asked the Minister of Health to what extent the number of student nurses in mental and mental deficiency hospitals increased or decreased in 1955–56; and by how many.

The number increased by 831 between 31st December, 1955, and 30th September, 1956.

asked the Minister of Health the estimated difference in cost of maintaining a private bed as against a public bed in hospitals within the High Wycombe and District Hospital Group.

Separate costs for the private beds at the hospitals in this group are not available. I am however writing to my hon. Friend giving him the available information about costs and charges to private patients in these hospitals.

asked the Minister of Health to what extent the lessons learnt by the Hospital Organisation and Methods Service in assignments at individual hospitals are circulated in general form to all other relevant hospitals.

The circumstances of individual hospitals vary so widely that only rarely does an assignment at one hospital produce lessons capable of general application. But it is hoped that the eight comparative studies which are in course of completion will produce lessons of value to all hospitals.

asked the Minister of Health to what extent the number of nursing auxiliaries increased between 1955 and 1956, both whole-time and part-time, and by how many, respectively.

Yes. The numbers of whole-time and part-time nursing auxiliaries increased between 31st December, 1955, and 30th September, 1956, by 89 and 1,318 respectively.

asked the Minister of Health the result of his examination of treatment available for sufferers from multiple sclerosis in this country; and what action he proposes to take to make clinical treatment on a more comprehensive scale available through the National Health Service for sufferers from this disease.

I have no evidence to suggest that sufferers from multiple sclerosis are not receiving through the National Health Service the best treatment possible in the present state of our knowledge of the disease.

asked the Minister of Health with which countries reciprocal arrangements have been made to allow British nationals health services and hospital care on terms comparable to those enjoyed free of charge by foreign nationals visiting Great Britain; and with which countries negotiations to this end are proceeding.

An agreement is in force enabling British nationals in Sweden, including tourists, to use the health services there on the same terms as Swedish residents. A similar agreement with Norway has been signed but is not yet in force. Others are under consideration with Denmark, Yugoslavia and Finland.

asked the Minister of Health the total annual cost of the orange juice provided under the Welfare Food Scheme to babies and expectant mothers.

The estimated net cost to the Exchequer of providing welfare orange juice to children under two and expectant mothers in England and Wales is at present approximately £1 million a year.

asked the Minister of Health on what basis it is assumed that earnings from private practice by general practitioners amount to £2 million a year and that this figure has remained unchanged since 1948.

The figure of £2 million has been used in the calculation of the central pool because Mr. Justice Danckwerts adopted it in his award. From and including the financial year 1952–53 it has been used on a provisional basis and is subject to retrospective adjustment should it be found by enquiry to have been too high or too low.

asked the Minister of Health the losses incurred by non-collection of prescription charges from dispensing doctors in 1953–54, 1954–55, 1955–56 and 1956–57, respectively.

It is not possible to give precise figures on reliable estimates; but the executive councils take up individual cases where the amounts collected seem inadequate.

asked the Prime Minister (1) in view of the expense caused to the taxpayer, why the Atomic Energy Authority has found it necessary to purchase a 100-bedroomed hotel in Bournemouth virtually on the seafront;(2) the cost to the Atomic Energy Authority of the recent purchase of the Durley Hall Hotel, Bournemouth.

I have been asked to reply.My right hon. Friend understands that the Atomic Energy Authority has purchased the Durley Hall Hotel as a hostel for accommodation of staff who will be working at the Winfrith Heath Establishment. This is a matter of day-to-day administration of the Authority's affairs in which my right hon. Friend does not regard it as his duty to intervene.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what decision with regard to the lifting of the embargo on the export to Russia and China of petrol and aviation spirit was arrived at by the 15-nation committee which recently met in Paris.

I have nothing to add to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade to the hon. Member on 27th February.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will confer with the Secretary of State for the Colonies in respect of European refugees in Hong Kong, with a view to ensuring their assistance and transportation elsewhere through the United Nations or otherwise.

Yes. My right hon. and learned Friend already has this matter under consideration with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Colonies. But I should explain that responsibility for the maintenance of these refugees in transit in Hong Kong lies in the first place with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, whilst their transportation elsewhere is a matter for the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if, in order to strengthen the authority of the United Nations Organisation for world peace, he will instruct Her Majesty's Government's representative at the United Nations to initiate fresh steps to secure the admission to this organisation of the People's Republic of China; and if he will make a statement.

No. Given the deep divisions of opinion which exist on this matter in the United Nations, Her Majesty's Government still consider that, far from strengthening the authority of the United Nations, further moves at present towards the seating in that Organisation of representatives of the People's Republic might well have the contrary effect.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the statement made by the Chinese People's Government that it will withdraw all Chinese armed forces from North Korea by the end of 1958; and what action the British Government, as one of the signatories of the Korean Armistice Agreement, will now take, in the interest of peace in the Far East, with respect to a similar withdrawal of United Nations forces from South Korea.

Her Majesty's Government welcome any move which may help to reduce tension and prepare the way to a peaceful settlement of the Korean problem on the lines approved by the United Nations. The withdrawal of troops was, however, only one of the Communist proposals and Her Majesty's Government are in process of examining these as a whole, as are the other Governments who contributed forces to the United Nations Command in Korea. It would be premature to make a statement on the attitude which Her Majesty's Government will adopt towards the proposals until they have had a full discussion with the other Governments concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what invitation Her Majesty's Government has received from the Ethiopian Government to a conference on the Nile waters.

None.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is now able to make a statement on bacon pig prices following on the representations which have been made to him by the National Farmers' Union and the Fat-stock Marketing Corporation.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Taunton (Mr. du Cann) on 27th February.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the number of grey squirrels killed in 1955, 1956 and 1957 for which 2s. per tail was paid.

In 1955, 1956 and 1957 the numbers of grey squirrel tails for which payment was made were 145,000, 218,000 and 351,000 respectively. The rate in 1956 and 1957 was 2s. per tail, but in 1955 was only 1s. In spite of the above figures the squirrel population showed a considerable increase in 1957.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will institute an inquiry into the possibility of banning imports of meat from Argentina, with special reference to the estimates of the shortfall in our beef requirement if imports from that source were totally banned, and of the cost to the British consumer and taxpayer if the the home and dominions industries were stimulated to expand beef production so as to make up the shortfall; what the effect would be of such stimulation on other forms of meat production; and how the cost to the British people would compare with the payments for compensation and the cost of precautionary measures in foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks attributable to meat from South America, including, if possible, an estimate of the cost to the British agricultural industry of the loss caused by the destruction of cattle.

No. I have already examined very thoroughly the arguments for and against banning imports of Argentine meat, and I am satisfied that the balance of advantage to the taxpayer and the consumer is in favour of continuing to allow these imports, which provide about 20 per cent. of our beef and 15 per cent. of our total meat supplies. But we shall, of course, continue to take all the steps that we can, with the co-operation of the Argentine authorities, to reduce the risk of introducing the disease.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the cost of dealing with outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease and the amount of compensation paid to farmers for livestock slaughtered in the past two years, to the latest convenient date; the total time in this period when one or other part of the country has not been affected by foot-and-mouth disease; and to what extent it has been possible to attribute the primary outbreaks to particular sources of infection.

I regret that no estimate is readily available of the total cost to public funds of dealing with outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in a particular period, but I will write to my hon. Friend.The compensation paid in the year ended 31st March, 1957, was about £820,000 and during the present financial year to 31st December, 1957, the compensation paid was approximately £720,000. Great Britain has been free from the disease for about 16 weeks over the last two years.In 1956, 17 primary outbreaks were attributed to South American meat and 11 to the spread of infection from the continent of Europe, and in 4 cases the origin was obscure. The comparable figures for 1957 are 23, 17 and 3, and for the first two months of 1958. 2, 9 and 6 respectively.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is aware of the practice adopted by the police in the Liverpool area, of collecting stray dogs during an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in that area; and if he will take steps by legislation or otherwise to enforce this practice in all other parts of the country when there is an outbreak of the disease.

The regulations require dogs within a radius of five miles of any infected place to be kept under control, and empower the local authority or the police to seize any dog not so kept under control and to deal with it as a stray dog.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will give consideration to forbidding organised shooting parties to travel in a foot-and-mouth disease infected area.

I accept the view of the Gowers Committee on foot-and-mouth disease that the danger of spread by people and animals in infected areas cannot be met by rules and prohibitions unless the danger is immediate and palpable. The regulations in force are intended to prevent the assembly of large numbers of people in infected areas, and point-to-point race meetings, for example, are prohibited. Dogs must be kept under effective control within a five-mile radius of infected places. Otherwise, I am satisfied that it is best to deal with specific cases as they arise.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proportion of the sheep in England and Wales is suffering from the disease of foot-rot.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to what extent it is possible to eliminate foot-rot from a flock on every type and condition of soil.

Appropriate treatment and the segregation of affected animals can lead to the eradication of foot-rot from a flock. Wet pasture favours the spread of infection if already present but does not itself cause the trouble. The disease spreads more rapidly when sheep are closely folded on wet land in the winter than when they are grazing dry pasture in the summer. Once foot-rot is eradicated the flock will remain free from it unless the infection is reintroduced by other sheep.I am sending the hon. Member a copy of a leaflet on the subject.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance how many persons in receipt of National Assistance in the County of Norfolk, including Norwich, have so far received assistance arising from the operation of the Rent Act, 1957; and what is the total amount of the assistance so far given in this way.

I am informed by the National Assistance Board that in its five offices in the County of Norfolk, which also serve a small part of Suffolk, 2,143 weekly assistance grants had been increased up to 15th February, by an average of 6s., to provide for rent increases under the Rent Act. For reasons previously explained it is not possible to calculate the total amount of this additional assistance.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance how many weekly grants have been increased by the National Assistance Board in Accrington, Rishton, Church, Clayton-le-Moors and Oswaldtwistle to meet increases in rent under the Rent Act, 1957.

The National Assistance Board regrets that information is not available for the localities mentioned but informs me that in its office in Accrington which serves those localities and also Great Harwood, Clitheroe, and Roe, 625 weekly assistance grants had been increased up to 15th February to provide for rent increases under the Rent Act.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance by what amount the purchasing power of the retirement pension for a single person decreased between the passing of the National Insurance Act, 1946, and October, 1951; and what was the corresponding figure between November, 1951, and the latest convenient date.

In October, 1951, most retirement pensions were at the recently increased weekly rate of 30s., but some pensioners under age 70–65 for women—were only entitled at the 26s. rate. On the basis of the Cost of Living Index for the period up to June, 1947, and the Retail Prices Index thereafter, 30s. in October, 1951, was about 10 per cent. below the value of 26s. in August, 1946. For those entitled in October, 1951, at the 26s. rate, the value of the pension showed a 22 per cent. decrease compared with 1946. The 50s. payable today is worth about 30 per cent. more than 30s. in November, 1951, and about 50 per cent. more than 26s. at the same date.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what would be the cost of increasing the scale of allowances under the Workmen's Compensation and Benefit (Supplementation) Act, 1956, by a proportion similar to the last increase in retirement pensions.

About £100,000 a year.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance whether he is aware that because of the depreciation in the value of the pound since the passing of the National Insurance Act. 1946, there are many students and articled clerks who are receiving grants, scholarship repayments of premiums and similar incomes in excess of the minimum figure below which National Insurance contributions need not be made; whether he is aware that this is causing hardship to many students and articled clerks which the National Insurance Act, 1946, was intended to avoid; and what steps he proposes to take to rectify this growing injustice.

Students under full-time education and unpaid articled clerks are not compelled to pay contributions. There is provision for people on a very low rate of earnings to pay a smaller share of the contribution; the limit for this was increased in 1955. In the case of self- and non-employed persons the limit for the small-income exception was also raised in 1955. I doubt whether the time is yet appropriate for a further review of these limits, but I will bear my hon. Friend's suggestion in mind.

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

Sixty-eight hours in 1956, and 51 hours in 1957.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance 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.

Sixty-five hours in 1956 and 31 hours in 1957.

asked the Paymaster-General the total compensation paid out so far for subsidiary interests in the coal mining industry; and what amount is still outstanding to be paid.

£126,647,806, all of which has been paid.

asked the Paymaster-General the total amount of compensation paid, due to the nationalisation of the mining industry; and how much of this total is in respect of collieries.

£291,996,216, including £689,137 in respect of severance claims, and £164,659,273 for interests of coal industry value.

asked the Paymaster-General (1) if he will make a statement on the domestic coal position in South Wales, with particular reference to the area of south-east Glamorgan;

I am making inquiries and will write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Paymaster-General what stocks are held on sites or central stocking grounds of opencast coal; and what proportion can be described as small or slack coal.

3·65 million tons at 15th February, of which some two-thirds may be described as small or slack coal.

asked the Paymaster-General whether, in view of the shrinkage of demand for mined coal, it is now proposed to stop any new opencast operations.

No.

asked the Paymaster-General to what extent the Fleck Committee recommendations dealing with the desired increase in administrative staff of the National Coal Board have now been carried out; and what is the present percentage of administrative staff now employed by the Board.

I understand that nearly all of the reorganisation, on which the Board decided following the Fleck Report, has now been put into effect and the necessary staff appointed. The administrative staff is now 0·7 per cent. of the Board's total employees.

asked the Paymaster-General how many uneconomic mines are still being worked by the National Coal Board; and in what areas of the Board.

The Board is at all times operating some pits at a profit and others at a loss. Pits frequently move from one category to the other and no useful conclusion can be drawn from the numbers of pits working at a particular level of loss at any given time. The colliery profit and loss accounts of the Board's areas are published with the Board's Annual Report and Accounts.

asked the Paymaster-General the estimated amount of coal for export this calendar year; and what markets are available to us for export.

More coal is available for export this year. The markets for British coal lie mainly in Western Europe and demand there is, at present, limited.

asked the Paymaster-General whether, in view of the large amount of coal stocks in the country, he will institute a scheme for cheap coal allocation to old-age pensioners on National Assistance.

No. It is not the intention of the Government to extend benefits in kind.

asked the Paymaster-General why he will not re-introduce price control on petrol.

I believe that competition offers the best safeguard to the consumer.

asked the Paymaster-General if he will take steps to arrange that on every pump from which petrol is sold is displayed the octane rating, so that a motorist will know what quality of petrol he is buying and can select the cheapest kind which will give the best result in his particular engine.

This is a matter for the oil trade, but a difficulty about the hon. Member's suggestion is that quality and suitability often do not depend on octane number alone.

asked the Paymaster-General when he proposes to consult those who are interested in the contents of the regulations to be made under the Thermal Insulation (Industrial Buildings) Act, 1957, having regard to the fact that the regulations must come into force not later than January, 1959.

Preliminary proposals for regulations have now been circulated to representative organisations for comment. My noble Friend would be glad to arrange on request for copies to be sent to any other interested organization which may unintentionally have been omitted from the circulation list. Copies of the proposals are being placed in the Library together with a list of the organisations to which they have been circulated.

asked the Paymaster-General how many ore-carrying ships and of what tonnage are now owned by,the Iron and Steel Federation for carrying ore to the iron and steel industry; when they were ordered; and when they came into service.

The British Iron and Steel Federation does not itself own ships but its wholly owned subsidiary, the British Iron and Steel Corporation (Ore) Ltd., which arranges the chartering of ships, has a financial interest in seven companies formed to buy and operate ore carriers. The companies have ordered a total of 31 ships. Thirteen of them—7 of 14-16,000 tons and 6 of 8-9,000—have come into service at varying dates since March, 1954, and the remaining 18, all of 14-16,000 tons, are expected to be in service by 1962.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the recent shipping of armoured cars and anti-aircraft guns in a British vessel from Singapore to the anti-Indonesian Government rebels in Central Sumatra was done with the authority of the British Government.

My information is that no warlike materials have been shipped recently to Indonesia from Singapore.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many persons from British Colonies, Protectorates or Trusteeship Territories are receiving technical training under the International Civil Aviation Organisation, and from which territories.

Two persons from British Honduras are receiving technical training under the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is satisfied that the present Constitution of Mauritius discourages racial consciousness and voting on racial lines; and what action he proposes to take with a view to preventing Mauritian issues being scrutinised by leading politicians in the light of purely communal, class or racial interests.

The Constitution gives all sections of opinion in Mauritius the opportunity to co-operate with one another in the administration of the Colony's affairs. I hope that co-operation of this kind will help to remove the barriers which at present exist between the various communities. Most of the leading politicians in Mauritius are already anxious to get away from the purely communal approach to politics and are deeply conscious of the need for greater awareness among members of all sections of the population that their first and foremost loyalty is to the island of Mauritius as a whole.

asked the Minister of Defence which members of the Government have visited the Imperial Defence College during the last twelve months.

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations; the Lord President of the Council; the Minister of Labour and National Service; one of the Ministers of State for Foreign Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Oswestry (Mr. Ormsby Gore); and the Minister of State for Colonial Affairs.

asked the Secretary of State for War the sum spent on advertising for recruits in the Press and in other ways in 1957.

This service is undertaken on behalf of the Army by the Central Office of Information. Its estimated expenditure on recruiting advertisements in the current financial year is £230,000.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he will give the monthly figures of recruits entering the Royal Scots Fusiliers and the Highland Light Infantry for the last six months as compared with the six months in 1956–57.

Following is the information:

—		Royal Scots Fusiliers		Highland Light Infantry
		1957	1956	1957	1956
August	…	6	7	9	25
September	…	13	13	8	13
October	…	8	14	6	19
November	…	5	6	3	11
December	…	2	8	4	6
		1958	1957	1958	1957
January	…	7	15	15	23

These figures include transfers to Regular engagements by National Service men, which were omitted from my predecessor's Written Answer on 13th November, 1957.

asked the Secretary of State for Air what fire brigades were notified of the crash of a tanker aircraft at Sculthorpe, Norfolk, in December, 1957; and which brigades attended the accident.

The crash landing made by a U.S.A.F. tanker aircraft at Sculthorpe on 6th December, 1957, was dealt with by the U.S.A.F., and the civil fire brigades were not summoned.

asked the Secretary of State for Air what use is to be made of Detling Royal Air Force Station, Kent; and what provisions are being made to keep it in good order until a decision is made about its future.

We are disposing of this airfield. Valuable equipment has been removed and the site is visited periodically by officers from a nearby station. Expenditure on maintenance, or on a permanent guard, would not be justified.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases since 1945 he has been unable to enforce a deportation order owing to the refusal of any other Government to recognise the prospective deportee as its national; and what steps he has in mind to overcome the resulting anomalies, which have the effect of bringing the law and its administration into disrepect.

During the period 1945 to 1957 inclusive, 115 deportation orders were not enforced because there was no country which was willing to accept the alien. The grant or refusal of recognition for nationality purposes is a matter entirely within the jurisdiction of the country concerned.

asked the Minister of Supply to what extent the level of employment is assured in the Birtley, County Durham, Royal Ordnance Factory; and what are the prospects for the future.

Although the future of employment at any factory depends on the level of orders, which is not entirely predictable, I feel reasonably confident that we shall be able to maintain stable employment at R.O.F. Birtley for some time to come.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he has yet received the Eighth Annual Report and Statement of Accounts of the National Research Development Corporation.

Yes. As required by Sections 4 (5) and 10 (5) of the Development of Inventions Act, 1948, I have arranged for these documents to be laid before the House today; and the Report will be published tomorrow.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury how much overtime was performed by the staff of the Customs and Excise 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 average expenditure on overtime per head of all staff employed in the Customs and Excise Department during 1956 and 1957 amounted to £71 18s. 0d. and £68 18s. 0d., respectively, a substantial proportion of which was recovered each year from the merchants at whose request some of it was worked.

asked the Minister of Works if he will consider the experimental testing of the staff locator system in the Palace of Westminster with a view to considering the possibility of its use for Members of Parliament.

All known staff locator systems suffer from the disadvantage that a number of other people would be disturbed besides the particular Member being called.These systems are also expensive, and bearing in mind the complex and varied facilities which exist within the Palace of Westminster, they offer no reasonable hope of improvement upon the existing system of calling Members by messenger.

asked the Minister of Labour the numbers registered as unemployed in the County of Durham at 30th January, 1957, and 30th January, 1958, respectively, of bricklayers, carpenters, painters, plumbers and building trades labourers, giving the figures for each trade separately.

The following table gives the information desired:

NUMBERS OF MEN REGISTERED AS WHOLLY UNEMPLOYED IN DURHAM COUNTY AT 11TH FEBRUARY, 1957, AND 17TH FEBRUARY, 1958, WHOSE LAST EMPLOYMENT WAS IN THE BUILDING INDUSTRY
—	11th February, 1957	17th February, 1958
Bricklayers	75	102
Carpenters	37	93
Painters	98	167
Plumbers	7	10
Building trades labourers	339	346
All other occupations (including general labourers)	514	714
Total, Building Industry	1,070	1,432

asked the Minister of Labour what are now the percentage figures of unemployment in North Staffordshire and in Newcastle-under-Lyme, respectively.

2·2 per cent. in North Staffordshire and 3·6 per cent. in Newcastle-under-Lyme at 13th January.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether the aircraft support and repair carriers H.M.S. "Unicorn" and H.M.S. "Perseus" are to be sold or scrapped, in view of their exclusion from the strength of the fleet table in this year's explanatory statement to the Navy Estimates.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether the aircraft carriers H.M.S. "Glory," "Ocean" and "Theseus" have been or will be sold or scrapped, in view of their exclusion from the strength of the fleet table in this year's explanatory statement to the Navy Estimates.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether the cruisers H.M.S. "Liverpool," "Glasgow," "Dido," "Bellona" and "Cleopatra" and the destroyers H.M.S. "Zambesi," "Zebra," "Zephyr," and "Savage" are to be sold or scrapped, in view of their exclusion from the strength of the fleet table in this year's explanatory statement to the Navy Estimates.

All these ships are surplus to naval requirements as now foreseen, and will be disposed of either by sale or scrapping.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of bringing forward H.M.S. "Lennox" from Reserve in 1956; and how much has been spent on refitting and docking her since then.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of bringing forward H.M.S. "Orestes" from Reserve in 1956; and how much has been spent on refitting and docking her since then.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of bringing forward H.M.S. "Hound" from Reserve in 1956; and how much has been spent on refitting and docking her since then.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of refitting and docking H.M.S. "Bramble" in the financial years ended 31st March, 1956, and 31st March, 1957.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of refitting and docking H.M.S. "Welcome" in the financial years ended 31st March, 1956, and 31st March, 1957.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of bringing forward H.M.S. "Wave" from Reserve in 1956; and how much has been spent on refitting and docking her since then.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty the total cost of refitting and docking H.M.S. "Mariner" in the financial years ended 31st March, 1956, and 31st March, 1957.

Information precisely in the form requested is not readily available but expenditure on refits, repairs and dockings for the ships named is as follows:

Ship		1955–56	1956–57
		£	£
H.M.S. LENNOX	…	147,346	144,488
H.M.S. ORESTES	…	145,230	127,083
H.M.S. HOUND	…	173,865	143,457
H.M.S. BRAMBLE	…	50,828	140,062
H.M.S. WELCOME	…	76,727	10,734
H.M.S. WAVE	…	Nil	138,534
H.M.S. MARINER	…	40,512	6,558