asked the Secretary of State for War why Regimental Sergeant Major Neville Dixon Taylor is to be assigned to the Berlin British Garrison, and whether he is satisfied with the standard of discipline at this garrison.

Regimental Sergeant Major Taylor is going to Berlin in the normal course of positing. I am perfectly satisfied with the standard of discipline at that garrison.

Will the Secertary of State give an undertaking that this regimental sergeant major will not be allowed to make life any more unbearable than it should be for National Service men in the British garrison in Germany?

I can certainly give an undertaking that life will not be made any more unbearable. It certainly is not unbearable at present. I have looked carefully into this case and I am satisfied that this regimental sergeant major has been misquoted in the national Press. Indeed, he made a broadcast on the B.B.C. a day or two later saying how much he regretted the misquotations.

asked the Secretary of State for War what are his future plans for the now vacated military training camp at Brancepeth, County Durham.

There is no further military requirement for this camp. Twenty-five acres, including the castle itself, is held under a lease which will be terminated at the end of this year. The remainder of the site, which is War Department freehold property, will be disposed of in accordance with the usual procedures.

As the right hon. Gentleman has no further use for the facilities available at this training camp, will he consult his right hon. Friends the Minister of Education and the Minister of Labour with a view to making use of the facilities now available in this areas where there is 5 per cent. permanent juvenile unemployment? Will the right hon. Gentleman seek to make use of the available facilities by providing these young people with training to fit them for citizenship and a career in industry, rather than allow them to be unemployed?

I will certainly bear in mind what the hon. Gentleman says, in so far as it is my responsibility. The future of the land must depend upon the views of the planning authority and the purchaser.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) which local authorities he has approached concerning the use of the site of the former Royal Ordnance Factory, Swynnerton; and what meetings have so far been held; and (2) what length of time has now elapsed since the decision to close the Royal Ordnance Factory, Swynnerton; what schemes for the use of the site have been considered in that time; what area still remains for disposal; and what proposals he is now considering.

I have approached the Staffordshire County Council, and a meeting with representatives of the county council, the Stone Urban and Rural District Councils, was held at Stafford last Friday, 16th March. It is now about five years since the decision was taken to close the factory. Industrial development, storage and afforestation have been uses proposed to me for the site; but the decision must rest with the statutory planning authorities. Seven hundred and sixteen acres out of 1,060 acres remain for disposal.

Does the Secretary of State appreciate that a great deal of time has been wasted so far in considering various proposals for the use of a major portion of this site? Will he, therefore, go to work now with a real sense of urgency? Will he also bear in mind that for some time unemployment in north Staffordshire has been rather higher than the national average and it is vitally important that a portion of this site should be used to provide more diversity of industry?

I recognise that it seems a long time, but I think the hon. Gentleman understands that, although the decision was taken to close the factory, it took another year before it was closed. Then we had to dispose of explosive materials, and so on. Therefore, it is not as bad as it might seem from the figures, but I give the hon. Gentleman the undertaking that I will continue to pursue this with the utmost vigour.

asked the Secretary of State for War what action he has taken to deal with the conditions under which four men of the Depot, 1st Royal Scots King's Own Scottish Borderers, Berwick-on-Tweed, Northumberland, are awaiting trial in the guardroom, details of which have been sent to him by the hon. Member for the Exchange Division of Liverpool.

Action had already been taken by the unit concerned to prevent overcrowding before the hon, Lady sent me this complaint. Additional accommodation for prisoners was found, and the number of men in the guardroom cell limited to four.

Should it have been necessary for men to have to write a letter giving details of the shocking conditions they had to put up with while awaiting trial, if they were correct? Should not something be done to ensure that there is adequate and decent accommodation for men awaiting trial for some misdemeanour, instead of the sort of accommodation these men described in their letter to me?

I understand the hon. Lady's concern about this matter, but there are always two sides to a case of this sort. A certain amount of the discomfort and the unpleasant conditions were brought upon those being held in custody by themselves. Normally, if they wanted to leave the cell at night they were escorted a few hundred yards, but there had been some escapes. One of the prisoners who wrote to the hon. Lady had himself been released and had gone absent. Therefore, we had to take special measures, which account for the problems the hon. Lady has drawn to my attention. I assure her, as I have in my Answer, that this is not general.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many National Service men have so far been compelled to serve an additional six months; how many are married; and how many are married with children.

None, Sir.

I am delighted to hear that Answer. Does this mean that, as should be the case, National Service men with wives, whether they have children or not, are being almost automatically exempted from the further six months call-up? If so, the right hon. Gentleman will deserve considerable thanks and praise.

The hon. Gentleman must have misunderstood me. He asks me in his Question "how many National Service men have so far been" retained. As I have explained on numerous occasions, no National Service men will be retained until April, although a number of those who are serving in B.A.O.R. have already been warned.

In that case, how many have been given notice that they are to be retained?

That is another question, but I am perfectly prepared to answer it. The answer is 3,628 so far.

My right hon. Friend has mentioned the position of reservists serving with the British Army of the Rhine. Can he say anything about the position of reservists other than those who are in the B.A.O.R.?

Yes. National Service men who will be serving in B.A.O.R. on 1st April or who are due to move there must consider themselves liable to be retained. I shall not need to retain any other National Service man whose release date falls before 1st August.

In view of the anxiety felt by a number of wives of married National Service men, will the right hon. Gentleman give an assurance that as much notice as possible will be given so that they will be relieved of uncertainty?

Yes. I have been making every possible effort to this end, including having warned all those people before the Bill became law. We will continue to do this. I am happy to tell the House that already the appeals system has started to work.

As the right hon. Gentleman has the information there, can he tell us how many of the 3,600-odd are married men?

I cannot without difficulty give the hon. Gentleman the answer to that question, but the total number of married men serving in B.A.O.R. at the end of January was 3,233, out of a total of about 9,000 National Service men. That is the nearest figure I can give him.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he will make a statement on the policy and progress of recruitment for the Army outside the British Isles.

Arrangements already exist by which recruits can enlist in the Army in overseas Commands. In addition, last year I organised recruiting in certain overseas territories. As a result we got 449 recruits. During the coming year, I intend to press ahead with this form of recruiting. There are teams at present in action in the Seychelles and in Barbados.

Has the right hon. Gentleman considered Jamaica and Africa?

I have considered Jamaica. We have recruited some people from Jamaica, but Jamaica now wants to recruit its own police and some soldiers for itself. Therefore, for the time being I have moved the recruiting team from Jamaica. This is one of the problems which we find when we try to recruit in any foreign territory. We want the best men, but we must not poach on local requirements, whether they are African, Fijian or in any Commonwealth or colonial country. We are very careful about this. I have the problem in mind, but we have to proceed with caution.

Has the right hon. Gentleman considered the ex-soldiers from the King's African Rifles, many of whom might be very interested?

Any overseas station—Kenya is one of them—is a place at which anybody who wishes to enlist in the British Army can do so.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that he is compelled to go to the Fijian Islands to get recruits only because the average British young man does not see any reality at all in the Army in modern times in the nuclear age? Does not the Secretary of State think that it is deplorable that he has to go to the Seychelles and the Fijian Islands and all these other places when he cannot get the recruits at home?

As the hon. Gentleman knows from the experience in his own constituency, things are looking up.

No, they are not.

Yes, they are. It would be wrong for us to deny people who are members of the Commonwealth, though they do not live in this country, the chance to serve their Queen in the British Army.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the number of volunteers who have joined the Army, the number who have not exercised an option to complete an engagement, and the number who have extended their service, since the publication of the Government's acceptance of the Grigg Committee's recommendation on pay.

Since November, 1958, when Command Paper No. 570 was published, 82,958 men have joined the Army as volunteers. Since the same date, 31,205 men have not exercised an option to complete an engagement, and 39,255 have extended their service.

What evidence has the Secretary of State that these soldiers have accepted the Government's recent unilateral breach of contract with them on pay? How has the Secretary of State acquainted himself with the views of these soldiers? For example, has any private soldier been asked whether he is ready to make a sacrifice of over £20 to the Government?

I cannot pretend that I have gone all round the Army asking soldiers whether they agree with hon. Members opposite. That would be very foolish indeed. I can tell the hon. Gentleman that the tentative recruiting results for the last fortnight—that is to say, since the announcement was made—do not reflect the dismay which hon. Members opposite affected to feel. They are about 25 per cent. up on last year and almost 40 per cent. up on 1960.

The right hon. Gentleman is not asked about what we think. It is a question of what these men think. They were engaged upon a certain basis. The Minister of Defence informed us that they would prefer not to have this additional pay to which they are entitled. We want to know whether they have been asked if they agree with the Minister of Defence.

I have given figures which certainly prove to the House that what hon. Members opposite are suggesting is not considered to be the case by soldiers in the Army or indeed by those coming forward as recruits. I believe that the Army as a whole has accepted this decision in the spirit in which it has been taken.

asked the Secretary of State for War what is the total number of persons who have applied for married quarters for whom there are none available.

There are at present about 15,000 soldiers for whom we can not provide married quarters. However, two-thirds of these have their families with them in other accommodation.

In view of the disappointing results last year, when only £1 million was spent on housing, etc., compared with the £3 million planned, when do the Government hope to make up for this lost ground? In which year do the Government expect that every soldier who is entitled to a married quarter and wants one will be able to get one?

The last part of the question would be very difficult for even the hon. Gentleman, with his mathematical mind, to answer. It depends on how many new soldiers come in, how many of them marry, and at what age. I cannot throw estimates across the House of Commons unless I know them to be in some measure accurate. I can tell the hon. Gentleman that this year, taking this country and B.A.O.R. alone, we shall be building married quarters at the rate of 400 per week.^*

asked the Secretary of State for War what plans he has for curtailment of headquarters and staff when National Service is terminated and the target of regular troops is reached.

I am always looking for ways and means of reducing headquarters and staffs. I have not waited for the end of National Service. In a year's time, the strength of the War Office (excluding departments subsequently transferred from the Ministry of Supply) will have been reduced by a quarter since 1956, when plans for the all-regular Army were formed. My right hon. Friend explained in the Defence White Paper that a unified Command will be set up in the Far East, and that in Cyprus the Army Headquarters will be reduced in size.

Is it not time for another look to follow that of 1956? As the right hon. Gentleman will have under his administration no more than, say, 180,000 troops, is it not desirable to adjust the proportion as between those at the top and those not near the top?

It certainly is desirable, and, as I have said, we are trying to reduce the number as quickly as we possibly can, but one cannot evaluate the size of the Army against the number of administrative personnel. In fact, in any country the administrative requirements of an Army in peacetime, in a democracy, require certain activities which are not wholly related to the numbers in the Army. But we are pressing ahead with this.

I appreciate the difficulties which present themselves to the right hon. Gentleman, but obviously if the number of troops is reduced in any particular base or garrison, or even in B.A.O.R., we cannot retain the same number of generals and major generals and all the rest of them. We shall be very disappointed if the right hon. Gentleman does not adjust the proporton.

I was addressing myself not wholly to generals but to administrative staff as such. I know only too well of the right hon. Gentleman's pertinacity in trying to get rid of the tail. We are doing all we can, and it seems to me that where the heads fall the branches wither.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that at this particular moment we are more interested in heads than tails? At present, as we have less than half the Army to command, how many fewer generals have we got to command it?

I have tried to answer the question on the Order Paper. If the hon. and learned Member for Northampton will put down another question I will certainly try to give him the information. I told the right hon. Member for Easington (Mr. Shinwell) that we are trying our best to cut down the administrative element of the Army, and I think from what I have said that I have proved that we are trying to do this.

asked the Secretary of State for Air whether he is examining the possibility that the 87,000-mile trail of sunspots observed on 26th February has been responsible for electrical disturbances in the upper atmosphere leading to the exceptionally violent gales and high tides in the northern hemisphere on 5th, 6th and 7th March; and if he will make a statement.

It is known that sun-spots may be associated with electrical disturbances in the high atmosphere, but there is no certain evidence that recent gales and high tides were connected with such events.

Does my right hon. Friend recall that I put down a Question at the beginning of March asking him whether he expected very bad weather as a result of the sunspots at the end of February? In fact, there were very bad floods in the West Country and in Massachusetts in the first week of March. If it were established that there was a tie up between these sunspots and the bad weather it would be most useful. Farmers and people living on the coast would know when they could expect bad weather or high tides at certain times.

There have been more than the average number of severe gales this winter.

Orpington.

Some occurred before and some since the recent burst of sun-spots, but we know of no reason for supposing that the events were directly connected with one another. These sun-spots release ultra-violet rays and corpuscular radiation, but as far as we know they have no effect on the weather.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say if sunspots are associated with some of the recent election results?

Again, this is a question of saying what is post hoc ergo propter hoc.

asked the Secretary of State for Air what steps he is taking to encourage an increased number of applicants from Scottish schools for places as cadets at Cranwell.

We have school liaison officers based in Scotland and we advertise in newspapers and school magazines there. Headmasters and careers masters of Scottish schools are invited to visit Cranwell. We also publicise the Royal Air Force scholarship scheme which guarantees entry to the college.

I thank the Minister for that reply and hope that it will get some publicity among Scottish schools. Is he aware that young Scots are getting a lot less than their fair share of these courses of future leadership in the Air Force, although when they are persuaded to apply they seem to do remarkably well? Will the right hon. Gentleman make vigorous efforts to ensure that the officers of the Air Force are evenly distributed throughout the United Kingdom?

I would certainly welcome more cadets from Scotland, and I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for drawing attention to the position.

asked the Secretary of State for Air if he will state the additional expenditure estimated in the financial year 1962–63 from the pay review for Royal Air Force personnel.

Between £4½ million and £5 million.

Does this also mean that that is the amount by which the Government are falling short of their undertaking to review pay every two years? In the interests both of the Government's integrity and the morale of the Service, will not the right hon. Gentleman make representations before 1st April to see if this cannot be reviewed?

No, Sir. I think that the Service has accepted the award in the spirit in which it was made; not with enthusiasm but with understanding.

What was that spirit?

In the realisation that the economic situation facing the country was a difficult one.

asked the Secretary of State for Air why the commitments of Fighter Squadrons Nos. 25 and 29 have been interchanged; and what was the cost of the resultant changes in the navigational and other equipment in the Javelin aircraft concerned.

The commitments of Fighter Squadrons 25 and 29 have not been interchanged.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will state for each of the last three years the number of senior secondary school pupils gaining leaving certificates with qualifications necessary for entry to the universities.

University entrance requirements involve a great many possible combinations of passes in particular subjects and groups of subjects and I regret that the information asked for cannot be obtained from the statistics of the Certificate Examination.

Is the hon. Gentleman not aware that the number of senior secondary pupils with qualifications for entry has been increasing for some years back? Is it not crass folly on the part of the Government to cut back on university expenditure at a time when the nation needs more engineers, scientists and teachers? In view of this, what steps is the Secretary of State taking to procure and obtain a fifth university in Scotland?

I think that that goes a great deal wider than the original Question.

The hon. Gentleman will get a chance in Question No. 40.

There is a great deal of public interest in this matter. Will not the hon. Gentleman try to make sure that he assesses which of the people have the requisite qualifications to obtain a certificate of fitness from the Universities Entrance Board, even if it takes a certain amount of work to do so? Would that not be worth while doing?

I entirely agree. There are other Questions on the Order Paper relating to this point and we want all the relevant information we can get. It is simply a question of the best techniques of getting that information.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will take steps to ensure that the statistical reports submitted to him under the Universities (Scotland) Act, 1889, contain details of the number of students with certificates of fitness who have been refused admission.

I understand that the universities do not have this information, firstly because there are many duplicate applications, and secondly because special qualifications are required for each faculty and some applicants may be refused for lack of these before it is know whether they will get the certificate of fitness. But, as my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury indicated on 8th March, the question is being further examined.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that there is a growing feeling throughout the country that there should be a greater measure of public accountability by the university authorities so that the community and Parliament are better able to assess the situation? Can he confirm that the Government themselves were not adequately informed more than a year ago when they embarked on the present quite inadequate programme of university building?

University building is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, as the hon. Gentleman knows. We are most anxious to get all the information we can with a bearing on the problem of university entrance.

Is it not scandalous that the Minister should be seeking to plan senior secondary education without having any proper idea of the number of qualified pupils from Scottish schools able to obtain places in Scottish universities?

As I said, in this extremely complex matter of qualifications and entrance requirements we are trying to clarify the position as far as we can.

Questions such as these have been asked for years. As so many young people who are fit to enter a university are being denied a place in a Scottish university, it is not good enough for the Under-Secretary to tell us that the Government are still making efforts to find out this information. When does he hope to have this information, which is of such great importance?

If the hon. Lady will look at recent answers given by my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, she will see some of the steps which are being taken.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the South of Scotland Electricity Board and the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board on the proposal in Command Paper No. 1337. The Financial and Economic Obligations of the Nationalised Industries, that the boards should finance a larger percentage of their capital requirements from revenue; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend hopes to be able to make a statement next week.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the South of Scotland Electricity Board has already imposed price increases of rather more than 10 per cent. and that the Hydro Electric Board has also given notice that it will be imposing price increases? When this statement is made, will it include an estimate of the extent to which these price increases are attributable to direct Government policy, so that at least we can know where responsibility lies, particularly in this period when on the one hand the Government are putting up prices and on the other trying to impose a pay pause?

It would not be wise for me to anticipate the statement. We will take note of what the hon. Gentleman has said.

Will the hon. Gentleman give an undertaking that when this statement is made it will include all the nationalised industries, since not only the electricity but the gas boards are putting up prices? Is he aware that there is a feeling in the country that these increases are entirely due to the policy enunciated in the White Paper, and that it seems to be a contradiction in the Government's policy that they should be appealing for wage restraint at the same time as they are deliberately putting up prices?

My right hon. Friend's statement will be concerned with electricity.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what the average annual rents for 3, 4 and 5 apartment houses, respectively, will be when the new policy on hospital rents has taken full effect.

These figures will not be known until late this year when the Treasury Valuer has dealt with all the representations put to him about the valuation of hospital houses.

In the meantime, will the hon. Gentleman stop making comparisons with the English figures? As on the whole the houses in Scotland are smaller than those in England, are not these comparisons quite misleading? Is he aware that there is some evidence that in many ways the rents of Scottish hospital houses are rather higher than the English figures?

I cannot agree with the hon. Gentleman. The valuation figures which we have to date indicate that the Scottish figures will be lower.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what proposals he has for the regionalisation of water supplies for central Scotland.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend gave him on 14th February.

Does the Under-Secretary appreciate that that was not a very satisfactory reply? As two new towns are being built in this area, one at Cumbernauld and one at Livingstone, so that there is a need for some regionalised scheme of water from Glasgow and Edinburgh, is it not time that the hon. Gentleman was making some effort to bring about such a scheme of regionalisation? Is he also aware that the most progressive local authorities in the area are in favour of the establishment of such a scheme?

I do not know why the hon. Gentleman says that my right hon. Friend's answer was unsatisfactory. He said that the Scottish Water Advisory Committee had been reconstituted in order to deal with this very problem.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about progress on the reconstruction of the Glasgow-Gretna road, A.74.

Five reconstructed lengths are now open to traffic and there are now 30 miles in all of dual carriageway on this 84 mile route. Two other schemes are in progress and up to schedule, and three more should have started by the end of the financial year, making a further 20 miles of dual carriageway under construction. My right hon. Friend hopes shortly to publish a draft Special Road Scheme which when made will enable him to construct as a motorway the Hamilton by-pass from Larkhall to Mount Vernon on the outskirts of Glasgow.

I thank my hon. Friend for that information. Is he aware that I travelled this road very recently and was highly impressed by the speed and quality of the work done under very difficult circumstances and that I should like to commend everybody concerned?

I thank my hon. Friend.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that one visitor to this road called it a comic opera? Is it not true that the performance on this road has been perfectly scandalous? Is it not time that the Government got on with it and completed the job?

I am very glad that, although costs and standards are higher than was originally envisaged, we are keeping up to the schedule announced in 1956. I am also very satisfied that our progress has been substantially better than hon. Members opposite thought that it could be when we last debated the subject.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make the Kincardine Bridge-Kinross road a trunk road.

Yes, Sir. With the concurrence of the county councils concerned my right hon. Friend has published in draft, and will shortly make, an Order trunking this route, A.977, which is of growing importance to commercial traffic, and detrunking A.91 from Stirling to Milnathort, which is declining. As part of this exchange, he is also trunking A.905 in Stirlingshire, which links A.9 at Salmon Inn with the South approach to Kincardine Bridge, A.876.

I thank my hon. Friend for his reply. Will he now apply the same principles to the road from Perth to Stonehaven and to the road from Dundee to Stonehaven and make the former, which carries all the heavy traffic from Aberdeen to Glasgow, a trunk road and de-trunk the coast road from Dundee?

We are always ready to consider proposals of this kind on their merits.

Will the hon. Gentleman pay no attention to the latter part of his hon. Friend's suggestion? Will he bear in mind that when the Tay Road Bridge is completed, which we hope will be soon, we shall need a major trunk road up the coast to Aberdeen?

I said that we would consider schemes on their merits. I did not make any suggestion about the relative merits.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what proposals he has for increasing the pensions of retired police officers in Scotland.

Retired police officers, like other public service pensioners, receive the benefit of any increase to which they may be entitled under the Pensions (Increase) Acts. Legislation in this field is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer who, as my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury told the hon. Member for Oldbury and Halesowen (Mr. Moyle) last week, does not consider that the time has come for a further increase.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that many of the older pensioners are having to seek help from the National Assistance Board? Would he not agree that that is a shocking state of affairs for men who have had to contribute 5 per cent. of their salary to their pension? Would he not agree that his reply today will do nothing to help these pensioners? Will he not get on with the job and recognise that they are having a very difficult time?

This is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Police pensioners, as the hon. Gentleman will appreciate, are in exactly the same position as ail public service pensioners.

I beg to give notice that, in view of the totally unsatisfactory nature of that reply, I shall seek an opportunity to raise the matter on the Adjournment.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware that the new road being built between Torridon and Shieldaig, known as the Balgy Gap road, in Wester Ross is to be constructed as an 11-foot carriageway with passing places; and if he will have it constructed as an 18-foot carriageway instead.

The carriageway being constructed is 11 ft. wide with passing places but, as my hon. Friend will know from my right hon. Friend's letter of 12th March, the earthworks required to enable this to be widened to 18 ft. when traffic justifies this are being done at the same time.

Will my hon. Friend look at this matter again? This road will have to be widened within the next two or three years. It will be a very important tourist road. The price now, with all the men and equipment on the spot, would be £11,000. In two or three years' time it would be £35,000 to £40,000. Surely this is completely false economy.

To go ahead with the scheme now, which is not of top priority, would correspondingly reduce work on other new Highland roads.

Will not the Under-Secretary of State face up to this problem? Surely it is nonsense at this time to be building roads 11 ft. wide and making preparations for widening them two years later. This is complete nonsense and the most expensive way of building roads. Why does not the hon. Gentleman take his courage in his hands and do the road properly?

The hon. Gentleman is making the assumption that it will be necessary to widen the road in two years.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give a general direction to the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board to provide a warning system when there is danger of excessive flooding taking place at the lower points of their schemes.

No, Sir. But my right hon. Friend is asking the Board to consider what more can be done to inform the police of potential danger.

Is my hon. Friend aware that in the recent extensive flooding in the Conon Valley a farmer lost £2,000 worth of stock and a crofter over £1,000 worth of stock in the lower regions? They assure me that if warning had been given they would at least have had some chance of getting that stock out of the way.

I am aware of the difficulties and losses which occurred, but the right pattern is for the Board and the chief constables concerned to discuss the best way of giving information in future cases of danger.

Do I take it from that reply that no warning is given when there is extensive flooding in the upper regions of these schemes to people in the lower regions?

We are asking the Board to consider what future information it can make available to the police, and it will be the responsibility of the police to convey the warnings.

Surely some information should be given to the people in the region, not to the police.

It is for the police, not for the Board, to disseminate the information.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement concerning the future of Edenhall Hospital.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will consider replacing the present temporary buildings at Edenhall Hospital with modern permanent buildings to meet the needs of the surrounding areas.

The Regional Hospital Board intends that Edenhall Hospital should continue to provide a priority hospital service for war pensioners, and also facilities for paraplegic and orthopaedic patients generally. As regards replacement of the present temporary buildings, I am afraid that the resources available are committed to other developments in the region of higher priority.

If this hospital is to play its proper part in the National Health Service, will not there have to be considerable expenditure on modernisation and replacing temporary accommodation? If this large expenditure is required, could not the request of local authorities in the area that provision be made to meet the general needs of Musselburgh and Midlothian be considered?

These points are all very much in the mind of the Board, but, unfortunately, its priorities at the moment do not allow it to do any work on this hospital.

I thank the Under-Secretary of State for his reply. We know that part of this hospital has been reserved for the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance. I wish to raise the same point as I have raised on a previous occasion. There is a ward in the hospital which is never used because it is reserved for officers who are likely to go there for treatment. One officer went into a general ward. Something should be done about the present temporary buildings. Where does this hospital come on the priorities list?

It does not come on the list in the immediate future.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when the maternity unit at Belvedere Hospital, Glasgow, was first due to be opened; and when it is now expected to be opened.

The opening planned for last summer had to be deferred mainly because of difficulty in recruiting nursing staff for the hospital as a general practitioner unit. It has therefore been reorganised as a part specialist and part general practitioner unit, and since last month has been coming into use gradually as the recruitment of nurses proceeds.

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that reply.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is now taking to assess the health consequences of the 75 per cent. decrease in the consumption of welfare foods since the prices of these foods were increased.

Arrangements have been made for hospital paediatricians to keep watch for any conditions among children that might be linked with inadequate vitamin intake. Periodical reports are also obtained from medical officers of health of selected areas, in collaboration with obstetricians, on the health of expectant and nursing mothers.

Can the Under-Secretary of State say what areas are selected? Our particularly bad housing conditions in Scotland and the unhealthy environment which many of our children have to grow up in make it all the more necessary that these welfare foods should be retained. Does not the hon. Gentleman think it very bad that the Secretary of State should automatically follow the Minister of Health's economy campaign in cutting out foods for these weaker sections of our community?

The hon. Gentleman is nothing if not a trier. This is the second Question on this matter which he has tabled, as well as having an Adjournment debate. Therefore, I do not think that I shall go into the wider aspect of it. The areas which have been selected are the four main cities, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that we have had a report on this matter from the Medical Officer of Health for Ayrshire, the county in which he lives? The medical officer of health and the health committee are already strongly protesting against this. Will not the hon. Gentleman take that into consideration?

We have already had an Adjournment debate on that subject.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many cigarettes are sold each week in Scottish hospitals.

I regret that this information is not available.

While this is perhaps the last time that anyone would wish to deny patients the solace of cigarettes, is the Under-Secretary of State aware that there seem to be about 1 million cigarettes consumed a week in Scottish hospitals? Since doctors are telling the rest of the population to stop smoking, would it not be a good idea if they showed an example and stopped smoking themselves?

The Government's policy with regard to the danger to health from smoking is to make the position clear to the public. In addition, we are considering all the suggestions made in the recent Report of the Royal College of Physicians. I should not like to go further than that at the moment.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what measures he is taking or proposes to take to aid Lanarkshire Education Authority to provide both schools in their housing development areas and extensions and improvements to senior and junior secondary schools.

My right hon. Friend will shortly authorise the investment for 1962–63 required to enable the education authority to proceed with the school building programme which it proposes to start in that year.

Will this programme cover every item of the scheme put forward to the Secretary of State? Is the hon. Gentleman aware that already the education authority in Lanarkshire is spending £3 million more of the ratepayers' money than it is getting from the general grant? Is he further aware that some of the schools in Lanarkshire are disgraceful places in which to educate children?

I am aware of the hold-up which occurred in new starts in Lanarkshire, which we all regret. If the council puts forward a slightly more ambitious scheme than the one it has submitted, we would be prepared to consider it. But the scheme at present before us will shortly be approved.

The scheme was given to the Department of Education some time ago. It does not even meet all the requirements in the circular. Will that scheme be operated by help from the Government?

We are shortly to approve that scheme. If any further proposals come from Lanarkshire, we will be prepared to consider them.

Will the hon. Gentleman bear in mind that the present scheme concentrates two-thirds of all building in one town, namely, in the new town of East Kilbride? While we have nothing against East Kilbride getting the schools which it certainly requires, will the hon. Gentleman bear in mind that one-third of an already reduced school building programme is hopelessly inadequate to meet the needs of Lanarkshire?

What we are doing is accepting the scheme which Lanarkshire education authority has put forward.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether, before approving the installation of parking meters in George Street, Charlotte Square and St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh, he took full account of the shortage of off-street parking facilities at present available in the city; and what study he made of other possible solutions to the problem of long-term parking.

These proposals by Edinburgh Corporation were the subject of a public inquiry at which the facilities for off-street parking and other ways of dealing with the problem of long-term parking were discussed. After considering the evidence, the Reporter's conclusion was that the Corporation's proposals are justified; and my right hon. Friend saw no reason not to accept it.

Is it not the case that this was the first application of its kind either for Edinburgh or for any city in Scotland, and as George Street and Charlotte Square, Edinburgh, have particular architectural merits, would it not have been a worth-while experiment to have tried either the disc scheme from Paris or the scheme that has been operating successfully in Leicester, which would have made it unnecessary to erect parking meters on these squares?

I think my hon. Friend will realise that this is a matter for the highway authority. The Edinburgh Corporation put forward a scheme and, after an inquiry which saw no reason for not accepting it as satisfactory, we accepted that scheme.

Nevertheless, is the Minister aware how ugly parking meters are and the extent to which they will spoil the architectural beauty of Edinburgh? Is it not a fact that the results of the Leicester traffic wardens scheme were available after the Edinburgh inquiry took place? Will he study the results of the inquiry to see whether it is possible to replace the ugly parking meters now proposed for Edinburgh with a scheme of that kind?

That is for the corporation and not for us to consider in the first instance.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will call for a report from the headmasters of Scottish senior secondary schools regarding their difficulties in finding places in higher education for suitably qualified pupils.

No, Sir. I think that this is best dealt with in the context of the present inquiries by Lord Robbing' committee to which I understand the Headmasters' Association has submitted both written and oral evidence.

Is the Minister aware that it may be 1964 before we have the report of the Lord Robbins' Committee and in the meantime there is increasing concern among Scottish teachers and parents concerning the number of children who obtain certificates of fitness to enter universities but are unable to find places? Is he also aware that the universities have utterly failed their responsibilities to the nation in giving information about this, and will he not therefore seek information from his end where his own responsibility lies?

I have answered this Question before, making it clear that the university aspect of it is for the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Concerning our own responsibility, we most certainly will take any action we consider appropriate to deal with immediate problems as they arise. The Committee has been investigating the long-term problem for some time and we do not want to duplicate its work.

In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the reply, I beg to give notice that I will raise the matter on the Adjournment.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware of the concern about future industrial prospects in Fife, especially consequent on the announcement of the imminent closure of the Rothes colliery; and whether he will undertake immediate consultations with the Fife County Council in order to find means of alleviating the problem.

Yes, Sir. I fully understand the apprehension which is felt in Fife about the future employment situation there. With regard to consultation, the Departments concerned are already in close touch with the County Council on this matter. Plans for the expansion of existing industry at Glenrothes are likely to create 200 additional jobs in this area in the near future. Furthermore, the New Town Corporation's negotiations with prospective industrial developers for a number of other new projects are at an advanced stage.

Does the Under-Secretary of State recognise that even assuming these projects come to fruition, which must be problematical, in the meanwhile they will not bring jobs before the Rothes pit closes and that meanwhile men will have moved out of the area? In view of these circumstances and the tremendous psychological, social and economic implications involved in the early closure of this pit, will he impress upon the Secretary of State for Scotland to seek to bring pressure in higher circles in the Cabinet to get the extra £5 million necessary to go to the deeper seams in this colliery, so that we may try to salvage something out of the losses already incurred there?

I cannot comment on the latter point. So far as the introduction of industry to the area is concerned, we shall certainly do all that we can to speed up developments.

Is the Minister aware of the growing apprehension among all sections of the community in Fife arising out of the closure of the Rothes colliery—apprehension among people of different political persuasions regarding the future employment prospects, particularly for young people in Fife? Will he urge upon his right hon. Friend to make representations at Cabinet level to introduce tax concessions to prospective industrialists coming into Fife and so prevent it becoming a depressed area?

That is a very much wider question.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he is aware that, arising from the closing of Glenochil pit, families who, in accordance with Government policy, left their homes to man the new pit and were rehoused by the Scottish Special Housing Association and local authorities will be involved in heavy financial loss; and what steps he is taking to relieve them of housing and other liabilities assumed on the basis of Government assurances of employment in the area.

The Government Departments concerned are in close touch with the National Coal Board about the redeployment of manpower from this pit, and if necessary will be consulting with the local authorities about the possibilities of alternative employment.

Is the Minister aware that the Government have collective responsibility for this through the Ministry of Power, the Secretary of State for Scotland and the President of the Board of Trade? Is he also aware that large numbers of miners were persuaded to leave their homes in Lanarkshire and elsewhere to go to this area and undertake work in this great new pit, and that they took on liabilities, which they were perfectly justified in doing, in connection with the promise of twenty or thirty years' work? Are the Government not aware that this is in fact a moral breach of contract which in any other industry would have required compensation paid to directors and other people if the contract were broken? Are the Government not prepared to look into this whole question to see what can be done for these miners?

My information is that the National Coal Board hopes that with the co-operation of the unions it will be possible to redeploy the majority of the men affected.

Is the Minister aware that even redeploying means that a man may lose £15 a week if he gets a job as an office boy after working as a trained man, and that is not exactly compensating him for the loss of his living? He may have many responsibilities which he will not be able to meet.

I think that any question of detail ought to be addressed to my right hon. Friend the Minister of Power.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will give a general direction to the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board to postpone implementing their decision to increase rents by 66 per cent. until the trade union officials have had an opportunity to discuss the effects of this increase with the Board.

No, Sir, my right hon. Friend has no power to give a direction in the sense suggested.

Is the Under-Secretary aware that these are tied houses? They are in very remote areas and the people concerned have extra transport costs? Most of the Hydro-Electric Board's workers are manual workers earning about £9 10s. to £13 a week. This new rent scheme, which is being introduced at the behest of the Secretary of State for Scotland, is raising these rents to the equivalent of the new gross annual value and it is obviously being done on the decision of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Surely he can give directions to the Board that the Board might consult the trade unions to find out what will be the effect of all this?

The position is that, so far as the houses are owned by the Board, this is entirely an administrative matter for the Board. Concerning the houses owned by the Hydro-Electric Housing Society, my right hon. Friend can only intervene if there is disagreement between the Society and the local authorities. I have no knowledge of any such disagreement so far.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, (1) what is the average rent plus rates paid by tenants of three-apartment and four-apartment local authority houses, respectively, in the four Scottish cities; (2) what is the average rent plus rates paid by tenants of three-apartment and four-apartment local authority houses, respectively, in the large burghs of Scotland.

These figures are not available centrally for houses of different sizes. Average rents before rebates at November, 1961, are set out in Cmnd. 1609 presented to Parliament last month.

Is the Minister not aware that we know the average rents but that the average local authority tenant thinks in terms of rent and rates, and would it not be a much fairer comparison in terms of costs for housing accommodation in England and Wales and in Scotland if we had the rent and rates in both accounts so that we could see what the people are paying?

I cannot agree with the hon. Gentleman. It is essential that it should be clear in people's minds that rent and rates are entirely different things.

Is it not in the rural areas that rent and rates tend to be higher than in the cities, although the earning capacity is lower?

Did the hon. Gentleman say that these figures were not available? If he did, can they be got? Since the House wants them, will he take steps to get them?

I do not think that the time and labour involved would be justified, not only in my right hon. Friend's Department but also in the local authorities' departments. If the hon. Gentleman who asked the Question wishes, I can certainly arrange to let him have approximate average figures covering houses of all sizes.

I would not have put the Question down if I had not wished to have the information.