver End and Witham area.

There is at present a full complement of staff in these areas.

asked the Postmaster-General how many Premium Savings Bonds were sold in November; and what prizes will be available at the first drawing next June.

The Bonds sold in November represented about 46·5 million £1 units. If all this money remained invested until 1st June next there would be 22,041 prizes as follows:

• 93 of £1,000 each
• 186 of £500 each
• 372 of £250 each
• 930 of £100 each
• 1,860 of £50 each
• 18,600 of £25 each

In total the Prize Fund would amount to £930,000.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that the withdrawal of telegraph facilities from Winterbourne Kingston, Dorset, and other village sub-post offices is causing considerable inconvenience; and whether he will restore these facilities to all such sub-post offices.

Telegraph facilities have been withdrawn from these sub-offices because of the diminishing use made of them by the public. At Winterbourne Kingston only 4 telegrams were handed in during the quarter ended June, 1956. In these circumstances, and as telegrams can be dictated without additional charge from nearby kiosks, I do not think I would be justified in restoring the facilities.

asked the Secretary of State for Air what further extensions to St. Faith's Airfield, Norfolk, are at present under consideration; and what effect they will have on highways in the locality.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he is aware of the inconvenience caused to residents and workers in the central part of Norfolk and the City of Norwich by the partial or complete closing of many roads resulting from the extension of the Royal Air Force station at Horsham St. Faith; and if he will give an assurance that the further extensions now contemplated will cause as little interference as possible with the roads in that area.

A scheme for improving highways near this airfield was published in July, 1955. Since then we have had to consider the possibility that the main east-to-west runway may need to be lengthened. The effect would be to sever the Norwich-Holt Road (B.1149) and thus prejudice the earlier plan. The Norfolk County Council has within the last ten days forwarded a revised scheme which my right hon. Friend the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation and I are now considering.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he will increase the travelling allowances paid to all ranks of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force to meet the increase in the price of petrol used by them on journeys between their homes and units.

Rates of mileage allowances are now under review.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he has now received Treasury consent for the upgrading of the post of Air Officer Commanding in Chief, Transport Command from Air Vice Marshal to Air Marshal.

Yes. The post has now been upgraded.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation (1) whether he will permit driving tests to be given to doctors entering on practices and requiring to drive their own cars;(2) whether he will permit driving tests to be made, provided the person involved has a petrol allowance and is willing for it to be used for test purposes or, alternatively, if some temporary arrangement can be made for provisional licences in urgent cases.

I regret that it is not possible for me to resume driving tests immediately, or to give priority to selected classes of applicants as suggested. But the relaxation I now propose, that for the time being a person who has held a provisional licence for a month need not be accompanied when driving by the holder of a substantive licence, should go a long way to meet the situation.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, in view of the urgent need to economise in fuel and having regard to his earlier assurances, whether he will now lay the necessary Order to permit all heavy goods vehicles, including articulated vehicles, to travel up to 30 m.p.h. maximum, instead of the present limit of 20 m.p.h.

I propose in the course of the next few days to lay regulations before the House to make the change with effect from 1st May, 1957.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he is satisfied that the present arrangements for the regulation of Milford Haven are adequate in view of the developments proposed there; and if he will make a statement.

No. If the present proposals for developments in Milford Haven materialise, a much greater volume of shipping will use its waters, and it may well be necessary to establish a conservancy authority. I propose to consult the interests and authorities concerned.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he has considered the situation which will arise in Milford Haven when the present proposals for dry docks and tanker terminals mature; and what measures he has in mind to deal with this problem.

Yes. Much more shipping will use Milford Haven if the present proposals for tanker terminals and dry docks mature. I propose to consult the authorities and other interests concerned about the creation of a conservancy authority for the Haven.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation what representations he has had from the Royal Aero Club about the effect on private flying of the new addition to the petrol tax; what reply he has given; whether he will seek to adjust the grant to flying clubs to meet this new imposition; and if he will make a statement.

The Royal Aero Club has asked that the grant paid to flying clubs in relief of petrol duty should be increased to take account of the recent extra duty of one shilling per gallon. Having regard to the temporary nature of this increase and to the purposes for which it has been imposed, I do not consider that it would be justifiable to relieve the clubs of it. I am replying to the Royal Aero Club in this sense.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation when work will be started on the Gateshead, Felling by-pass road.

The engineering details are being prepared and I hope it will be possible to start the work some time during the next financial year.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation when the report of the committee set up to carry out a survey of parking in inner London will be published and if he will make a statement.

The Committee has submitted to me an interim Report, which is being published today. Copies will be placed in the Vote Office this afternoon. It includes an outline scheme for the control of parking in the whole of the inner area of London, and a detailed scheme for Mayfair and for two areas in the City of London. The Committee recommends that a system of comprehensive parking control, covering the use of parking meters wherever parking is permitted, should be tried first in the Mayfair area.The Committee's Report is a thorough and expert examination of the problem. I hope that local authorities, on whom the Road Traffic Act, 1956, places the responsibility for initiating parking schemes, will study it most carefully. The Government propose to bring the relevant sections of the Road Traffic Act into force on 1st January, 1957, and I look forward to receiving the first schemes as soon as possible after that. In view of my quasi-judicial position as the approving authority for parking schemes, it is not possible to say more in regard to the Committee's Report than that I consider it will form an excellent starting point for the preparation and consideration of such schemes.An invitation will shortly be sent to the Metropolitan Boroughs' Standing Joint Committee to discuss the whole subject with me.I would also like to endorse the emphasis given in the Report to the need for strict enforcement of parking schemes. My right hon. and gallant Friend the Home Secretary is fully in agreement over this, and the Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis and of the City of London have given assurances that they will do their utmost to secure compliance with the law.In conclusion I would like to thank Mr. Samuels and the members of the Committee for preparing their interim Report on this difficult subject so quickly and efficiently; I look forward to receiving before long supplementary reports from the Committee on certain aspects of the problem which it was unable, in the time set it, to cover in the interim Report now published.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation what is now delaying the Order for the construction of a road between Fareham and Lee-on-Solent; and if, in recognition of the shortage of motor fuel, he will ensure that this road is promptly started.

I cannot make the Order until the Southern Gas Board has withdrawn its objection, which I referred to in my answer to my hon. Friend on 2nd August. I hope, however, that the Gas Board will be able to do this soon. Preparatory steps for the construction of the new road are already in train.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if it is still his policy, subject to financial considerations, to encourage highway authorities to construct footpaths alongside roads in rural areas, bearing in mind the value of such footpaths to school children, especially in the winter months.

Our policy is to encourage the provision of footpaths where pedestrian and other traffic warrants them.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware of the deep concern felt by relatives of those men of the three Services who lost their lives in the recent military activities in Egypt and have been buried in Egypt; whether, as the casualties are smaller than was expected and the expenses involved will thereby be limited, he will arrange to have their bodies brought home at public expense and assist in arranging a civilian or military funeral for these Service men in accordance with the wishes of their relatives; and whether he will make a statement.

Yes. As the hon. Member has already been informed, it has been decided in the special circumstances that the bodies of soldiers and marines killed in Port Said will be brought back to the United Kingdom at public expense and the next-of-kin have already been informed. A Service funeral will be arranged at a naval or military cemetery near the point of arrival in the United Kingdom, but relatives have been asked whether they would prefer to make arrangements for a private funeral. In such cases, the coffins will be sent, at public expense, to the home of the next-of-kin.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the Report required by Section 10 of the Agricultural Marketing Act, 1931, will be laid before Parliament.

I expect to send the Report for printing shortly and it will be laid as soon as practicable after the Christmas recess.

asked the Minister of Education how many overseas students have been enrolled in courses for scientific engineering and craft courses for 1955–56; and how these figures compare with 1954–55 and 1953–54.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister of Education what was the number of students enrolled and their age groups in September-October, 1956, in establishments of further education in England and Wales for each of the following types of course, namely: full time, sandwich, part-time, and evening, in science, engineering and craft subjects; and how these figures compare with those for the years 1954–55 and 1953–54.

The information available is given in the following table. The returns for 1955–56 are not yet complete, and those for 1956–57 will not be rendered by the colleges until next year. I cannot divide students by ages, or show

DAY COURSES
Number of students
		Full-time
		Sandwich		Other		Part-time day
		1953–54	1954–55	1953–54	1954–55	1953–54	1954–55
Engineering	…	746	1,355	6,198	6,100	131,376	146,221
Science	…	69	71	3,457	3,102	10,791	11,010

EVENING CLASSES
Number of enrolments
					1953–54	1954–55
Mathematics and natural sciences:
Mathematics (including practical mathematics)	…	…	…	…	277,673	288,297
Biology	…	…	…	…	4,816	5,469
Botany	…	…	…	…	2,119	2,087
Chemistry	…	…	…	…	32,024	34,089
Geology	…	…	…	…	1,149	1,322
Metallurgy (non-ferrous)	…	…	…	…	168	139
Metallurgy (General)	…	…	…	…	6,079	6,199
Nature Study	…	…	…	…	671	599
Physics (including applied mathematics)	…	…	…	…	38,912	40,677
Physiology	…	…	…	…	3,195	3,464
Zoology	…	…	…	…	1,571	1,795
General Science	…	…	…	…	42,023	45,245
TOTALS	…	…	…	…	410,400	429,282

Engineering and allied industries:
Metal manufacture	…	…	…	…	…	4,734	5,062
Engineering	…	…	…	…	…	194,760	202,057
Electrical and wireless engineering	…	…	…	…	…	67,473	68,463
Aeronautical and allied subjects	…	…	…	…	…	1,149	1,176
Watch, clock and instrument making	…	…	…	…	…	1,448	1,708
TOTALS	…	…	…	…	…	269,564	278,466
N.B.—The figures for evening classes represent enrolments, not individual students. If a student enrols for e.g., two classes he is counted twice in these figures. Some of these students also attended during the day, and are therefore included also in the statistics for day courses.

asked the Minister of Education how many students in 1955–56 in all types of courses in science, engineering and craft subjects were in courses leading to university degrees, diplomas, professional qualifications, higher national certificates, (ordinary) national certificates,

In grant aided establishments of further education (other than art establishments and evening institutes) the number of engineering and science students recorded as studying for examinations in 1954–55 was as follows:

	Engineering (including craft)		Science
	Full time	Part-time day	Full time	Part-time day
University degrees (including preliminary)	1,209	1,128	2,279	5,184
National certificates (including Diplomas H.N.C. and H.N.D.)	2,229	68,115	74	10,829
City and Guilds	185	43,184	—	444
General Certificate of Education	—	22	798	2,189
Other examinations, including professional and college	2,199	3,432	500	2,073

These figures were analysed for the first time in 1954–55, and comparable figures for 1955–56 are not yet available. I do not receive figures of the number of evening students sitting for these examinations.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is now in a position to make a further statement on the Government's hospital building programme.

Yes. It is proposed, subject to the voting by Parliament of the necessary funds, that £20 million shall be spent on capital developments in the hospital service in England and Wales in 1958–59, compared with £13 million this financial year and £18 million proposed for next year.Hospital boards have already been informed of their individual allocations within this total for the modernisation of mental hospitals, the replacement of obsolete plant and ordinary capital expenditure. In addition, the programme of major building projects announced by my predecessor will be extended. The programme already announced included the first phases of a number of large schemes. I hope to authorise a further phase of the new Greaves Hall Mental Deficiency Hospital to be begun next year, and further phases of some other projects in 1958–59, including Balderton Mental Deficiency Hospital and the West Wales General Hospital, Glangwili.In that year also some big schemes already announced but not ready to begin earlier are expected to make a start. As well as this, I am today inviting the boards concerned to bring to completion the planning of a number of additional major projects on the assumption that they can be started in 1958–59. These include the first phase of a new hospital at Slough; a new dental hospital at Birmingham; the reconstruction of Hillingdon Hospital; extensions to the St. Helen Hospital, Barnsley, the Orsett branch of the Tilbury and Riverside General Hospital, Poole General Hospital, Bridgend General Hospital, and Lea Castle Mental Deficiency Hospital near Kidderminster; additional hospital facilities at Kettering, extensions to the Luton and Dunstable Hospital, and new out-patient departments at the Royal Northern Hospital, Oldchurch Hospital, Romford, and Selly Oak Hospital, Birmingham.As I have already indicated, these major projects are additional to the building which will be undertaken by boards from their own share of the funds available for capital expenditure. They are a further stage in our plans to meet the need for major developments in the hospital service, and with the projects already announced constitute a programme of substantial improvements in each hospital region in England and Wales.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of people unemployed and on short-time in the Parliamentary constituency of Lewisham, North, at the latest convenient stated date; and how these figures compare with a date in July last, prior to the Suez crisis.

Statistics of unemployment are compiled only for employment exchange areas. On 12th November there were 578 wholly unemployed and 5 temporarily stopped persons on the registers of the Lewisham Employment Exchange compared with 400 and 8 on 16th July. There is of course generally an increase every year between these dates and the hon. Member will be happy to know that the latest figure of unemployment is lower than the November figure for any post-war year with the exception of 1955.

asked the Minister of Labour the number of people unemployed and on short-time in the Parliamentary constituency of Carmarthen at the latest convenient stated date and how these figures compare with a date in July last, prior to the Suez crisis.

363 persons were registered as wholly unemployed and 5 as temporarily stopped at the 5 employment exchanges in the Carmarthen Parliamentary constituency on 12th November. The corresponding figures on 16th July were 327 and 13. There is of course generally an increase every year between these dates and the hon. Member will be happy to know that the latest figure of unemployment is lower than the November figure for any post-war year with the exception of 1954.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is now in a position to make a statement about the progress of the hospital building programme first announced on 9th February, 1955.

Yes. The total provision for capital expenditure on hospital building in Scotland will be increased from its present level of £2·2 million this year to £2·5 million in 1957–58 and to £2·7 million in 1958–59. From these sum approximately £1·3 million will be available to Regional Hospital Boards for their ordinary building programmes. Allotments of £350,000 and £300,000 are being made in the year 1957–58 and 1958–59 respectively for the special programme of plant renewal. The balance of the money will be allocated to further the progress of those major building schemes at present under construction and to begin six new major schemes.At present work is being carried out on eight schemes, the total estimated cost of which is £3·25 million. These schemes are: