asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will complete his study of the present system of registration and notification laid down in the Aliens Order, 1953; and what changes he proposes to introduce.

My right hon. Friend is not yet in a position to make a statement on this matter.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether it is now his policy to introduce arrangements to enable a prisoner to take up employment at the end of his sentence with a stamped National Insurance card.

A prisoner who wishes to do so may pay contributions as a non-employed person or as a self-employed person if he contributed in that class immediately before his imprisonment. It is not at present practi-able to enable all prisoners to maintain their contributions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will include in the draft of the forthcoming Licensing Bill provision to ensure that licensed restaurants can be provided alongside all motorways in this country.

At this stage, all I can say is that I will bear my hon. Friend's suggestion in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, in his annual return of the numbers of children in care, he will break down the figures into smaller areas; if he will now give the most recent available figures, per thousand, of child population for the borough of Paddington and, separately, for each ward of the borough; and how these compare with the national average.

I should not feel justified in asking the councils of counties and county boroughs generally, who are the local authorities responsible for child care, to produce additional statistics relating to parts of their areas. I understand from the London County Council that the information relating to children in care, requested in the second part of the Question, is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consult the appropriate authorities with a view to speeding-up, by stages, the application to old buildings of the minimum fire safety standards required in new buildings.

There is no single code of fire safety requirements for buildings, old or new, as statutory provisions necessarily vary according to the nature and use of the building. My right hon. Friend will be glad to consider, with his colleagues, any particular point that the hon. Member has in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the seven aliens convicted of living on immoral earnings in the Metropolitan Police area in 1959 were recommended for deportation; and in how many cases the recommendation was confirmed.

Two. Deportation Orders have been made in both cases.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the report from the committee presided over by Sir Leslie Peppiatt; and whether he expects to be able to propose amendments based on the report during the Committee stage of the Betting and Gaming Bill.

I understand that the Committee hopes to be able to report by Easter. I shall consider any recommendations it may make as a matter of urgency.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many murders committed in England and Wales in 1959 remain unsolved; and how this figure compares with those for the three preceding years.

The number of murders committed in England and Wales in 1959 in which the murderers still remain undetected is 12. The numbers of murders committed in 1956, 1957 and 1958 which remained unsolved when the Criminal Statistics went to press in the summer of the following years were respectively, 11, 17 and 16.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many acts of rape have come to the notice of the police during 1959; and what types of punishment were generally imposed.

I regret that statistics for 1959 are not yet available. In 1958, 391 offences of rape or attempted rape (including unlawful sexual intercourse with women under mental disability) were known to the police. During the same year, 111 persons were found guilty of such offences, of whom 84 were sentenced to imprisonment or preventive detention, four to borstal training, four were sent to an approved school and nine were put on probation.

asked the Minister of Education, as representing the Minister for Science, by what authority the Road Research Laboratory participated in a study undertaken by the University of Birmingham in which it was stated that in terms of economic benefit the capital and interest to finance the Birmingham Motorway would be repaid in six to eight years.

This study was originally intended to be carried out by the Road Research Laboratory on the authority of the D.S.I.R., but when later it was ascertained that related investi- gations were contemplated by Birmingham University, it was arranged for a joint research project to be undertaken by agreement between the Laboratory on behalf of the D.S.I.R. and on their approval, the University Authorities and the Ministry of Transport.

asked the Minister of Education if he will list the national voluntary youth organisations receiving grants under the Social and Physical Training Grant Regulations, 1939, who received lower annual grants in the years 1952–59 than in 1951–52.

The following national voluntary youth organisations received lower annual grants under the Social and Physical Training Grant Regulations, 1939, in the years 1952–59 than in 1951–52:

asked the Minister of Education how many schools in England are one teacher short, two teachers short, three teachers short, and more than three teachers short, of their respective teacher establishments.

Teacher establishments for individual schools are settled by the local education authority. I regret that the information sought by the hon. Member is not available.

asked the Minister of Education if he has yet reached a decision about the recommendations in the Crowther Report.

I will make a statement in the debate on the Crowther Report.

asked the Minister of Education when the Sub-Committee of the Secondary Schools Examination Council, at present considering the question of examinations other than for the General Certificate of Education, is expected to report to him.

I understand that the Committee on Secondary School Examinations other than for the General Certificate of Education hope to report to the Secondary School Examinations Council in July, 1960. I cannot say how soon after that the Council will be able to report to me.

asked the Minister of Education how many applications for places in teacher training colleges were received from residents of Southend-on-Sea in the years 1955 to 1959; and what percentage of these applications was successful.

I could only give my hon. Friend the full information he seeks by asking the training colleges to make an analysis of some 75,000 application forms.In the educational year 1958–59, 32 students from Southend-on-Sea entered training colleges. This represented 19 per thousand of the average population of 17, 18 and 19 year olds in the area. The comparable figure for England as a whole was 25·3.

asked the Minister of Education what progress he has made in setting up the National College of Agricultural Engineering; and whether he will announce the names of the chairman and members of the governing body.

Preparatory work is now going ahead for the new college which will be at Silsoe, Bedfordshire, near to the National Institute of Agricultural Engineering at Wrest Park. I hope that the college will be ready to admit students in about two years' time.I am glad to say that Sir Gilbert Flemming has accepted my invitation to become Chairman of the College in place of Sir Eric Ashby, whose resignation I reluctantly accepted last December.The following is the list of Governors:

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will alter the regulations governing Premium Savings Bonds, so that the Post Office is able to recognise charges on them in respect of loans.

No. To do so would increase the administrative cost of the Premium Bond scheme, and would ill accord with the purpose of encouraging thrift.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what revenue has been obtained in the financial year, to date, from non-mechanically propelled vehicles which are subject to Purchase Tax at half the rate imposed on mechanically-propelled vehicles; and whether, with a view to discouraging the continued use of slow, non-mechanically-propelled vehicles, he will abolish their preferential tax position by making an early substantial reduction in the rate now imposed on the mechanically-propelled vehicles.

If in the first part of his Question my hon. Friend has in mind gigs and traps, the revenue is small; but I think that in the second part of the Question he is putting the cart before the horse.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the yield from Purchase Tax in the present financial year up to 31st December, 1959; what was the equivalent yield for the same period ended 31st December, 1958; and to what extent the yield is better than he anticipated when he made certain Purchase Tax reductions in the Budget of 1959.

Net receipts of Purchase Tax in 1958 and 1959 for the period 1st April to 31st December were about £350 million and £355 million, respectively. My right hon. Friend's 1959 Budget estimate related to the whole of the financial year 1959–60 and it is not the practice to break it down into shorter periods.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why tape recordings of classical music are free of Purchase Tax whereas recordings of the same music on gramophone records are subject to Purchase Tax at 50 per cent.; what is the reason for this inequality between recordings of precisely similar music; and whether he will at an early date reduce or eliminate this differentiation between gramophone records and tape recordings.

The reason is that prerecorded tape is not within the present scope of the Purchase Tax Schedule; as for the latter part of the Qustion, I cannot anticipate my right hon. Friend's Budget decisions.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement on his policy with regard to the import duty on sulphate of ammonia.

An application for the removal of the import duty on sulphate of ammonia is under consideration.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will expedite a decision on the application for an antidumping duty on sulphate of ammonia imported from the Continent, so that the fertiliser trade and farmers may know where they stand when considering competitive offers from Continental suppliers.

I appreciate the need to reach a decision on this application as quickly as the circumstances permit.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will now give the date when he will make a Statutory Instrument bringing Section 4 (3) and (4) of the Road Traffic Act, 1956, as to a separate limit of speed of 40 miles per hour, into operation.

Section 4 (5) of the Road Traffic Act, 1956, requires me in the first instance to report to each House the views of the Departmental Road Safety Committee on the results of the London experiment with the 40 mp.h. speed limit. The Report is being printed, and I expect to submit it in the very near future. When Parliament has had time to consider it, I shall lay before both Houses the Statutory Instrument referred to by my hon. Friend. I shall not, however, do this until I am also in a position, jointly with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland, to present regulations prescribing the necessary traffic signs for use throughout the country. This involves prior consultation with the interests concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what recent discussions there have been on the question of Sea Island Cotton; and if he will make a statement on the present condition of that industry.

pursuant to his hon. Friend's reply [OFFICIAL REPORT, 16th February, 1960; Vol. 617, c. 1116], supplied the following information:A meeting in the Colonial Office last June, attended by the Federal Minister of Trade and Industry, the Governor of the Leeward Islands, the Ministerial representatives of most of the West Indian cotton producing territories, recommended that the Federal Government consider setting up an organisation through which all West Indian Sea Island cotton could be sold. This proposal was put forward by an observer of the Federal Government who attended the Annual Meeting of the West Indian Sea Island Cotton Association in December, and received its support. The Federal Government have now formally proposed to the Association the basis for an early discussion between representatives of the Federal Government, the territorial governments and the Association to work out the arrangements, and they are awaiting the Association's comments.The Sea Island cotton industry is facing both agricultural and marketing problems. Costs of production are high as compared with other cottons, because of the necessity for long reaping periods, susceptibility to pests, the fact that weeding and reaping must be carried out manually, and the low yields per acre as compared with other long staples. There has been a gradual shrinkage of the fine trade for which Sea Island cotton caters, due to competition from the growing variety of man-made fibres and from the better qualities of cheaper long staple cotton. United Kingdom spinners were no longer prepared to renew in 1959 an Agreement of 1957 by which they purchased the West Indian crop at prices annually negotiated within an agreed price range.It is expected that the 1959–60 crop will be disposed of, although the new organisation in the West Indies to market Sea Island cotton will not be set up in time to deal with it.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what plans he has for constitutional reform in the Fiji Islands.

By the Fiji Letters Patent, 1959, which came into operation on the 1st January, 1960, the Fiji Letters Patent, 1937 to 1954, were amended so as to enable the Great Council of Fijian Chiefs to elect five Fijian Members and three Alternate Fijian Members of the Legislative Council. This replaced the previous procedure for the selection of Fijian (as distinct from Indian and European) Members of the Legislative Council under which the Great Council of Fijian Chiefs submitted to the Governor the names of not less than seven and not more than ten Fijians and the Governor selected from these the five Fijian Members.The opportunity was also taken to make provision for the temporary filling of Fijian vacancies on the Council; to bring the existing law governing the powers of the Legislative Council in financial matters into line with the practice in other Colonial territories; and to effect some minor amendments covering electoral matters.I have at present no further plans for constitutional reform in Fiji, but I know that the Governor has the matter continuously under review.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will list the scale of health charges proposed for treatment under the Government health services in Uganda.

The following charges operate for treatment under the Government's General Health Services:

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement on the latest position in Mauritius following the recent cyclone.

The cyclone which struck Mauritius on 27th and 28th February was the most severe ever recorded in the island's history. There were over 1,700 casualties. I regret to say that 42 people were killed and 95 seriously injured. Over 100,000 buildings are reported to have been destroyed or seriously damaged. Many people who have lost their homes have found shelter with friends or relations but approximately 70,000 out of the island's total population of 600,000 are now in refugee centres. The road network, the water and electricity supplies, and telephone communications were disrupted. It is estimated that as much as 60 per cent. of the year's sugar crop may prove to have been lost. The Government's tea factory was badly damaged and 20 per cent. of the year's tea crop will probably have been lost.Immediate relief and repair work is making good progress. The construction of temporary shelters for the homeless has begun, registration of all homeless families is being carried out and arrangements are in hand for an initial distribution of clothing. Road clearance is complete, about 90 per cent. of the water supply system is now restored and electricity is available at key points in the main urban areas.The Governor of Mauritius has, throughout, been in close touch with the Governor of Kenya, and urgently-needed relief supplies have been flown from Nairobi in R.A.F. aircraft. Food, blankets, bedding, clothing and medical supplies were also brought in by H.M.S. Gambia, and by the French training cruiser Jeanne d'Arc. Further supplies were flown in by the French Air Force from Madagascar on behalf of the British community there, and a cargo of clothing, bedding and household utensils given by the Government of India arrived in Mauritius at a time when it was most required. In the provision of urgently-needed supplies and in carrying out immediate relief work the Mauritius Government has also had invaluable help from the Red Cross. Sufficient supplies, including food supplies, to meet immediate requirements are now available in Mauritius or are on the way.British and French naval personnel from Gambia and Jeanne d'Arc have been helping with the restoration of power and telephone lines, with the repair of the main reservoir in the island, with health measures, and with street clearance. The Governor tells me that they have been working side by side and that they have given a practical demonstration of international comradeship, which has been a source of inspiration and encouragement to the people of Mauritius. On behalf of Her Majesty's Government I should like to endorse the expressions of gratitude which have been made by the Mauritius Government for all the help given by the French Government and by so many other governments and organisations.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when he now proposes to release Dr. Hastings Banda and the other detainees.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 18th February to the hon. Member for Jarrow (Mr. Fernyhough) and the hon. Member for Islington, East (Mr. Fletcher).

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will state the terms of the Resolution of the Nigerian House of Representatives relating to independence and Commonwealth membership; and what action he proposes to take on it.

Yes. The resolution reads as follows:—"That this House authorises the Government of the Federation of Nigeria to request Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom as soon as practicable to introduce legislation in the Parliament of the United Kingdom providing for the establishment of the Federation of Nigeria on October 1st, 1960, as an independent sovereign state, and to request Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom at the appropriate time to support with the other Member Governments of the Commonwealth Nigeria's desire to become a member of the Commonwealth".I have informed the Government of Nigeria that Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom will introduce legislation during the present session of Parliament to enable the Federation of Nigeria to become fully independent on 1st October, 1960. I have further informed them that Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom will also support with the Governments of the other Members of the Commonwealth Nigeria's desire to become a member of the Commonwealth on independence.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what proposals he has for the constitutional advance of Africans in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland.

When I go to Nyasaland at the end of the month I intend to explore possible lines among which constitutional advance might be resumed. As regards the constitution of Northern Rhodesia, I have nothing to add to the statement I made in the House on 2nd November.

asked the Minister of Health when he expects work to commence on the building of the new Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester.

Sketch plans for the first phase are being prepared but my right hon. and learned Friend is not yet in a position to say when building work will commence.