asked the Minister of Health if he will set out in tabular form the issues of foods provided for children

WELFARE FOODS
ISSUES IN ENGLAND AND WALES TO CHILDREN UNDER FIVE AND EXPECTANT MOTHERS
Period				Cod liver oil	Concentrated orange juice	National dried milk
				(million bottles)	(million bottles)	(million tins of 20 oz.)
Year	…	…	1945	5·5	44·2	11·9
"	…	…	1950	8·6	34·3	25·1
"	…	…	1952	8·6	35·2	23·9
"	…	…	1954	6·1	28·2	23·3
"	…	…	1955	5·3	30·0	20·2
"	…	…	1956	4·8	32·4	19·7
1st 6 months	…	…	1957	2·2	18·2	8·6

1. No figures are available for children separately.2. In 1938, local authorities, as maternity and child welfare authorities, supplied 7·5 million lb. of dried milk. No figures are available for supplies of cod liver oil and other foods.3. The figures in the table relate to foods supplied through the Welfare Foods Service. Originally supplies were distributed largely through local Food Offices but since July, 1954, responsibility has rested with local health authorities who have arranged for distribution from child welfare centres and other distribution points.4. Local health authorities may supply other foods as required as part of their maternal and child welfare services, but figures are not available.

asked the Minister of Health what facilities exist to encourage new entrants in the optical branch of the Health Service; and whether he is satisfied with present day recruitment.

I have no evidence of any general shortage of opticians in the Health Service and I understand that recruitment into the profession has improved recently. No special facilities appear therefore to be needed.

asked the Minister of Health if he is aware that it is now five years since a Royal Commission under Lord Crook recommended the registration of opticians, and that unqualified persons are practising as opticians, especially in rural areas; and if he will make a statement on Government policy on this matter.

It has not up to the present been possible to find Parliamentary

The following is the information available:time to introduce Government legislation to provide for the registration of opticians, but the hon. Member will be aware that a Bill on this subject has been presented by the hon. Member for Wembley, South (Mr. Russell) under the arrangements for Private Members' Bills.

asked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that many applicants, particularly those of assistant status, are dissatisfied with the present methods of selection exercised by executive councils in the filling of general practice vacancies; and, in view of the fact that the number of applicants for such vacancies is considerably in excess of the available vacancies, if he will instruct executive councils to have scrupulous regard to procedures of selection so that all applicants are satisfied that they have had a fair chance of selection.

The selection of candidates for advertised vacancies is the responsibility of the Medical Practices Committee. The Committee is constantly in touch with executive councils, who usually make the preliminary selection and who are well aware that their procedure must satisfy the Committee.Any applicant for an advertised vacancy, whether assistant or principal, may appeal to me against the decision of the Medical Practices Committee. The appeals I receive suggest that appellants are usually dissatisfied not with the procedure of selection but rather with the fact that they themselves were not chosen.

asked the Minister of Health how many general practice vacancies were filled by executive councils during 1955 and 1956; and how many of these vacancies were granted to doctors who had previously practised as principals, as principals in the same executive council area, and as assistants in the same executive council area, respectively.

The figures for single handed practices declared vacant by executive councils in England and Wales are as follows:

	1955	1956
No. of vacancies	114	114
No. filled by principals	34	26
No. filled by principals in same executive council area	21	15
No. filled by assistants in same executive council area	16	14

asked the Minister of Labour if he is satisfied with the present employment exchange arrangements for the new town of East Kilbride; and if he will make a statement.

I am satisfied that the temporary building erected in 1953 for the employment exchange at East Kilbride is adequate for normal requirements until the new town is more fully developed.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of the 291,000 private companies on the register in the United Kingdom at March, 1956, or the nearest convenient date, came within the definition of companies under Section 256, so as to be liable to have their income apportioned for Surtax purposes under Section 245 of the Income Tax Act, 1952; and for how many of those companies were directions issued by the Special Commissioners in respect of the year ended 31st March, 1956.

The information asked for in the first part of the Question is not available. As regards the second part of the Question, the number of companies to which notice of a Surtax direction was given by the Special Commissioners during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1956, was 716, of which 632 were investment companies which are subject to automatic direction.

asked the Minister of Works what action has been, or is being taken to meet the need for an adequate employment exchange at the new town of East Kilbride.

I am in negotiation with the East Kilbride Development Corporation about the long-term provision of Government offices in the proposed new town centre at East Kilbride, but I do not expect these offices will be required for a few years yet.