asked the Minister of Labour how many men and women are registered as unemployed at the Market Rasen Employment Exchange.

Forty-two men and nine women at 14th March.

asked the Minister of Labour by how much the cost-of-living index figure will be increased in consequence of the recent increase in bread prices.

One firm has announced an increase in the price of bread. I cannot forecast the effect of this on the Index of Retail Prices.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware that, while an employee may be paid industrial injury benefit under the National Insurance Acts for an injury sustained in the course of his employment, he may not be able to obtain compensation from an employer of limited financial resources even when a claim has been upheld in a court of law; and whether he will consider introducing legislation to make it compulsory for all employers to insure, over and above the National Insurance Scheme, against personal injury to their employees unless the employer can satisfy him that he has a satisfactory scheme for carrying his own insurance.

The evidence available to my Department suggests that very few employees injured at work have failed to recover damages awarded to them by the courts, and I therefore consider that legislation requiring compulsory employers' liability insurance would not be justified. If the hon. Member will send me details of any cases known to him, I will look into them.

asked the Minister of Labour what steps he intends to take to facilitate the introduction of the proposed pension scheme for the port transport industry, following the request for assistance which has been made to him by the National Joint Council for the industry.

I warmly welcome the proposal for a pension scheme for dock workers put forward by the National Joint Council for the Port Transport Industry. This scheme will be financed by contributions from employers and from workers, the latter collected by deduction from wages. The Government have agreed to introduce a short Bill into Parliament as soon as possible in order to ensure that this can be done without infringing the Truck Acts. The introduction of the pension scheme will also require some amendment to be made to the Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Scheme, 1947. The details are at present under discussion.

asked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty whether he will name the cruisers, destroyers, and frigates approved for scrapping, as given in Appendix 2 of the Explanatory Statement on the Navy Estimates.

The cruisers are Her Majesty's Ships "Birmingham", "Jamaica" and "Cumberland"; the destroyers Her Majesty's Ships "Hogue", "Contest" and "Cossack"; and the frigates Her Majesty's Ships "Fleet-wood", "Loch Arkaig", "Opossum" and "Wilton".

asked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty what is the future of H.M.S. "Leviathan"; and to what extent work on her is likely to be resumed.

In view of the many different uses found for aircraft carriers from reserve, we do not consider it wise to scrap this ship at present as we have not taken a final decision on her future.

asked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty to what use H.M. Yacht "Britannia" is to be put during the next three months; and at what cost.

For part of the next three months Her Majesty The Queen is making the Royal Yacht available for the honeymoon of Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret; for the rest of the time she will be at Portsmouth. Apart from the cost of maintaining the "Britannia" in commission, the only cost involved will be that of the oil fuel consumed which cannot, at this stage, be estimated.

asked the Civil Lord of the Admiralty if he will state the nearest authority to Fullbridge, Maldon, Essex, where high tides are recorded; whether continuous records are kept; and what is the date of the earliest record.

The nearest place to Maldon where records of high water are kept is Southend, and the Port of London Authority keeps continuous records there on an automatic tide gauge. The earliest date for the automatic tide gauge records is 1929 and for visual observations of high water 1911.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many officers, non-commissioned officers and men form the Bank of England picket.

One officer, three N.C.O.s and 13 men.

asked the Secretary of State for War what was the date on which the decision to reduce the mobilisation stocks of boots was taken which resulted in 1¼ million Army boots being declared surplus.

The reduction was in two stages, decided in April and December, 1956.

asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he is aware that the University of London Air Squadron is being refused permission to do its annual training at either St. Eval or St. Mawgan in 1960 because of the training for the British Overseas Airways Corporation Boeing 707s; and what action he proposes to take.

Yes. We are arranging for the Squadron to carry out its training elsewhere this year.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will refer the closing of the railway station at Smithy Bridge, Littleborough, to the North Western Area Transport Users' Consultative Committee for their re-consideration.

This matter has already been considered by the North Western Area Transport Users' Consultative Committee on a number of occasions between September last year and March this year, and I can see no justification for asking them to do so again.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will make it compulsory for all new cars and lorries to be fitted with spats to the rear wheels, to reduce the mud thrown up on to the windscreens of following vehicles, thereby lessening the risk of accidents.

The provision of wings and other similar fittings to catch the mud and water thrown up by the wheels of most vehicles is already a statutory requirement. I hope that where suitable flaps are available operators will fit them, but because of the difficulty of providing for all the different types of vehicle we would prefer to proceed by way of encouragement rather than regulation.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that the problems of public transport facilities in the rural areas are becoming increasingly acute; and when he anticipates it will be possible to introduce measures designed to ease these problems.

The Committee on Rural Bus Services is examining the problems of rural transport. I think we must await its report.

asked the Minister of Transport how many holders there are of driving licences prior to the introduction of the driving test in 1934.

I regret that the information which my hon. and gallant Friend requires is not available.

asked the Minister of Transport if the Government have yet invited tenders for the construction of a nuclear-powered merchant ship; and what repair facilities for such a ship will be available in the United Kingdom when it is completed.

Invitations to tender for two types of reactor system suitable for a large tanker were issued at the beginning of February; the closing date for their receipt is 29th July. The question of repair facilities for the reactor on such a ship will require further consideration in the light, inter alia, of the Report of the Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Powered Ships, but is clearly not an immediate problem for some years.

asked the Minister of Transport when the public inquiry will be held into the question of the North-South relief road in Hereford; whether he is aware of the further increased congestion of traffic through the city of Hereford, which is causing great concern; and if he will make a statement.

As my right hon. Friend has told my hon. Friend the Member for Hereford (Mr. Gibson-Watt), the public inquiry will be held in Hereford on 19th May. We are well aware of the difficult traffic conditions. The proposed new bridge over the River Wye and the relief road are intended to deal with the con- gestion, but in view of the objections made to our proposals my right hon. Friend must await the inspector's report before deciding whether to make the necessary orders under the Highways Act.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will publish the percentage of all recorded accidents, attributed to each of the main causes, such as the influence of drink; and which classification accounted for the highest number of accidents.

It is not practicable to classify accidents generally as envisaged by my hon. Friend; the main cause of an accident is often uncertain. Published analyses show the factors which are reported by the police as occurring most frequently in fatal and serious accidents.

asked the Minister of Transport what is the present estimated cost of the previous widening scheme for Fullbridge, Maldon, Essex, which included the widening of the northern approach road, on both sides, up to Station Road, and the diversion of westbound traffic from the steep Market Hill to Downs Road: and why this scheme was shelved.

I understand that no scheme which included the widening of the northern approach road has been prepared either by the Essex County Council or by the Maldon Borough Council. The diversion scheme was considered by the county council and by my Department, and it was decided that its traffic value was not great enough to warrant undertaking it as a classified road project. I understand the borough council was unwilling to carry out the scheme itself and that no estimate of its cost is available.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will state the number of properties purchased by the local authority for the widening of the southern approach road to Fullbridge, Maldon, Essex; how many have been demolished; and how many were purchased for the diversion of west-bound traffic to Downs Road.

I understand that three properties have been acquired and demolished for the small part of the southern approach road affected by the proposed bridge reconstruction, and that none were purchased for the diversion scheme.

asked the Minister of Transport how much road widening, on either the north or south side of the bridge, is to be included in the present Fullbridge, Maldon, Essex, bridge widening scheme.

I understand that the approaches will be improved for 60 yards to the north and 37 yards to the south of the new bridge to provide a satisfactory alignment with the road on either side.

asked the Minister of Defence what further consideration he has given to the decision announced in the Defence White Paper that seven brigade groups would be retained in the British Army of the Rhine for the time being; and if he will give an assurance that there will be no reduction in this commitment in the foreseeable future.

I would remind the hon. Gentleman of the assurance I gave in my winding up speech in the defence debate last month, that we would hold our strength in the British Army of the Rhine at seven brigade groups as long as it seems necessary for us to do so. I have nothing to add to that.

asked the Minister of Education, in view of the difficulty in securing unification of the teaching profession as long as the representations of some 20,000 schoolmasters are excluded from the Burnham Committee, if he will now reconsider his rejection of the claim of the National Association of Schoolmasters to representation on that Committee.

I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the Answer which I gave to the hon. Member for Newcastle-on-Tyne, East (Mr. Montgomery) on 31st March.

asked the Minister of Education when he intends to lay before Parliament proposals to implement the policy of Her Majesty's Government, as expressed in the Queen's Speech, with regard to the special attention required for the needs of the young in the society of today.

I would refer the hon. Member to the statements made in the debate on the Report of the Central Advisory Council (OFFICIAL REPORT for 21st March, 1960, col. 40 to col. 178) and to my statement on the Report of the Albemarle Committee (OFFICIAL REPORT for 3rd February, 1960, col. 999 to col. 1004).We are pressing ahead with long-term programmes already approved by Parliament for the improvement of school buildings and the training of teachers.

asked the Minister of Education, as representing the Minister for Science, whether the Road Research Laboratory has yet completed its field trials in connection with reflecting kerbs; and when he expects to receive their report.

The field trials of edge markings on flush kerbs, of the Road Research Laboratory of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research will test the lasting qualities as well as the initial effectiveness of various materials. Consequently the report on this work is not likely to be available until early next year.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has for issuing Crown Pieces this year.

I have authorised the Royal Mint to strike a limited number of Crown Pieces during 1960. These will be issued in the United Kingdom through the banks early in June, and will be placed on sale at the Royal Mint's Stand at the British Exhibition in New York in the same month. The banks have undertaken to issue the available coins to members of the public who apply for them. The Royal Mint will be unable to deal with demands from individual members of the public.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will show in shillings and pence the break-down into main items of each £1 of Government spending as estimated for the current financial year.

The break-down into the main items of each £1 of Government expenditure is estimated for the current financial year as follows:

asked the Minister of Health how many times a patient is required to complain to an optician that the lenses he has prescribed are unsatisfactory, before being eligible for a further free sight test by another optician or ophthalmic medical practitioner.

A free sight test may be obtained as often as necessary, but opticians and ophthalmic medical practitioners are asked to obtain the permission of the Ophthalmic Services Committee where there has been a previous test within a year.

asked the Minister of Health if he will state the number of eye hospitals, or hospitals with an eye department, which have a visiting optician for out-patients; and how many of these opticians are ophthalmic opticians and dispensing opticians, respectively.

Information in the form sought by the hon. and gallant Member is not available, but at 31st December, 1958, 61 ophthalmic opticians and 90 dispensing opticians were employed part-time on a sessional basis by hospital authorities. In addition, under interim arrangements still in force at certain hospitals, a proportion of glasses provided under the Hospital Eye Service (less than a tenth of the total) was supplied by dispensing opticians on the basis of negotiated fees.

asked the Minister of Health if he will state the number of prescriptions for spectacles approved by the Hull Executive Council in the months of March, 1959, and March, 1960, respectively; and how many in each month were dispensed with National Health Service frames.

The prescriptions for glasses approved by Hull Ophthalmic Services Committee in March, 1959, and March, 1960, were 3,400 and 3,600. respectively. Of the 1959 prescriptions some 1,200 were dispensed with new National Health Service frames: similar information is not yet available for the 1960 prescriptions.

asked the Minister of Health (1) what decision he has given with reference to the application of the Oldham Corporation for approval of plans to build and equip a child welfare centre on the Holt's estate at Oldham at an approximate estimated cost of £15,000;(2) what decision he has given with reference to the application of the Oldham Corporation to adapt a building at Derker, Oldham, as a child welfare centre at an estimated approximate cost of £3,000.

In view of general economic need to limit the amount of building work that can be approved under Section 22 of the National Health Service Act and the many competing demands, my right hon. and learned Friend has, with regret, had to inform Oldham Corporation that he will not be able, so far as he can foresee at the moment, to recommend loan sanction this year for the projects at Holts Estate and Derker.

asked the Minister of Health, as representing the Minister for Science, if he is now able to give the names of those who will serve on the committee to consider noise and its effects.

Yes. As I have already announced in the House, the terms of reference are "to examine the nature, sources, and effects of the prob-

asked the Minister of Health how many patients in the Fishponds Mental Hospital, Bristol, are capable of leaving the institution and engaging in the industrial life of the country, providing suitable homes could be found for them outside.

One of the main purposes of the Industrial Therapy Organisation recently set up in connection with this hospital is to enable an assessment of this kind to be made. It would therefore be premature to make any estimate at present.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department

Provisional figures for 1959 show an increase in the number of indictable offences known to the police. The proportionate increases were greatest in the groups of offences classified as frauds and false pretences, violence against the person and sexual offences. In the larcency and breaking and entering groups the increases were much smaller than those for 1958. The increase in the total number of indictable offences known to the police was 7·8 per cent; the increase in 1958 was 14·8 per cent.The following table gives the figures for 1958 and 1959 and the percentage variation between each of those years and the previous year:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what legislation he proposes to introduce to restrict the powers of private bodies to initiate prosecutions under the Sunday Observance Acts.

I have no such legislation in view at present.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has yet received the report of the Peppiatt Committee; and if he intends to bring his conclusions thereon before the House during the further consideration of the Betting and Gaming Bill.

The report was submitted to me on Monday, 11th April, and will be published at 11 a.m. tomorrow. I will announce the Government's conclusions when there has been an opportunity to give the Report the consideration which it deserves.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) if he will state the headway under Full-bridge, Maldon, Essex, at the highest high water in the two periods 1st January and 29th-30th January, 1960, respectively; to what extent this information was obtained by observation at the bridge and by calculation, respectively; and who made such calculations;(2) whether he will arrange for official observation to be kept at Fullbridge, Maldon, Essex, during the period 13th-15th April, to record the minimum headway at the highest high water.

I regret that I have no information about the headway under this bridge and that I am not in a position to arrange for the observations proposed. I would suggest that the hon. and gallant Member may wish to discuss these matters with the Essex River Board.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether the trade talks with the Irish Republic have yet been concluded; and with what result.

The trade talks with the Irish Republic have been concluded and a Trade Agreement between the two Governments was signed in London this morning.2. This Agreement supplements the Trade Agreements of 1938 and 1948 which continue to govern our trade relations with the Irish Republic. We are confident that it will contribute to a strengthening of those already close relations and will provide further opportunities for extending trade on both sides.3. The Government of the Republic of Ireland have undertaken in this Agreement to initiate a further review of protective duties and import restrictions in the Republic, and the two Governments will consult together about the priority in which items will be taken up in this review.4. For our part, we have agreed that, in future, attested cattle imported from the Republic and fattened in the United Kingdom for not less than three months will qualify for payments under the Fatstock Guarantee Scheme at the same rates as cattle bred in the United Kingdom.5. These are the main points in the Supplementary Agreement. The two Governments have also agreed to hold periodical meetings to discuss trade relations and, in particular, to exchange information and views on agricultural policies and production trends. We have also agreed to seek, in consultation with each other, equitable solutions for any cases of special difficulty which may arise in trade between the two countries.

asked the Minister of Aviation why he has not discussed with the Standing Consultative Committee of London Airport his decision to allow night flying by jet aircraft and the proposals for new building for long distance flights at London Airport.

The Ministry of Aviation has been in touch with the Committee on both these questions. I am aware of its views on night flying by jet aircraft. The proposals for the new building will be further discussed with the Committee in the next few days; they are already aware of them.

asked the Minister of Aviation if he has considered the evidence supplied to him by the hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington that the Boeing 707 and the Comet IV have perceived noise levels of 121 and 120, which in terms of noisiness are about two-and-half times that of a composite piston-engined aircraft, which is 107; and if he will describe the technical means to be employed for meeting his requirement that Comet aircraft taking off at night shall make no more noise than piston-engined aircraft.

Yes; and I wrote to the hon. Member on 4th December last explaining in detail why the contention is not justified. In reply to the second part of the Question, the Comet aircraft taking off at night will be able to reach a much greater height than piston-engined aircraft at the boundaries of built-up areas. It will reduce power considerably before this point and will retract flaps to increase the gradient.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what rates of pensions are payable to teachers in the Seychelles; and if he will now grant parity in pensions between teachers and other public servants.

The rate of pension payable to teachers in the Seychelles is one seven-hundred and twentieth of pensionable emoluments for each complete month of pensionable service, compared with the rate of one six-hundredth of pensionable emoluments for each complete month of pensionable service payable to other public servants. Following the recent salaries revision, consideration is being given to the proposal to grant parity in pensions between teachers and other public servants.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when was the last occasion on which a thorough inspection of primary schools in the Seychelles was undertaken; and what recommendations were made by the inspectors.

There is no inspectorate of schools in Seychelles as there is in the United Kingdom, and it is not, therefore, the practice to carry out inspections similar to those carried out in this country. The Director of Education and the Mission School Manager are, however, both closely concerned in the day to day running of schools in Seychelles. The Director visits all schools on Mahe several times every year and receives annual reports on all teachers. Furthermore, the annual Standard VI examination provides a useful check on the quality of instruction being provided in each school. The Governor of Seychelles informs me that he has recently visited all the schools on Mahe and that he was impressed with the improvement which has taken place during the last two years.

asked the Postmaster-General what proportion of letters posted in London before 5.30 p.m. on a Friday are not delivered in the Sherborne area of Dorsetshire before Monday mornings; and why.

Fully paid letters for Sherborne posted in London before 5.30 p.m. on Friday should be delivered on Saturday. Printed papers prepaid 2d. must be posted in London by 4.15 to 4.30 p.m. on Friday to get Saturday delivery in Sherborne.