asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has completed consideration of the need to amend the law concerning agricultural holdings, and, in particular, Section 24 (2) (d) of the Agricultural Holdings Act, 1948.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to the hon. Member for Buckinghamshire, South (Mr. Ronald Bell) on this matter on 18th February. I understand that the Country Landowners' Association and the National Farmers' Union are at present in consultation about the effects of Section 24 (2) (d) of the Agricultural Holdings Act, 1948, and I shall be very willing to consider any suggestions they may in due course put forward.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what aid Her Majesty's Government are giving to victims of the earthquake disaster at Lar in Iran.

Her Majesty's Government have heard with profound regret of the loss of life and damage to property which has been suffered by the inhabitants of Lar in this disaster. To assist in relief we are offering a sum of £10,000.Parliament will be asked in due course to vote the money by means of a supplementary estimate to the Foreign Office Grants and Services Vote. In the meantime, an advance is being obtained from the Civil Contingencies Fund. The question of how this contribution shall be made—whether in cash or in equipment—is at present being discussed with the Iranian authorities. Preliminary inquiries indicate that the greatest need may be for money for rebuilding the town of Lar since it seems likely that every house in this town of 15,000 inhabitants will be found to be unsafe and have to be demolished. We have been assured that enough help is available on the spot to deal with the immediate situation and that British rescue teams are not needed.There have been no reports of loss of life or injury to British subjects as a result of the earthquake.My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary who is at present in Teheran, has—by command of Her Majesty The Queen—conveyed to the Shah of Iran an expression of Her personal sympathy for the victims of this earthquake and for their families, and for the suffering inflicted on the people of Iran.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps have been taken in recent months to try to enforce the 30-miles-per-hour speed limit in Whitton Avenue, on the boundary of Wembley and Ealing.

I am informed by the Commissioner of Police that since 1st November last the police have taken action in about 100 cases of speeding or similar offences in this road. In the great majority of cases the drivers were warned; in a small number proceedings have been taken or are under consideration.

asked the Postmaster-General when automatic dialling is likely to be installed in the Hemsworth, Yorkshire, Telephone Exchange.

I expect the new automatic exchange in Hemsworth to be ready in October, 1961.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the committee set up to advise on conditions and procedures at Crown Post Office counters has yet reported.

Yes. I have now received the Report of the Committee and I have placed copies of it in the Library.The Report, which deals with the standards of service in Crown Post Offices, contains many proposals designed to give the public better and quicker service. One of its principal recommendations is that I should consider the reorganisation of counter duties so that most counter staff, instead of dealing with a limited range of duties, handle all types of business. I welcome this proposal—which is currently the subject of practical testing—and I believe it will reduce queuing in Post Offices. The Report also includes many other useful proposals.I intend forthwith to engage in consultations with the staffs and other Government Departments concerned and to refer the Report to the Post Office Advisory Council. But the responsibility for implementing the proposals which are the concern of the Post Office is mine and I shall lose no time in introducing those which I am satisfied are desirable.Meanwhile, I should like to express my appreciation of the excellent work of the Committee.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will have advance warning signs marked "Roundabout Ahead" erected on A.46 well in advance of the roundabout at its junction with A.52, and of other roundabouts, in order to give better warning to traffic.

Reflectorised advance direction and roundabout warning signs are already provided on all approaches to this junction and at other roundabouts. The signs at the junction of routes A.46 and A.52 are old and of diminished effectiveness; they will be renovated or replaced.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will investigate the possibility of erecting, on roads for which he is responsible, Bailey bridges as temporary flyovers at suitable junctions where permanent flyovers are planned, in order to relieve traffic congestion.

The possibility of erecting Bailey bridges at a number of sites on trunk roads has already been investigated. At these sites there were serious objections which led me to decide not to erect these bridges. I am considering whether there are any other sites where I should be justified in erecting them.

asked the Minister of Transport if he is aware that the signpost marked "A.46 Leicester", at the junction of A.614 and A.6097 is easily missed in the dark, especially with dipped headlights; and if he will have a more conspicuous sign erected to guide traffic along this road which avoids Nottingham.

There are two signs marked "A.46 Leicester", one at the junction of A.614 and A.6097 and one about 150 feet in advance of it. Both signs are reflectorised, but some of the button reflectors are missing. The signs will be renovated or renewed; I am considering whether one or both of these should also be resited.

asked the Minister of Transport what number and percentage of the motor-car accidents, of which the police took note, that occurred in Great Britain during the Easter weekend were in Scotland and England, respectively.

Information is at present available of fatal casualties during the Easter week-end in England and Wales only where 87 persons were reported killed. Special reports were not obtained from Scotland where only Good Friday was an official holiday.

asked the Secretary of State for War to what extent he can continue to employ the existing capacity of Royal Ordnance Factories for small arms production; and whether he will make a statement.

Two Royal Ordnance Factories, one at Enfield and one at Fazakerley, are now engaged on a programme of small arms production for the Services. Requirements for personal weapons have been much curtailed in consequence of the reduction in the size of the Army, and when current orders have been completed there will be no immediate or long-term prospect of enough work to justify retaining more than one factory. One must therefore be closed, and it will not be possible to keep the other continuously at full activity.Our need in the coming years in the one remaining factory will be for design capacity and varied, comprehensive experience, rather than for long runs of a few lines of production. These considerations point decisively to the retention of Enfield. It is the parent small arms factory with a reputation that is world-wide, and it is fully versatile. The preponderance of skill and the accumulated experience of a century of work in this field are concentrated in this factory, and there is the added advantage that both the small arms development centre and the proof ranges are located there.I have given careful consideration to the problems of Merseyside, but in this instance I have had to be guided by defence interests. I have therefore reached the reluctant decision that Fazakerley will have to be closed when current orders are finished. The factory will begin to run down in June, and, except for a small force remaining to wind up, all employees will have become redundant by about the end of the year. Further, it will not be possible to maintain Enfield at full capacity and about 120 workers will shortly become redundant there.My right hon. Friend the Minister of Labour, will do his utmost to help displaced workers to find new employment. Established employees will be offered employment in other Government establishments. My right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade and I will do all we can to find a suitable firm to make good productive use of the Fazakerley factory.