asked the Minister of Aviation if he is satisfied with the number of seats in the passenger waiting area on the first floor at the civil airport at Aldergrove in County Antrim; and whether he will provide additional seats to meet the needs of passengers should two or more flights be delayed.

Yes. There are 450 seats in the terminal building, including over 200 in the waiting areas and bar and 180 in the restaurant. These should be adequate for all normal purposes. Nevertheless arrangements are being made for some extra chairs to be held in reserve.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what assistance he has offered to the Ghana Government following the recent floods in Ghana.

Exceptional flooding in the Volta River area cut off land communications between the south and the north of Ghana. To assist the Ghana authorities in getting supplies to the inhabitants of the Northern and Upper Regions, Her Majesty's Government made a Hastings aircraft of Royal Air Force Transport Command available for four weeks during September and October.Parliament will be asked in due course to approve a Supplementary Estimate of some £4,000 to cover the cost of this service.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he is aware that anomalies have arisen as a result of recent Court decisions on the rateability of buildings connected with new developments in agriculture such as intensive poultry breeding; and whether, in view of the fact that this is discouraging improvements in agriculture, he will take remedial action.

I am anxious that the law on liability for rates should be as clear and fair as possible. The Government have already announced that they will be making a general review of the rating system next year and this question should be considered at that time.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works whether he is satisfied that the statistical information on the activities of the construction industries at present available is adequate, in view of the greatly increased demands on these industries; and if he will make a statement.

No. I intend to introduce a number of changes. In the first place we need more information about how the load of work is distributed. We also need the information more quickly, both nationally and locally. The construction industries have agreed to the collection by my Ministry of additional statistics of new orders, starting in January, 1964. These returns will give the location of the projects, which will enable the work load to be analysed by areas as necessary. Returns will now be made monthly by a limited number of firms, instead of quarterly as at present. The information, which will be valuable to the Government for planning their construction programmes, will also be made available to the industries so that they too can plan ahead on the basis of sound and up-to-date information.

asked the Minister of Health what are the ratios between the maximum salaries of a ward sister, staff nurse and a State enrolled nurse now and at 1st February, 1949, in general and psychiatric hospitals, respectively; and what are the equivalent figures allowing for the change in the value of the £ sterling.

asked the Minister of Transport when he expects that work will start on the construction of the dual carriageway on the A.10 between Carterhatch Lane, Enfield, and the New River Arms, Turnford.

:I hope that objections which have been made to the draft Section 9 Order can now be settled quickly and that work on the first section between Carterhatch Lane and Bulls-moor Lane can be started next year. I cannot yet say when the extension to Turnford can be started.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware of the difficult traffic conditions caused by the heavy volume of traffic on. and the narrowness of, the highway at Puckeridge; and whether he will include in an early programme a Puckeridge by-pass to the A.10.

I accept the need for a by-pass at Puckeridge, but because of many other more urgent schemes I have not yet been able to include it in my trunk road programme.

The ratios are shown in the table below. The adjustments for change in the value of the £ sterling have been made on the basis of movements in the Ministry of Labour Index of Retail Prices.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has for the future of licensing planning.

I have decided to appoint a Departmental Committee with the following terms of reference:To.consider and report whether,

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what action Her Majesty's Government propose to take in order to assist the Government of the Congo in supporting the economy of that country.

A grant of $2 million to be channelled through the United Nations was announced in Parliament on 2nd November, 1962. M. Adoula subsequently informed the United Nations that it would be premature for his Government to accept this aid. The country, has, however, recently embarked on a programme of economic rehabilitation and M. Adoula has indicated to Her Majesty's Ambassador that aid would now be welcome.Her Majesty's Government accordingly propose to supply the money bilaterally, keeping the United Nations informed. It is intended to be both a contribution to international aid to the Congo and of assistance to British commercial interests in the country which are urgently in need of sterling imports.Arrangements to give practical effect to this plan are being discussed with the Government of the Congo. Pending completion of these negotiations the rate at which the grant is likely to be disbursed cannot be forecast. Parliament will however be asked in due course to vote the amount required during the current financial year by means of a Supplementary Estimate on the Foreign Grants and Loans Vote. In the meantime advances will be obtained from the Civil Contingeniecies Fund as required.

asked the Secretary for Technical Co-operation if, in view of the rise in the cost of living, and the fact that, under the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1962, the increase in a Malayan pension received by a constituent of the hon. Member for Antrim, South, particulars of whom have been sent to him, over a number of years is 35s. per year, he will make a statement with regard to additional benefits for such Commonwealth pensioners.

I have been asked to reply.The purpose of Section 3 of the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1962, was to supplement the pensions increases payable by overseas Governments to certain overseas pensioners, to bring them into line with the increases granted under the various Pensions (Increase) Acts to public service pensioners in this country. The amount of the supplement awarded in any particular case depends on a number of factors including the age of the pensioner, his date of retirement, the amount of his basic pension, the amount of the increases paid by the overseas Government or Governments, and the amount of increases payable under the various United Kingdom Pensions (Increase) Acts.In the case referred to the pensioner was granted by Singapore in 1941 a basic pension of £154 11s. 8d. This pension has subsequently attracted increases from the Singapore Government amounting to £147 16s. 9d. per annum. A public service pensioner in this country who retired in 1941 with the same basic pension would be eligible to receive pensions increases amounting to £149 12s. 8d. A supplement of £1 15s. 11d. is therefore payable to the overseas pensioner to bring his pensions increase up to the level payable under the United Kingdom Pensions (Increase) Acts.Some 8,700 overseas pensioners have been awarded pensions supplements at an average rate of £100 per annum under the Pensions (Increase) Act, 1962.