asked the President of the Board of Trade under what conditions the annual grant for consumer work to British Standards Institution has been given.

No special conditions were attached to the expenditure of the sum earmarked within the Board of Trade grant to the British Standards Institution in each of the last six financial years for the Institution's work on behalf of the domestic consumer. It is not proposed in future to make any separate allocation of this kind.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will state the amounts provided by loan and grant for each job provided in development districts in the year ended 31st March, 1963, giving separate figures for the North-East.

The amounts provided by loan and grant for projects in the development districts in Great Britain in the year ended 31st March, 1963, average £601 per job and for those in the North-East £674 per job. These amounts cannot be divided between loans and grants since in many cases both forms of assistance have been given to the same project.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that, in view of strained relations between this country and South Africa, the South African Broadcasting Corporation has placed an order with the French Thomson-Houston company amounting to £1,100,000 which otherwise might have been placed in Great Britain and that orders for aircraft amounting to many millions of pounds are also now likely to be placed in France; and what steps he is taking to improve trade relations with South Africa.

Our present trade relations with South Africa are good. My right hon. Friend has no reason to believe that the placing of the South African Broadcasting Corporation contract was anything but a commercial decision; he is not aware that the South African Government have taken any decision regarding major orders for aircraft in the future.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what additional employment is now in prospect for Merseyside as a result of recent development proposals.

We have received a substantial number of inquiries recently about the possibility of further industrial development on Merseyside. It is too early to put any figure on the amount of additional employment likely to result. Some 20,000 jobs are in prospect on Merseyside in the next 3–4 years, resulting from new industrial building and other developments known to the Board of Trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what support he gave to the British trade mission, led by the vice-chairman of the London Chamber of Commerce, on a buy-and-sell visit to Russia; and if chambers of commerce in the North-East of England were invited to take part in the visit.

Arrangements for this visit were made by the London Chamber of Commerce and the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce on their own initiative. I had a meeting with the mission shortly before its departure.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why the Estimate of the Victoria and Albert Museum for 1963–64 to aid purchases by local museums is £5,000 lower than the previous year, when his Standing Commission on Museums and Galleries thought that that sum was of token assistance only and recommended an eight-fold increase.

The provision for the current year is lower than that for 1962–63 because the provision in that year was inflated by a specific grant of £5,000 for a particular purchase. It is, however, at £25,000 very much larger than it was in 1954–55 when the figure was £1,320. The report of the Standing Commission on Museums and Galleries is at present under consideration.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, in order to release more loans for mortgages to wage and salary earners with less than £1,000 per annum, he will revise the regulation for Trustee Building Societies which requires the societies to maintain 7½ per cent. of their assets on short call.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will now make available to British shipowners finance and credit facilities at least equal to those available for overseas shipowners ordering ships in the United Kingdom.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on Wednesday, 8th May, to the hon. Member for Bristol, Central (Mr. Awbery) by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the amount of aid granted by the United Kingdom in the years 1961 and 1962; and how much was tied aid in each of these two years.

Aid provided by the United Kingdom Government was of the order of £171 million in 1961 and £165 million in 1962. Of these amounts £44 million and £52 million respectively, were tied to the purchase of goods in the United Kingdom.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why the Treasury's Bulletin for Industry No. 162 of April, 1963, in recording the use in the nineteen-thirties of high tariffs and other protective trade barriers, made no mention of the contribution to Commonwealth and world recovery made by the creation of the sterling area, and of the subsequent effect of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade on the Commonwealth and sterling area.

The purpose of this article was to describe how the G.A.T.T. has helped to reduce tariff barriers to world trade, and to relate past experience to the forthcoming trade negotiations.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many vacant posts there were in the universities of England and Wales at the latest available date.

Universities have no fixed establishment of teaching posts. I regret, therefore, that the information asked for is not available.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether, in order to assist hon. Members who deal with their Parliamentary correspondence away from the Palace of Westminster, he will increase the allowance of stationery which they may obtain without charge.

Yes. The free allowance of stationery for the use of Members conducting their Parliamentary correspondence away from the House of Commons. which has remained unchanged since 1955, will be increased to £20 a year. This increase will apply from 1st October, 1962.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will now publish figures of the gold holding of the Exchange Equalisation Account.

Yes. I have now decided there is no objection to publishing quarterly figures two or three months in arrear. The first figures, up to December, 1962, will be published in the May issue of "Financial Statistics". The figures for March, 1963, will appear for the first time in the Quarterly Bulletin of the Bank of England.

asked the First Secretary of State whether he will make a statement about his negotiations with the Government of Southern Rhodesia.

I have nothing at present to add to my reply to my hon. Friend on 9th May.

asked the First Secretary of State to what extent in his discussions with the Governments of the territories of Rhodesia and Nyasaland he has made proposals for the maintenance of adequate and equitable supplies for the social services of those territories for which Her Majesty's Government are responsible.

I have made Ito proposals, because I have no evidence that supplies are not being maintained.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is aware that the poisons legislation is out of date, and that amendment is needed to require formulae to be placed on containers of preparations and thus help to ensure a degree of consumer protection; and whether he will make a statement on Government proposals for action in this field.

The container of any preparation containing a poison in the Poisons List, except a medicine supplied or prescribed by a doctor, veterinarian or dentist, is required by the Pharmacy and Poisons Act, 1933, to be labelled, when sold retail, with the name of the poison it contains and the proportion this poison bears to the total ingredients. I am not aware of the need for any amendment of the law.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has received a report from the Metropolitan Police with reference to the recent incident outside Claridge's Hotel concerning Queen Frederika of Greece; and if he will make a statement.

I have nothing to add to the statements already made by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and myself.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what complaints have reached him of improper handling of the mail of prisoners in Walton Prison, Liverpool; and what action he has taken.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give sympathetic consideration to an early release of Gordon Lonsdale, at present serving 25 years' imprisonment in Winson Green Prison, provided that satisfactory arrangements can be made to secure a similar arrangement with the Russian authorities on behalf of Greville Wynne.

This is a hypothetical question. Therefore I have nothing to say.

asked the Minister of Education what steps Her Majesty's Government are taking to meet the estimated increase of the need for school places by some 2½ million by 1985, by the forward planning of a school building programme and the training of teachers; and whether he will make a statement.

My Department keeps the long-term supply and demand for teachers under continuous review, taking into account, among other factors, both the latest estimate of future births and also the higher output which will result from the expansion of the training colleges to 80,000 students, as announced in January of this year. Long-term plans to ensure an adequate supply of teachers from the universities and training colleges will need to be related to the major decisions about the scale and pattern of higher education as a whole on which the Government are awaiting the advice of the Robbins Committee. Meanwhile the Government will continue to stimulate recruitment to teaching from other sources, such as older students from industry and commerce, and to encourage married women teachers to return to the schools.Building programmes will continue to take full account of the additional numbers of school children expected in each locality.

asked the Minister of Education if he will set up a committee to report on the possibility of a teaching-by-television service.

My right hon. Friend fully recognises the potential value of teaching by television, but he does not think that a useful purpose would be served by setting up such a committee at the present time. He would prefer to see what emerges from the present plans both of the Corporation and of the programme companies in relation both to schools and to adult television.

asked the Minister of Education what facilities are provided for school leavers who fail to secure suitable employment to continue their education; and what steps are taken to acquaint young people of the existence of the facilities.

Local education authorities, head teachers and youth employment officers encourage young people to stay on at school or to attend full-time or part-time courses at colleges of further education.For those school leavers who do not wish to continue their formal education, a number of authorities have provided special courses, or made exceptional arrangements to enable young people to attend existing courses until they can find a job.

asked the Minister of Education what is the estimated contribution from rates towards the cost of United Kingdom education in all its forms; and what relation this bears to the total estimated cost of such education in the financial year 1963–64, showing in both instances the current and capital costs separately.

The official estimates of public expenditure on education in Great Britain in 1963–64 amount to £1,131 million.It is not possible to allocate specific sums of general grant to education or therefore to say precisely how much educational expenditure falls on the rates. If, however, one were to assume that the overall percentages of general grant applied to each of the relevant local government services, the rates could be deemed to contribute £311 million out of total current expenditure of £954 million (i.e., 33·7 per cent.) and £40 million out of total expenditure relating to capital provision of £177 million (i.e., 22·9 per cent.).

asked the Minister of Education what percentage of primary and secondary school children, respectively, took school dinners at the latest count; and how many children had meals provided free or at reduced cost, respectively.

Separate figures for primary and secondary school children are not available. The figure for all maintained schools for a day in the autumn term 1962 was 56·1 per cent. of those present. 260,591, that is 4 per cent. of those present, received free dinners. The number of children receiving meals at reduced cost is not available.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will take steps to reach a speedy decision on the appeal to him by Scruton and Co. (Builders) Ltd. in respect of certain works at its Beverley Road building site in Hull; and when he expects to make an announcement thereon.

A hearing took place on 23rd and 24th April. The Inspector's report is being urgently considered, and my right hon. Friend will announce a decision as soon as he can.

asked the Prime Minister, in view of his stated policy that Enahoro would not be returned to Nigeria if there was doubt or question of the death penalty being enforceable there and that he would not be returned without a definite undertaking from Nigeria that no charge carrying the death penalty would be laid, what action he is taking in view of the judgment of the Lord Chief Justice that since this is not a case under the Extradition Act where the court only grants extradition for the charges actually preferred, Nigeria is fully entitled to prefer any additional charges, and of the refusal by the Nigerian Government to give any undertakings.

I have nothing to add to what my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and my hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General said in the debate last night.

asked the Secretary of State for Air how many members of the Royal Air Force lost their resettlement grant in 1962 through being discharged 12 hours and 24 hours, respectively, after the last possible date.

Portions of a day are not significant for discharge purposes. Three airmen were discharged from service on the day following the ending of the special resettlement grant scheme. I realise how disappointing this must have been for them but the only practicable arrangement was to decide a date for the ending of the scheme and keep to it.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations whether his Commonwealth migration policy will be reviewed in the light of the Registrar General's latest forecasts of the increase of United Kingdom population.

No. I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer to a Question which be asked on 21st February.

asked the Minister of Health if he will state the terms of reference of the Committee on the Safety of Drugs, and the names of the members so far appointed.

Sir Derrick Dunlop has been invited to be Chairman and Professors A. C. Frazer, R. B. Hunter, and L. J. Witts, to be members; the terms of reference will be announced shortly.

asked the Minister of Labour how many young people under 18 years of age are registered as unemployed at the Airdrie, Wishaw and Shotts employment exchanges; and in each case what percentage of young insured workers those numbers represent.

Young people do not register at these employment exchanges. On 8th April, 162 boys and girls were registered at Airdrie Youth Employment Office and 274 at Motherwell, which includes Wishaw and Shotts. Separate unemployment percentage rates for young people are not calculated.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what would be the cost of giving non-contributory pensions to those old people who were over 70 in 1961 and who never contributed to the 1948 Insurance Scheme on a sliding scale, namely £3 7s. 6d. to those with incomes under £250, £2 17s. 6d. to those with incomes over £250 but less than £500, £2 7s. 6d. to those with incomes of £500 but less than £750, and £1 17s. 6d. to those with incomes of over £750 but less than £1,000.

I regret that the information available does not enable me to say what the cost would be. There would of course be some resulting saving on National Assistance, but my hon. and gallant Friend's proposals would not eliminate the need for National Assistance in all cases.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when the first phase of the centralised hospital for Caithness will be ready for occupation; if it will be equipped to give full medical and surgical services; and why only 25 beds will be available.

The sketch plans for this project are now being prepared but it is not yet possible to estimate when it will be ready for occupation. The first phase of the project will be a medical unit of 25 beds with out-patient facilities; until the remainder of the hospital is constructed surgical services will continue to be provided at the existing hospitals in Wick and Thurso. With the other commitments to hospital building in the Highlands it is not possible to do more in the first phase.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many uncertificated teachers are employed, respectively, by Glasgow and Lanarkshire education authorities; and what percentage of the total number of teachers this represents in each case.

At 1st October, 1962, the figures were respectively 254 (3·6 per cent.) and 361 (8·8 per cent.).

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will seek the advice of the Nationalised Transport Advisory Council on the feasibility of co-ordinating the lines of the British Railways Board in the London area scheduled for closure in the Beeching Report and integrate them with the London transport system operated by the London Transport Board, or of setting up a joint study to ascertain whether the said lines could be operated jointly by the two nationalised corporations.

This is primarily a matter for the British Railways and London Transport Boards, who have a duty under Sections 3(2) and 7(2) of the Transport Act 1962 to ensure that their railway services in the London Passenger Transport Area are properly co-ordinated. As I said in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Acton (Mr. Holland) on 20th March, they have already made arrangements for this purpose and I would not think it appropriate at this stage to refer the subject to the Nationalised Transport Advisory Council.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will now make a statement about further provision for university research in agricultural marketing.

I have decided to offer to King's College, Newcastle, funds for the creation of a Department of Agricultural Marketing, for research and teaching. Initially the cost of this Department —the first Department of Agricultural Marketing in the United Kingdom—will be borne on my Ministry's Vote, but it is expected that it will be financed out of general University income from the beginning of the next Quinquennium in 1967.I am glad to acknowledge the initiatives of the Committee on the Provincial Agricultural Economics Service, under the Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge; of the Agricultural Marketing Development Executive Committee, under my right hon. Friend; and of King's College itself, which is already doing good work in agricultural marketing, particularly the marketing of fatstock and meat.