asked the Minister of Education whether he is aware of the shortage of teachers in Sunderland; and what particular measures he is taking to overcome this problem.

I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of Circular 345, which deals with the distribution of teachers. I have no reason to think that any special measures are required in Sunderland.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will publish a list of all barter agreements in force between countries, both of whom are contracting parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which have been reported officially to its Secretariat, together with the total value of the trade involved; and what representations he has made through that organisation, in view of the fact that such agreements violate the principle of non-discrimination.

Such agreements are not reported to the Secretariat of the General Agreement, and if my hon. Friend has in mind any particular agreement which discriminates against us, perhaps he would let me have the details and I will gladly look into them.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if the proposed new standards for flammability have yet been fixed.

The British Standards Institution have now prepared the standard for a high degree of flame-resistance, but they are still working on the one for non-flammability.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when he intends to take action to improve the supply of statistics on emigration.

It is expected that improvements will be introduced in the course of this year.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the level of unemployment in Lanarkshire, he will, in appropriate cases, authorise the building of Government-financed factories for tenants prepared to set up industry there.

We shall be prepared to consider erecting factories for leasing to firms wishing to set up or expand in North Lanarkshire, where unemployment is exceptionally high.I do not consider that there is need to extend this form of assistance to South Lanarkshire, where unemployment is by no means as high, but this will be kept under review.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement on the financial talks now proceeding in Cairo between the Egyptian and Her Majesty's Governments in connection with matters concerned with the recent Suez war; and to what extent these talks guaranteed to Her Majesty's Government the return of the Suez Canal to the former shareholders, the return to Her Majesty's Government of the property seized by Colonal Nasser at the Suez Base, full and complete compensation for all losses incurred by British subjects and investors in Egypt and the continuation of the freezing of Egypt's sterling balances by Great Britain.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the Anglo-Egyptian Financial Agreement initialled in Cairo on 16th January.

I would refer the right hon. Gentleman and hon. Gentleman to the reply which I gave yesterday to my hon. Friend the member for Twickenham (Mr. Gresham Cooke).

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give permission for the borrowing by the Plymouth City Council and the Cornwall County Council of the moneys required to enable the Tamar Bridge Joint Committee to start work this spring on the construction of the bridge, so as to enable communications to be improved, and help unemployment and the encouragement of new industry in the south-west.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will grant permssion to the Tamar Bridge Joint Committee to borrow the necessary moneys to enable construction work on the bridge to proceed without delay.

My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer is at present considering with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation proposals by the Tamar Bridge Joint Committee for a starting date for the construction of this project. Until that is settled, the question of borrowing consent does not arise.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the comparative purchasing power today, after allowing for depreciation of the stock and the reduced purchasing power of the £, of £100 invested in 1932 3½ per cent. War Loan, and in 1946 2½ per cent. Treasury stock, respectively.

About £22 and £30 respectively.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state his estimate of the revenue likely to be received for the year 1958–59 from the Pool Betting Duty on greyhound racecourse totalisators; and if he will give an estimate of what percentage of the money actually spent on greyhound totalisator betting is represented by this tax.

My right hon. Friend included £6·15 million for this duty in his Budget estimate. The duty is 10 per cent. of the money staked and of course applies to winnings in so far as they are reinvested during the course of the meeting.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate for the year 1958–59 of the total number of gross incomes from £180 to £1,000, £1,001 to £5,000, and over £5,000, respectively; and what total tax is likely to be paid by each category.

The following estimates are provisional and subject to later revision.

Range of Income before tax		Number of Incomes	Incomes before tax paid	Income Tax and surtax
£		Million	£ million	£ million
180–1,000	…	18·43	10,300	710
1,001–5,000	…	2·5	3,700	690
Over 5,000	…	0·07	600	350
Total	…	21·0	14,600	1,750

Income from all sources is included. Married couples are counted as single income units. Incomes exempt from tax on account of age are excluded.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in view of the fact that there are a number of permanently disabled persons who have post-war credits standing in their name and who, owing to their disabilities will never work again, many who are bedridden and existing on National Assistance, if he will consider paying them their post-war credits where a medical certificate can be produced.

My right hon. Friend has noted the hon. Member's suggestion.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what is the total area of the alienated land known as the White Highlands in Kenya; what is the area of this land receiving 20 inches of rainfall per year; and what is it expressed as a percentage of the total area in Kenya receiving a 20-inch rainfall.

The Highlands include 13,355 square miles of alienated land and land available for alienation. Ninety-five per cent. of the whole Highlands area, including Crown forests, receives an average rainfall of more than 20 inches a year. This represents 17 per cent. of the total area of Kenya receiving over 20 inches of rain.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when the Highlands of Kenya will be opened up for farming by Africans.

I have nothing to add to what was said by my hon. Friend, now Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, when the hon. Member raised the subject on the adjournment on 30th October.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what consultations were held with African elected members before it was decided to ban African political meetings so that police might have time to rehearse prior to a Royal visit to Kenya.

I am consulting the Government of Kenya and will circulate a further reply in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps have been taken to establish a system of arbitration on industrial disputes in Singapore to which a question can be referred by either of the participants when it is likely to start or has started; and what is being done to establish any method similar to those which exist in this country for the settlement of industrial problems.

Under Industrial Courts Ordinance, 1940, the provisions of which are similar to those of the United Kingdom Industrial Courts Act, 1919, there are facilities for settling trade disputes by conciliation and arbitration, and an Industrial Court has been established.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware that the people chiefly concerned with the new constitution of Malta are the inhabitants of the island; and, in view of the breakdown of negotiations with the representatives of the former Government of Malta, what steps he proposes to take to ascertain the wishes of the people of the island.

The answer to the first part of the Question is, Yes.On the second part, I am sure that the Governor will take any opportunity that offers to ascertain the wishes of the Maltese people.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if, in view of the recent reports of increasing and large-scale violence in the Kono district of Sierra Leone, he is satisfied that the police force is adequate to meet the situation, and that the penalties imposed on law breakers provide a sufficient deterrent.

I am satisfied that the need to maintain adequate forces in the area is fully recognised by the Governor. Substantial forces are already there and they could be speedily reinforced if necessary. The question of penalties is under consideration by the Sierra Leone Government.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps he is taking to prevent the law in Sierra Leone being brought into contempt by the illicit diamond miners.

The Sierra Leone Government are fully seized of the importance of restoring respect for law and order in the area. Vigorous police operations are being conducted. Revised legislation restricting the issue of residential permits came into force on 15th January. Other measures will be put before the Sierra Leone Legislature at a special meeting called for 29th January.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what progress has been made by the Government of Northern Rhodesia with regard to the plans proposed, after the closing of the Bancroft Mine, to use some of the labour available in the provinces on development schemes including three hydro-electric stations at Fort Rosebery, Abercorn and Kasama, afforestation of tracts of land, improvement of communications, development of Mpulungu Fort, near Abercorn, at the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika and intensive development of the fishing industry on productive Lake Banguelu.

pursuant to his reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 24th November, 1958; Vol. 596, c. 13], supplied the following information:The Governor of Northern Rhodesia has informed me that it is not possible to state the number of former employees of the Bancroft Mine who are presently employed on development projects in the Northern and Luapula Provinces. Applications for employment on development projects including those mentioned in the Question, from those persons repatriated from the Copperbelt are always sympathetically considered and every effort is made to place applicants in suitable forms of employment.In 1958 development projects in these Provinces have been affected by a shortage rather than a surplus of labour. In these two Provinces some 2,100 Africans are in employment with private employers and there are some 6,000 daily paid Africans employed by Government. Many of both classes are employed on development projects and under present conditions all kinds of employment are available for those ready to work.The Bancroft Mine have announced that full-scale production will be resumed on the 1st April, 1959, and in readiness for this resumption of production the Company is building up its African labour strength by recalling those who were laid off early in 1958.The response has so far been poor and of those recalled in August and September and October only 45 and 43 respectively took advantage of the offer of re-employment. It is considered that this response may indicate that many have obtained alternative employment which they are reluctant to leave.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement about the boycotting of Legislative Council elections by the national organisations in the Aden Colony.

An attempt was made by certain Arab nationalist organisations in Aden to persuade the popula- tion to boycott the recent elections: the Aden T.U.C. supported this movement. Nevertheless a large number of candidates offered themselves and, of the 12 persons elected, 9 were Arabs. The actual number of persons who voted was slightly greater than on the occasion of the last elections, though the percentage of those registered who voted was a good deal smaller.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what is being done to eliminate the disparities in the different West African pension schemes; and how far it is the intention of the British Government to standardise these pension rates.

The basic pensions paid to former officers of the three West African territories with which I am concerned are paid under Ordinances which follow a model pattern and there are no significant differences.The three Ordinances governing widows' and orphans' are also based on a common model but scales of benefits have been varied in accordance with advice received after separate actuarial reviews of the individual schemes and it is Her Majesty's Government's policy that benefits should be adjusted from time to time on the basis of such advice.Increases for pensions to meet the cost of living have been enacted by separate Ordinances in each of the three territories and while it is Her Majesty's Government's policy to advocate that such increases should be at least as generous as those granted to its own pensioners by the United Kingdom Government the final decision must rest with the local Government.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has now completed the financial agreement with the Potato Marketing Board in connection with the potato guarantee; and what are its details.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if the discussions with the Potato Marketing Board, in relation to the potato guarantee, have now been concluded; and if he will make a statement.

Discussions with the Potato Marketing Board about the new guarantee system are still going on and I cannot at present add anything to the reply given by my right hon. Friend to my hon. Friend the Member for South Angus (Sir J. Duncan) on 15th December last.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made with the Great Ouse Flood Protection Scheme; and when it is expected to be completed.

In spite of difficult weather conditions good progress has been made in the river improvement works and construction of a relief channel. My right hon. Friend expects work on the relief channel and tidal river to be completed this spring and on the rest of the river early in 1962. The third stage of the scheme, the construction of a "cut-off" channel, has not yet begun and the question of a starting date is under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many child-care officers are employed in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridge and Essex, giving the figures separately for each county, and stating how many are men and how many women.

The figures are:

County Council		Number of child-care officers employed on 31st December, 1958
		Men	Women	Total
Norfolk	…	3	7	10
East Suffolk	…	—	6	6
West Suffolk	…	1	3	4
Cambridgeshire	…	—	4	4
Essex	…	5	24	29

These figures do not include children's officers, their deputies or assistants who are employed mainly on administrative or supervisory duties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will give instructions that in all cases of road accidents in which an individual is killed, an investigation as to the percentage of alcohol in the tissue fluids shall be made, whether the person was driver, passenger or road user.

I have no power to issue such instructions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he proposes to take on the proposals made to him for the appointment of special traffic patrols to assist the police in the regulation of traffic and enforcement of the law in regard to motoring offences.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration has been given to the suggestion of the Chief Constable of Nottingham that a special corps of traffic police should be formed.

Officers of my Department have discussed informally with representatives of the Nottingham Watch Committee and with the Chief Constable proposals for the establishment of a force of civilian traffic officers under police supervision to assist in the control of street parking. I have not received any formal proposals from the Watch Committee.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider establishing a corps of traffic wardens to assist in facilitating the flow of traffic, and save police manpower by replacing police now absorbed by traffic duties.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given today to Questions by the hon. Member for Enfield, East (Mr. Ernest Davies) and my hon. Friend the Member for Wembley, South (Mr. Russell).

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the present strength and by how much this falls short of the authorised establishment of the Metropolitan Police force and the police forces for England and Wales, respectively.

—	Authorised Establishment		Strength		Deficiency
	Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women
County, City and Borough Police Forces in England and Wales	55,763	2,147	52,442	1,785	3,321	362
Metropolitan Police Force	19,501	573	16,587	486	2,914	87
Total	75,264	2,720	69,029	2,271	6,235	449

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations if he will make a statement on the constitutional changes in Basutoland.

I would refer the hon. Member to the White Paper Cmd. 637 which was laid yesterday.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what further attempt is to be made to gather information about the motives and causes of emigration, with particular reference to professional and skilled workers.

The position has not changed since I stated on 22nd May last, in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Essex, South-East (Mr. Braine) that my noble Friend did not think that in present circumstances it would be right to undertake the additional expenditure of public money necessary to conduct a special inquiry into the character and motivation of emigration from the United Kingdom. We are very ready, however, to co-operate with any organisation which wishes to study any aspect of this matter.

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation what changes he proposes in the law with regard to penalties for parking for long periods; and whether he will make a statement.

I have no proposals at present in mind for alterations in the penalties provided for unlawful parking.

The figures for 31st December, 1958, are as follows:

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether, in view of the conflicting policies in different parts of the country, he will introduce legislation with regard to the parking of cars without lights at night time.

In the London area cars are permitted to park without lights subject to certain conditions and restrictions. Outside London I consider it best to leave the statutory discretion in the hands of Chief Officers of Police, who are in the best position to judge whether parking without lights in any particular street is, on balance, desirable.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received from parents of children attending the Murray and Heatheryknowe schools at East Kilbride in protest against their removal to East Kilbride Village School.

I have received no representations on this matter.

asked the Minister of Defence whether the Corporal rockets to be installed at Dortmund Airport by British unit are to have nuclear warheads.

Corporal is a mobile weapon designed to fire a nuclear warhead. A British unit, equipped with this weapon, is to be based on an airfield near Dortmund. In an emergency, it would move forward to its operational position many miles away. The nuclear warheads will be held in a N.A.T.O. stockpile and issued to the unit in emergency on the instructions of the Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

asked the Paymaster-General how much opencast mining will be cut back during the current year through the slowing down of authorisation due to the working of the Opencast Coal Act, in addition to the curtailment of production by three million tons announced by the National Coal Board.

Not at all: the reduced programme for the current year rests on sites already acquired and for which contracts have been let.

asked the Paymaster-General whether he will give an indication as to when supplies of Coalite will be available in the desired quantities for purchase by consumers, in view of his policy of authorising the setting up of increasing numbers of smokeless zones.

The supply of Coalite is a matter for the makers, Coalite and Chemical Products Limited, who are doing their best to meet demands for their products. Coalite is not, of course, the only solid smokeless fuel and there is no shortage of such fuels in general to meet the requirements of smoke control areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what further action has been taken by the Committee of Ministers with regard to Parts I, II, and III, respectively, of Recommendation 155, 1958, on a European Civil Service, adopted by the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe on 17th January, 1958.

The proposals in Part 1 of the Recommendation are still being studied.With regard to Part II the Committee of Ministers have decided that it would be premature to transform the Working Party into a permanent co-ordinating body. They agreed that it should be left to the Working Party itself, when it thought fit, to make proposals about its future activities.With regard to Part III the new Six-Power Communities, viz., Euratom and the European Economic Community, have now decided to be represented in the Working Party and to take part in its meetings.

asked the Minister of Health, as representing the Lord President of the Council, if he will refer to the Medical Research Council the question of the extent to which respiratory diseases are caused by inhalation of benz pyrene as a by-product of the combustion of diesel oil in vehicles.

The Medical Research Council are already aware of this problem. For some years they have been carrying out a wide programme of research on air pollution of which work on the possible effects of diesel exhaust fumes on health forms a part. These investigations have so far demonstrated no immediate or long-term deleterious effects from this source.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he will make a statement on his discussions with the building societies on the treatment of men's and women's application for financial assistance for house purchase.

I have had further discussions with the Building Societies' Association, and they have confirmed the statement made on 4th December that the policy of most of their members is to treat a woman applicant for a loan in exactly the same way as a man if she is in regular employment and earning a sufficient income. The Council of the Association have sent a copy of this statement to all their members commending it to them.

asked the Minister of Labour if he has any statement to make about the arrangements for the suspension of call-up of men who enter coal mining after the date on which they were due to register for National Service.

Yes. As the planned end of call-up is now less than two years away I have thought it right to modify the arrangements under which men who enter certain coalmining occupations after they are due to register for National Service may have their call-up suspended so long as they remain so employed. Accordingly these special arrangements will not apply to men born in the third quarter of 1939 who were due to register on 10th January last. Men born in that quarter will only have their call-up suspended if they were already in one of the coalmining occupations concerned when they were due to register, or if they subsequently enter one of those occupations as Directed Practical Trainees, as National Coal Board Scholars or as ex-apprentices engaged in a capacity in which their skill will be used. The position of men horn on or before 30th June, 1939, is unaffected as are the existing deferment arrangements for men already in the industry. These modified arrangements have been discussed with and are acceptable to the National Coal Board.

asked the Prime Minister whether he is now in a position to make a statement on the conclusion of an agreement between this country and Euratom.

Yes. The text of an agreement has now been approved by Her Majesty's Government and by the Euratom Commission and Council. The members of the Euratom Commission will visit the United Kingdom from the 4th until the 6th of February as guests of Her Majesty's Government, and the agreement will be signed then.The agreement, which will he laid before Parliament immediately after signature, provides the framework for development of close co-operation between institutions and private industry in the United Kingdom and in the European Atomic Energy Community.

asked the Minister of Works what places are under consideration by his Department as providing possible sites for the statues of Gordon and Kitchener which are being brought from Khartoum.

Various suggestions have been made in the Press and elsewhere about the disposal of these statues. After careful consideration the Government have decided to offer the statue of General Gordon to the Gordon Boys' School at Woking and that of Lord Kitchener to the School of Military Engineering at Chatham. Both bodies have made definite applications and have offered to meet the cost of erection and of transport within this country.