asked the Minister of Health how much overtime was performed by the staff of his Department during 1956 and 1957, respectively, expressed as a yearly average calculated on the total number of staff, whether actually employed on overtime or not.

The figures, which are for non-industrial staff, are:—

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table showing how much out of every £500 a year increase in earned income between £2,000 and £5,000 a year is taken by the Exchequer in Income Tax and Surtax.

The following are the figures:

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the estimated cost to the revenue of raising the allowances for Income Tax so as to exempt completely all persons paying less than £50 per annum in Income Tax and to reduce the Income Tax paid by all those paying more than £50, by £50.

£650 million, assuming the benefit extended to wives' earnings.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many persons pay more than £50 a year in Income Tax; how many pay less; and how many are altogether exempted by the operation of existing allowances.

Out of the total of 20¾ million taxpayers 7¾ million pay more than £50 a year in income tax and 13 million less. Working wives are counted separately.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will arrange to publish the results of the sample inquiry undertaken by the Inland Revenue into doctors' expenses which were made available to the British Medical Association in 1955.

No.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement about the future activities of British Lion Films Limited.

A number of independent British film producers of standing are joining the Board of British Lion Films Limited. The company will continue to distribute films and to give distribution guarantees to independent producers generally. Some of these facilities will now be in respect of films produced by subsidiary companies.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will arrange that Ministry graders at Fatstock Marketing Corporation abattoirs only decide whether carcases are eligible for subsidy or not and are not required to mark them with an indication of grade.

The main function of Ministry graders at slaughterhouses is to decide the eligibility of carcases for the fatstock guarantees. Where carcases are graded, this is done at the request of the Fatstock Marketing Corporation or other wholesalers, who buy fatstock on the basis of grade and deadweight. In such cases, the graders either mark the grades on the carcases or on labels affixed to the carcases, according to the wishes of the person who has asked for the grading service.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is aware that the South of Scotland Electricity Board, for whose offices a site had been reserved in East Kilbride, has obtained a building in Cathcart for adaptation to offices; and to what extent the Government refused permission for the Board to build in East Kilbride.

Yes. The Board announced its acquisition of the building in Cathcart on 20th February, 1957. The site at East Kilbride had been selected for offices by the former South West Scotland Electricity Board in 1950; but a starting date for building was not authorised because of the priority given at the time to factory building and housing. After the electricity reorganisation in Scotland, the South of Scotland Board informed the East Kilbride Development Corporation on 15th September, 1955, that in view of the changed circumstances arising from the reorganisation there was no prospect of developing the East Kilbride site.