asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps are being taken by the Hong Kong Commissioner of Labour to effect a just settlement of the dispute at the Chung Ham weaving factory which has led to the dismissal of the president and other leaders of the Cotton Workers' General Union; and if he will make a statement.

The Commissioner of Labour intervened to arrange a conciliation meeting between the management and the fourteen workers who were on strike. No agreement was reached, but I am informed that the factory is now functioning normally and that most of the strikers have taken other employment. Neither the Chairman nor any other officers of the Cotton Workers General Union were employed by the company.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many persons have entered Bechuanaland from South-West Africa during the present months; how many have been granted permission to remain; how many have been granted permission to proceed to some other territory; and if he will give an assurance that none of these persons will be compelled to return to South-West Africa.

One hundred and sixty-eight persons entered Bechuanaland Protectorate from South-West Africa this month. Pending inquiries, no decisions have yet been taken about their further movement. None who are political refugees will be required to return to the Republic.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies when he proposes to introduce a draft Order in Coun- cil to effect the constitutional changes for British Guiana.

This week.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works, when he expects work to begin on the provision of up-to-date accommodation for chief petty offices, petty officers and ratings on H.M.S. "Osprey", Portland.

I expect work on the first stage of the redevelopment of H.M.S. "Osprey" to begin in May.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what consideration he has given to the report requested by the National Economic Development Council on the building and construction industry; and what proposals he has for ensuring that the industry can meet the physical requirements of the Council's 4 per cent. growth target.

I have read and considered this Report. The construction industries acting in co-operation with the Government and the associated professions have already set in hand various measures to increase output. If these measures are pursued, I am confident that the industries will meet our national needs.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will arrange for the Minister without portfolio, the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs, the Minister of Education, the Minister of Health and the Minister of Transport to consider together the effect on their announced programmes of the report by the National Economic Development Council on the construction industry and to co-ordinate them so that priority is given to the building of houses, schools, hospitals, factories in the north and necessary roads, by a limitation of the constructor of blocks of offices, luxury hotels, private development schemes and other less urgent projects.

No. Arrangements for the co-ordination of public service construction programmes already exist.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if, in view of the comments by the National Economic Development Council on the weakness of building statistics, he will strengthen the staff of his statistical section and take other steps to improve its effectiveness.

I set up the Directorate of Economic Intelligence last year and the statistical staff has been increased. The new statistics which I have recently begun to collect and of which I gave details in reply to a Parliamentary Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Mr. Anthony Royle) will be published in May and will be analysed

EXPENDITURE ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF NAVAL QUARTERS
	Actual expenditure			Estimated expenditure	Totals
	1960/61	1961/62	1962/63	1963/64–1967/68
	£	£	£	£	£	£
ADEN
Single male accommodation	2,000	33,050	15,000	37,500	87,550	178,150
Married Quarters	1,000	1,000	2,600	86,000	90,600
BAHREIN
Single male accommodation	34,500	4,500	4,250	97,000	140,250	154,250
Married Quarters	2,000	1,000	1,000	10,000	14,000
SINGAPORE
Single male accommodation	59,000	130,000	70,000	578,000	837,000	904,500
W.R.N.S. accommodation	—	—	—	25,000	25,000
Married Quarters	2,000	2,500	16,000	22,000	42,500
GIBRALTAR
Single male accommodation	2,000	3,000	1,000	356,000	362,000	1,148,000
W.R.N.S. accommodation	—	—	—
Married Quarters	20,000	19,000	1,000	746,000	786,000
Totals	122,500	194,050	110,850	1,957,500		2,384,900

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works how the figure of £85,000 for the purchase of the site and the erection of an Ambassador's residence at Yaounde was arrived at; and what will be the by type of work, size of project and locality. I shall continue my consultations about the need for other statistical information and the possibility of obtaining it without placing an undue burden on the industry in the shape of more form-filling and returns.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what has been spent on improving naval quarters in Aden, Bahrain, Singapore and Gibraltar for ratings and for members of the Women's Royal Naval Service and on married quarters since 1960; and what is the future programme.

Actual and estimated expenditure in the eight financial years 1960–61 to 1967–68 totals roughly £2,400,000. I am circulating the details in the OFFICIAL REPORT.number of official personnel who will occupy it.

The figure of £85,000 comprises £15,000 for the purchase of the site and a Provisional estimate of £70,000 for the erection of the residence. The residence will be occupied by the Ambassador and his family, and quarters will be provided for three servants and a chauffeur.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works why the provisional estimate of £550,000 for the British Embassy at Teheran has increased to £620,000.

The estimate of £620,000 relates to a comprehensive scheme for the reconstruction of the Embassy compounds at Teheran, which has been proceeding since 1960, and was provisionally estimated, in 1959, to cost £550,000. The current estimate reflects rises in building costs over this period.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will introduce legislation to make it an offence for builders to use sub-standard material in new buildings and for property repairs.

Building byelaws already contain requirements about the suitability, quality, preparation and application of materials used in new building construction and in structural alterations and extensions. The byelaws are enforceable by penal sanctions. I intend that similar requirements, with similar sanctions, should be included in the building regulations to be made under the Public Health Act, 1961.The Government propose to consider the need for legislation when they have available the report of a Working Party on this matter set up by the National Federation of Building Trades Employers on which the Ministry of Housing and Local Government and my Ministry are represented.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works how many staff flats are to be erected in Kuwait for the estimated £200,000 shown in the Civil Estimates, Class IX, Vote 3, Appendix 2.

Twelve.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works why the provisional estimate of £200,000 for the erection of Embassy Offices in Madrid has gone up to another provisional figure of £250,000

Building costs in Spain have risen by nearly 25 per cent. since the provisional estimate of £200,000 was prepared in 1962. As a further increase is possible before building work starts, the revised estimate of £250,000, which is based on sketch plans, remains a provisional figure.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what are the details of the two schemes costing between £10,000 and £25,000 mentioned in Appendix II of the Civil Estimates, Class IX, Vote II, on Royal Palaces.

—	Total Estimate	Required for 1964–65
	£	£
Hampton Court Palace:
Chocolate Court: installation of lift to serve several residences	10,000	8,000
Kensington Palace:
Apartment 8: reconstruction of war-damaged roof	18,000	2,000

The estimate in each case is provisional.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will give details of the £34,000 required for works under £10,000 as shown in the 1964–65 Civil Estimates, Class IX, Vote 10, Subhead C.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer my right hon. Friend gave him on 17th March, 1964.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will give the detailed breakdown of the £57,362 net estimated total expenditure for 1964–65 on the Palace of Holyroodhouse, as shown in Appendix III of the Civil Estimates, Class IX, Vote 10.

The following reply:

	£
Salaries of Warding staff, etc.	13,629
New Works, alterations and additions	1,870
Supply of Furniture and equipment	250
Maintenance and repairs—building and engineering services	44,020
Maintenance and repair of furniture and equipment, and contribution towards the wages of industrial staff at the Palace of Holyroodhouse	3,750
Fuel, gas, electricity, water and household articles	5,000
Payments for easements	243
	68,762
Deduct: appropriations in aid (i.e. receipts from admissions, etc.)	11,400
	£57,362

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what were the gas, electricity, and other fuel bills, respectively, at Buckingham Palace in each of the last five years.

The following is the reply:

—	Gas	Electricity	Other Fuels
	£	£	£
1958–59	5,205	5,176	9,727
1959–60	4,582	8,779	8,636
1960–61	5,075	7,143	9,353
1961–62	4,847	8,059	9,851
1962–63	5,023	8,856	13,481

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works when he expects to complete the erection of staff accommodation at Abu Dhabi; how the provisional estimate of £75,000 was arrived at; and how many staff are expected to be accommodated.

The provisional estimate of £75,000 was intended to provide two bungalows for United Kingdom based staff and residential accommodation for four locally engaged staff.The importance of Abu Dhabi as an oil producing centre is, however, increasing so rapidly that our Political Agency is now expected to expand from the present staff of nine to 15 by 1968. I am therefore considering, with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs a phased programme of building work to satisfy long-term accommodation needs. The revised programme of work is unlikely to be completed before 1968 and will cost considerably more than the present provisional estimate for the earlier limited scheme.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what was the total cost of the Grace and Favour homes in each of the past five years; how many such homes he is responsible for; and where they are situated.

I am responsible for the repair and maintenance of the structure and services of Grace and Favour residences, and for modernisation on change of occupation. The cost of such work in each of the past five years has been:

1958–59	1959–60	1960–61	1961–62	1962–63
£	£	£	£	£
9,158	18,346	27,842	24,913	81,334

The number of such homes for which I am at present responsible is 140, and they are situated as follows:—

Hampton Court Palace	57
Windsor Castle	43
Kensington Palace	16
Marlborough House Mews	8
St. James's Palace	9
Buckingham Palace	3
Bushy Park	2
Kew Palace	1
Hyde Park	1

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works to what extent the occupants of Grace and Favour homes are responsible for the payment of rent, rates, heating, lighting, and maintenance.

Grace and favour residents are responsible for the payment of rates, and for the cost of heating, lighting, water, internal decorations and tenant's repairs during their occupation. They do not pay rent.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works how many Grace and Favour homes have been a charge on his Department for each of the last 10 years.

The numbers are as follows:

1954	116
1955	117
1956	131
1957	137
1958	138
1959	138
1960	137
1961	140
1962	140
1963	140

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will establish a development council for the building and construction industries and make levies for research purposes under Sections 1 and 4 of the Industrial Organisation and Development Act 1947, as has been recommended by the Woodbine Parish Working Party.

As I informed the House on 10th March, in reply to a Question from the hon. Member for the City of Chester (Mr. Temple), I am pursuing with these industries the possibility of establishing a development council to raise and administer a levy for research and information services.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what fire arrangements have been made by him with regard to the lobbies and corridors of the House of Commons.

There are 62 portable appliances and 16 fixed hydrants and hose reels in the corridors and lobbies in the vicinity of the Commons Chamber and Committee Rooms. The Ministry's Fire Inspectorate surveys the whole building annually.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he will seek powers to increase the fines for leaving litter.

The maximum fine for offences under the Litter Act, 1958, is £10. I have no reason to think that in general this is inadequate.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if, to encourage local authorities to provide swimming and life-saving facilities for schoolchildren and other members of the public, he will take steps to ensure that any loan granted for building suitable swimming pools, by local authorities, shall have interest charges at less than 1 per cent. below the Bank Rate.

No.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs how many cases have been instituted in Birmingham and in the country in recent years by the Alkali Inspectorate against firms emitting obnoxious fumes; and whether he will make a statement about the implementation of the Clean Air Act in this respect.

The Inspectorate have not in recent years had to initiate legal proceedings, in Birmingham or elsewhere, because firms failing to comply with their obligations have quickly remedied matters when approached by the inspectors. The action taken by the Inspectorate is described in the Annual Reports of the Chief Alkali Inspector and I will send the hon. Member a copy of the Report for 1963 when it is published in a few weeks time.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will expedite the holding of a public inquiry into the appeal now made by Messrs. Valley Carriers Limited against the enforcement notice served by the Penarth, Glamorgan, Urban District Council on 6th January, 1964.

The parties were offered 16th April for the inquiry, but this date was not convenient to the Penarth Urban District Council. The 28th and 29th April would be suitable to the council, and I am now awaiting the appellants' acceptance of one of these days.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he is aware that many householders have installed solid smokless-fuel-burning appliances in advance of a smoke-control order; and whether he will take steps so that in such cases a grant may be made available, provided that the expenditure can be proved, and that the appliance is in a satisfactory working condition.

My right hon. Friend does not consider that this change, which would involve amending the Clean Air Act, would be justified. It would mean paying grant to a householder who was under no enforceable obligation to burn smokeless fuel.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will introduce legislation which will provide him with powers to lend money for the purpose of house purchase for owner occupation.

No. Building societies, insurance companies, banks and local authorities are providing in aggregate ample loans to support the record postwar number of houses now being built for owner-occupation. Building societies alone expect to lend £1,000 million this year. The Housing Bill now before the House will provide finance for co-ownership which has many of the advantages of owner-occupation.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what reports he has received from local authorities about the overcrowding and unsatisfactory housing accommodation being suffered by Commonwealth immigrants; how many persons are affected; which are the worse areas; and if he will make a statement.

I have received no such reports. I am aware that immigration from the Commonwealth has in- tensified the housing problems of some local authorities, but I take the absence of reports on this subject to mean that housing authorities look at their problems in terms of the whole community and not in terms of any one section. I am certain that this is the right approach.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what reply he has made to the letter from the Cardiff City Council asking him to seek to amend the Housing Act, 1957, providing for compensation to owner-occupiers in clearance areas.

I am sending the hon. Member a copy of the letter which has been sent to the council.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs (1) what was the average cost of interest charges per week for each council house in 1951 and in 1963, respectively, for the borough of Wednesbury;(2) what was the average cost of interest charges per week for each council house in 1951 and in 1963, respectively, for the urban district council of Darlaston.

I regret that my right hon. Friend does not have the information asked for.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what was the average cost of interest charges per week for each council house in 1951 and in 1963, respectively, for the urban district council of Willenhall.

I regret that my right hon. Friend does not have the information asked for.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will now seek to recruit appropriate technical teams to be seconded as required to those areas facing heavy slum clearance problems where the local resources are overstrained.

No. This is primarily a task for local government and the authorities are tackling it with great success. I am encouraging them to make the best use of their skilled manpower by working together and the authorities are also receiving help and advice from my regional offices in Manchester and Newcastle.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will now announce his proposals for additional subsidy or financial assistance covering slum clearance and rehousing in the 38 towns whose clearance programmes require acceleration.

I have not yet completed the review of housing subsidies which I am undertaking in consultation with the local authorities. In the meantime I have no evidence that local authorities cannot continue building under present arrangements and still let their houses at rents within the means of their tenants, so long as they adopt rent policies that channel subsidies to those most in need.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he is aware that private house builders carrying out private house development ignore slum clearance areas; and whether he will introduce legislation to ensure that these areas are developed by private house builders as well as by local authorities.

I am eager that private enterprise should be associated with local authorities in redevelopment schemes whereever possible, but I do not see that legislation to compel such participation would help or that it could be made to work.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs how many new houses, both private and council, have been built in Sunderland since January 1960.

Between 1st January, 1960, and 31st December, 1963, 4,972 new houses were completed in Sunderland, 1,084 of them by private builders and 3,888 by the local authority.

asked the Lord President of the Council and Minister for Science if he will list the grants made by the Medical Research Council and by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research for research in medical engineering.

There is no generally accepted definition of the term "medical engineering", but the following grants by the Research Councils would probably fall within the field which the hon. Member has in mind:MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL

asked the Lord President of the Council and Minister for Science what is required of volunteers who help the Common Cold Research Unit; where they are needed; and what steps are being taken to obtain them.

The Medical Research Council and Ministry of Health's Common Cold Research Unit at Harvard Hospital, Salisbury, requires volunteers, aged between 18 and 50 years and in normal health, to spend a period of ten days assisting in studies concerned with the testing of newly-isolated viruses. The objective is to see whether these viruses cause colds and whether they can be cultivated in the laboratory. The work will also have as an object the development of vaccines which may prove effective against such viruses.Every suitable opportunity is taken to call attention to the research in progress at the Unit and to make the need for volunteers known to members of the public. In this connection the Press and broadcasting organisations have provided valuable assistance.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will abolish the Purchase Tax on advertising and explanatory leaflets in foreign languages, in view of the fact that these are used exclusively by exporters.

Fully printed advertising and explanatory leaflets are not chargeable with Purchase Tax. If my hon. Friend will let me have specimens of the material he has in mind, I will look into the matter.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will waive the Customs duty payable on motor cars bought less than 12 months ago and brought into this country from Cyprus by Servicemen whose tour of duty in that country has been curtailed.

The case for special relief has been carefully considered on many occasions arising from disturbances in countries overseas, but the conclusion has always been that an unexpected transfer of a serviceman to this country from a post abroad does not justify an additional concession.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether Her Majesty's Government will now take steps to adjust the salaries of members of the boards of nationalised industries, in view of the fact that there has been no general review since July, 1957.

I hope to be able to make a statement about this matter very shortly.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement on the progress of re-location of Government offices.

Since I announced the Government's outline plans for dispersing Civil Service work from London in reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras (Mr. G. Johnson Smith) on 18th July, the Departments concerned have been making detailed plans for the various moves in consultation with staff representatives and local authorities. My right hon. Friend the Minister of Public Building and Works has already announced the move of his Department's Accounts Division to Hastings. It has also been decided that the Paymaster General's Office, which employs over 600 staff, will be moved to Crawley, starting this year, and part of the Headquarters of the Forestry Commission, together with its English Directorate, involving some 140 staff, will be moved to Basingstoke. A decision on tile move of the Post Office Savings Bank will be announced very shortly, and decisions on other moves will be announced as soon as they are settled.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out in column form the national income and expenditure, respectively, for each year since 1945, showing for each year by how much Government expenditure has exceeded Government income.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Blue Book National Income and Expenditure, 1963, which gives, in Table 1, figures for national income and expenditure for each year from 1946–62, and in Table 4 corresponding figures for Central Government receipts and expenditure. Comparable figures for 1945 are not available. Figures for 1963 will be given in the White Paper on Preliminary Estimates of National Income and Balance of Payments to be published on 8th April next.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware of the adverse effect the 15 per cent. tax on the wholesale value of soft drinks has had on this industry; and if he will obtain evidence concerning the unemployment resulting from the imposition of this tax, with a view to its reduction.

The soft drinks industry included information about employment in the industry in the representations it has made about the effect of purchase tax on its products. There are other factors affecting the use of labour in this industry, including economies in bottling and distribution arrangements. The hon. Gentleman will not expect me to go further than to assure him that all this evidence is being considered with the representations made by the industry.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date the annual Whit; Papers on National Income and the Balance of Payments will be published.

A White Paper dealing with both national income and balance of payments will be published on 8th April next.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) why the numbers of civil servants have risen in the current year by 14,764 to a total of 418,045 at a cost of £412,524,000; why he is increasing the numbers by a further 4,758 at an additional cost of £11,368 during next year; and what action he proposes to take to reduce this expenditure.(2) what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government in regard to the number of civil servants and the cost of administering the Civil Service.

The staff numbers quoted by the hon. Member relate to 1962–63 and 1963–64. The increase expected next year is about 1,250. Our policy is that staff numbers should be no more, nor less, than is necessary for the efficient discharge or the duties laid upon the Government by Parliament. There are effective arrangements for securing staff economies whenever work declines, and Departments are active in applying modern working methods. But over a wide field of activity the Government's responsibilities have been increasing, and this is inevitably reflected in staff numbers.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the total sums of money which have been invested annually in Northern Ireland in Premium Bonds since their inception, and the corresponding value of prizes for each year; what were the values of prizes expressed as a percentage of the sums invested; and if he will give the comparable figures for England and Wales and far Scotland.

The figures are as follows:

TABLE
				Northern Ireland
Year				Annual value of sales	Cumulative value sales	Annual value of prizes	Annual value of prizes as percentage of cumulative sales
				£	£	£	per cent.
1958 (November and December)				448,169	448,169	—	—
1957	…	…	…	596,053	1,044,222	24,725	2·37
1958	…	…	…	586,055	1,630,277	53,850	3·30
1959	…	…	…	453,272	2,083,549	73,300	3·52
1960	…	…	…	511,240	2,594,789	86,950	3·35
1961	…	…	…	520,705	3,115,494	106,525	3·42
1962	…	…	…	542,326	3,657,820	126,375	3·45
1963	…	…	…	577,062	4,234,882	142,750	3·

				England and Wales
Year				Annual value of sales	Cumulative value of sales	Annual value of prizes	Annual value of prizes as percentage of cumulative sales
				£	£	£	per cent.
1956 (November and December)				50,417,487	50,417,487	—	—
1957	…	…	…	69,691,048	120,108,535	2,427,850	2·02
1958	…	…	…	81,037,285	201,145,820	5,849,100	2·91
1959	…	…	…	62,111,253	262,257,073	8,285,575	3·15
1960	…	…	…	66,445,880	329,702,953	9,861,625	2·99
1961	…	…	…	67,306,758	397,009,711	12,661,375	3·19
1962	…	…	…	67,981,775	464,991,486	14,443,350	3·11
1963	…	…	…	72,200,689	537,192,175	16,227,659	3·02

				Scotland
Year				Annual value of sales	Cumulative value of sales	Annual value of prizes	Annual value of prizes as percentage of cumulative sales
				£	£	£	per cent.
1956 (November and December)				3,461,717	3,461,717	—	—
1957	…	…	…	3,816,479	7,278,196	160,975	2·21
1958	…	…	…	4,148,760	11,426,956	348,350	3·05
1959	…	…	…	3,308,763	14,735,719	460,775	3·13
1960	…	…	…	3,334,911	18,070,630	541,925	3·00
1961	…	…	…	3,482,907	21,553,537	715,775	3·32
1962	…	…	…	3,649,012	25,202,549	785,900	3·12
1963	…	…	…	3,409,998	28,612,547	872,500	3·05
Note.—The table compares the value of prizes won in a region with the value of Bonds sold in that region. It is not possible to compare the value of prizes won in a particular region with the sum remaining invested in that region, as separate regional figures for withdrawals are not available.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury why no answer has been given by the Treasury Solicitor to letters from Mr. Dumgrell of 6, South Down Avenue, Brighton, concerning No. 8, South Down Avenue, which has been under the Treasury Solicitor's control for 15 months and which is deteriorating in condition with a consequent effect on the value of neighbouring property; and why he has taken no steps to have the dustbins emptied for 15 months.

Until letters of administration have been obtained, the Treasury Solicitor has no legal right to act. In anticipation of this authority, he is however making arrangements to carry out essential repairs and tidy up the property. A further letter of explanation has been sent to Mr. Dumbrell.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware of the hardship imposed on married people in the United Kingdom at the present time by reason of the fact that if a husband and wife both earn substantial amounts or have unearned income in addition to such earnings, they are liable to pay much more in Income Tax and Surtax together than if they were single; and whether, in view of the desirability of encouraging as many married women as possible to work and to qualify for highly paid technical jobs, he will review this question at an early date.

The system already confers substantial benefits on a married couple where the wife is earning, unless their joint income is very high, and I do not consider that any further incentive is required to encourage married women to work.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a table showing the present amount of Income Tax and surtax paid by a married couple without children, each of whom has earned income of £1,000, £2,000, £3,000, £4,000, £5,000, £6,000, £7,000, and £8,000, respectively; and how this compares with the amounts which would be paid by the same couple if they were not married and assessed individually as single persons.

The figures are as follows:

Each earning	Married couple			Two single persons
£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1,000	311	14	6	358	4	6
2,000	914	10	1	961	0	0
3,000	1,684	14	5	1,563	15	8
4,000	2,698	16	10	2,166	11	2
5,000	3,872	17	6	2,855	0	4
6,000	5,313	11	6	3,736	9	10
7,000	6,854	5	6	4,723	10	6
8,000	8,494	19	6	5,788	6	8

The figures represent the Income Tax for 1963/64 and Surtax for 1962/63 payable in 1963/64 and are after allowances for the National Insurance contributions of adult employees have been made.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a table; towing the present amount of Income Tax and Surtax paid by a married couple without children, each of whom has income half from earned and half from unearned sources of £1,000, £2,000, £3,000, £4,000, £5,000, £6,000, £7,000, and £8,000, respectively; and how this compares with the amounts which would be paid by the same couple if they were, not married and assessed individually as single persons.

The figures are as follows:

Each with income of	Married couple			Two single persons
£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1,000	407	11	2	444	6	8
2,000	1,160	2	11	1,133	4	6
3,000	2,257	10	4	1,959	5	8
4,000	3,214	12	1	2,924	2	10
5,000	4,264	10	8	3,966	15	10
6,000	5,647	16	1	4,905	13	8
7,000	7,120	2	9	5,867	15	4
8,000	8,681	7	4	6,831	13	2

The figures represent the Income Tax for 1963–64 and the Surtax for 1962–63 payable in 1963–64 and they are after the allowances for the National Insurance contributions of adult employees.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in HANSARD a table of figures giving the actual amounts of monies borrowed from the Public Works Loan Board by the county borough of West Ham for each of the years from 1951 to date, the interest rates charged, what the repayments have been for each of these years, and what the repayments would have been had the interest rates and charges remained at their 1951 level.

The following is the information required:

BORROWING FROM THE PUBLIC WORKS LOANS BOARD BY THE COUNTY BOROUGH OF WEST HAM
Financial year	Borrowing by West Ham	Rate of Interest	Annual repayments on loans made in stated years
			At actual rates of interest	At average 1951–52 rate of 3⅜ per cent.
	£000	per cent.	£	£
1951–52	371	3⅞†	16,212	14,720
1952–53	610	4¼	29,456	25,254
1953–54	13	3½	1,146	1,136
1954–55	1,674	3⅝	81,998	79,022
1955–56	1,352	4½	78,026	67,154
1956–57*	203	5½	20,032	17,344
* West Ham has not borrowed from the Public Works Loans Board since 1956–57.
† The rate of interest on their borrowing from the Public Works Loans Board in 1951–52 was slightly higher than the national average because more was borrowed later in the year when interest rates were higher. In other years the West Ham average was sometimes lower, reflecting a higher proportion of borrowing for shorter periods.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development if he has studied the report, prepared by the Civil Service Clerical Association, a copy of which has been sent to him, regarding the dispersal of the Post Office Savings Bank, which favours dispersal to Teesside; and what action he is taking.

Yes, The views of the staff are among the factors which my right hon. Friend the Postmaster-General, in consultation with his col- leagues, is taking into account in considering the future location of the Post Office Savings Bank.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development, in view of the fact that Great Britain's exports to Europe are falling off, and that there is a need for an intensive drive for exports to the Commonwealth, what action he proposes to take along these lines; and whether he will make a statement.

Our exports to Western Europe as a whole rose from £1,192 million in 1961 to £1,520 million in 1963; and I have every reason to expect that this upward trend will continue. Exports to the E.F.T.A. have recently been rising particularly strongly. Those to the E.E.C. have flattened out in the past few months after their earlier rapid rise; but I am sure that our exporters will find it well worth their while to intensify their efforts in this market.The expansion of our exports will depend mainly on the efforts of British industry. The Government provides support in many ways, for example through the services of Trade Commissions and the Commercial Departments of Embassies overseas, through the Export Services Branch of the Board of Trade and through the Export Credits Guarantee Department.So far as trade with the Commonwealth is concerned, I would refer the hon. Member to my remarks in the debate in this House on 6th February last.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development whether he will make a statement on the visit of the Minister of State to Cornwall on 16th March.

My three day tour of the South West had a twofold purpose: to study conditions in North Devon, North and West Cornwall in general, and the development districts in particular—areas which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State was unable to include in his tour of the South West undertaken at the beginning of January; and to speak at the National Exporters' Conference in Bristol on 15th March. That Conference, and the reception which the Board of Trade Regional Controller arranged in the South West Regional Office, enabled me to meet a number of the leading exporters of the area and to give public recognition to the contribution which industry in the South West is making to the national export effort.In the course of my tour I had discussions with representatives of the nineteen local authorities as follows:In Devon:The Boroughs of Barnstaple, Bideford and Great Torrington; Ilfracombe and Northam Urban District Councils; Barnstaple, Bideford, Ilfracombe and Torrington Rural District Councils.In Cornwall:The Boroughs of St. Ives, Penzance and Helston; Newquay, Padstow and St. Just Urban District Councils; Camelford, Kerrier, Wadebridge and West Penwith Rural District Councils.I also met representatives of the Devon and Cornwall County Councils.I was grateful for the personal assistance I received from the hon. Members for St. Ives, Torrington and North Devon.I visited firms and inspected industrial sites in the Bideford/Barnstaple area; I also visited the shipyard at Appledore and the china clay industry at St. Austell. I was especially gratified to observe the beneficial results of measures taken under the Local Employment Acts.I was glad to note the general welcome accorded to the Statement on the South West which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State made on 27th February. A number of points regarding the regional development of the South West were put to me during my tour. These will receive early consideration.I was impressed with the energetic efforts a number of local authorities are themselves making towards solving the economic problems of their localities. Their success, in my opinion, is likely to be enhanced by yet wider cooperation, with a common objective. The Government will continue to encourage steps towards this end.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development whether agreement has yet been reached with Hong Kong regarding the categorisation of cotton textiles; and if he will make a statement.

Full agreement has now been reached between the British and Hong Kong cotton textile industries on categorisation of the 1964 and 1965 quotas. Exports of cotton products from Hong Kong will be classified into 34 separate categories, including three for yarn, 15 for piecegoods and 16 for made-up goods including garments. I welcome this agreement, which has been concluded with the support of the Governments of both countries.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development whether Her Majesty's Government are supporting the exhibition of British mining and other heavy equipment to be held in Peking in June.

This is a field in which we see good export openings in China, and we very much hope that increased business will result from the exhibition. I should emphasise, however, that this does not in any way imply official approval of the body which is sponsoring the exhibition. This body, known as the "48" Group, is closely connected through its consultant and some of its members with the British Council for the Promotion of International Trade, to whose Communist affiliations I drew the attention the House as recently as 5th December. However, since many of the firms who are exhibiting may not be aware of this aspect of the "48" Group, I am on this occasion instructing H.M. Chargé d'Affaires to give individual exhibitors the support and help they need.

asked the Minister of Labour what action Her Majesty's Government propose to take to assist the unemployed school leavers in southeast Northumberland; and whether he will make a statement.

On 16th March there were 52 boys and 32 girls seeking first employment in the areas covered by the Amble, Ashington, Blyth, Bedlington Station, Morpeth and Seaton Delaval Youth Employment Offices. The special measures which the Government are taking to raise the general level of employment in the North East will have an effect on the surrounding areas and improve the employment prospects of the young persons living there.

asked the Minister of Labour how many have been registered

	Duration of unemployment and numbers wholly unemployed
—	Over 8 weeks and up to and including 26 weeks		Over 26 weeks and up to and including 52 weeks		Over 52 weeks
	Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women
Airdrie Employment Exchange	173	147	87	74	228	51
Coatbridge Employment Exchange change	227	265	109	110	280	98
Wishaw Employment Exchange	153	121	92	62	186	70
Shotts Employment Exchange	62	48	50	33	113	30
Springburn Employment Exchange	727	264	389	78	848	48

—	Over 8 weeks and up to and including 26 weeks		Over 26 weeks and up to and including 52 weeks		Over 52 weeks
	Boys	Girls	Boys	Girls	Boys	Girls
Airdrie Youth Employment Office	21	12	8	4	3	2
Motherwell and Wishaw Youth Employment Office	21	3	8	3	4	3
Springburn Youth Employment Office	58	10	21	2	4	—
Rutherglen Youth Employment Office	7	1	2	1	3	—

asked the Minister of Labour (1) what was the number of persons in civil employment in Falmouth and Camborne-Redruth, respectively at the latest convenient date and in each of the previous 12 years;(2) how many persons were registered as unemployed at Falmouth and

The following tables contain an analysis of unemployment by duration of the number wholly unemployed on 13th January, the latest date for which such an analysis is available, for periods as near as possible to those asked for. Analyses by duration of unemployment for young persons are made only for the areas covered by Youth Employment Offices. As these do not coincide with the areas of the Employment Exchanges in question this information has been set out separately.Camborne-Redruth, respectively, at each monthly count since November last; and what percentages these were of the number of insured persons;(3) how many males and females, respectively, were recorded as insured persons at Falmouth and Camborne-Redruth, separately, at mid-May in 1961, 1962, and 1963.

The following is the information:

		Falmouth				Redruth and Camborne
—		Employees in Employment	Total Number of Employees			Employees in Employment	Total Number of Employees
			Males	Females	Total		Males	Females	Total
Mid 1962	…	9,200	6,830	2,730	9,560	14,400	10,610	4,330	14,940
Mid 1961	…	9,800	7,190	2,760	9,950	14,300	10,410	4,390	14,800
Mid 1960	…	8,500				14,800
Mid 1959	…	9,500				14,800
Mid 1958	…	10,100				13,700
Mid 1957	…	10,200				14,700
Mid 1956	…	10,000				15,000
Mid 1955	…	9,900				14,900
Mid 1954	…	9,800				13,900
Mid 1953	…	10,000				14,700
Mid 1952	…	9,700				12,100
Mid 1951	…	8,900				12,400
Mid 1950	…	12,900				12,100
NOTES:
1. Estimates of the numbers in civil employment (which includes employees and persons working on their own account) are available only for Great Britain as a whole.
2. The estimated numbers of employees in employment and employees are available only for mid 1962 and previous mid years.
3. The figure of employees in employment for 1950 for Falmouth include Helston and is not, therefore, comparable with those for later years.

NUMBERS REGISTERED AS UNEMPLOYED
—			Falmouth		Redruth	Camborne	Total
			Number	Per cent.	Number	Number	Number	Per cent.
16th March, 1964	…	…	1,039	10·9	383	318	701	4·7
10th February, 1964	…	…	1,673	17·5	430	364	794	5·3
13th January, 1964	…	…	1,632	17·1	485	401	886	5·9
9th December, 1963	…	…	1,232	12·9	498	382	880	5·9
11th November, 1963	…	…	1,174	12·3	481	414	895	6·0

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will seek powers in the current session to establish by order a system capable of easy inspection of recording sales by wholesalers of specified scheduled poisons.

I am not convinced that legislation for this purpose would be justified.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what persons or bodies his Department consults before framing legislation about drugs.

This depends on the nature of the proposals. In the case of the proposed legislation on amphetamines and similar drugs, I have consulted organisations representing the pharmaceutical industry, the professions of medicine and pharmacy, and the police.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many special orders for exemption of licensed hours until after midnight on Saturday-Sunday have been granted by the Isle of Wight justices to registered clubs under the terms of the Licensing Act, 1953, Section 107, since the coming into operation of the Licensing Act, 1961; and how many before that date.

No such orders have been made since the Licensing Act, 1961, came into operation, and none were made in a similar period before then.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in view of the fact that the Administration of Justice Act, 1956, is a United Kingdom Act which has been in force for many years, he will ask the Jersey authorities who have decided to introduce their own legislation before an Order in Council is made to allow Part I of the Act to apply to Jersey, to treat this as a matter of urgency in order that the same legal rights may be enjoyed by the people of Jersey as those which have been enjoyed by the people of Great Britain and Northern Ireland over a number of years.

This is exclusively a matter for the Jersey authorities.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will appoint a Minister for rail closures and the provision of alternative means of transport.

No.

asked the Prime Minister if he is now in a position to state the date and place of the next meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers.

I am at present in communication with my Commonwealth colleagues about the arrangements for the next meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers. I will make a statement to the House as soon as I am able to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether the public speech made by the Lord Privy Seal in Fulham on Monday, 16th March, concerning resale price maintenance represents the policy of Her Majesty's Government.

My right hon. Friend did not make any new statement of Government policy in his speech.

asked the Prime Minister what plans Her Majesty's Government have for returning the nationalised industries to private ownership.

Apart from the remaining nationalised steel firm of Richard Thomas and Baldwins Limited, none.

asked the Prime Minister what consideration Her Majesty's Government had given to placing the British nuclear deterrent in a common pool.

asked the Prime Minister what are the conditions in which the United Kingdom would relinquish final control over strategic nuclear weapons.

asked the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's policy regarding the circumstances under which Great Britain might abandon the policy of maintaining independent nuclear power; and what are the conditions under which he is prepared to put this policy into effect.

asked the Prime Minister in what circumstances Her Majesty's Government would reverse the policy of retaining independent nuclear power; and whether he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT particulars of the United Kingdom nuclear armaments to which Her Majesty's Government have given consideration, with a view to placing them under the control of international organisations.

The policy of Her Majesty's Government is to retain ultimate control over our own nuclear weapons. It is impossible at present to foresee the circumstances in which such a policy would be changed.

asked the Prime Minister if he will now publish the agreement reached with the United States Government by which United States Polaris submarines are allowed to use Holy Loch.

No. My right hon. Friend the Member for Bromley (Mr. Harold Macmillan) gave a full account of the arrangements made with the United States authorities in his statement to the House on 1st November, 1960. He explained, in answer to subsequent Questions from the hon. Member and others that he was not prepared to publish the agreement in any other form I see no reason to change that decision.

asked the Prime Minister what representations he has received from Kirkcaldy Town Council concerning the proposed restrictions on Scandinavian air services at Prestwick; what was the nature of his reply; and what estimate he has made of the effect such restrictions will have on trade relations with the Scandinavian countries.

I received and acknowledged a letter informing me that Kirkcaldy Town Council had decided to support the representations which Prestwick Town Council had made to me to ensure the continuance and development of Prestwick Airport. All relevant considerations will be taken into account.

asked the Prime Minister when he intends to appoint the Solicitor-General for Scotland.

When an appointment is made it will be announced in the usual way.

asked the Prime Minister when he proposes to announce the name of the new Solicitor-General for Scotland.

When an appointment is made it will be announced in the usual way.

asked the Prime Minister if he will make a statement about his visit to Nigeria.

I had two days of talks with the Prime Minister of Nigeria. We agreed to follow the usual practice and not to issue a communiqué since our discussions were an extension of the normal processes of consultation within the Commonwealth.

asked the Prime Minister what is the practice of Her Majesty's Government about consulting other bodies and persons before making appointments to national undertakings and public boards; and to what extent this practice is to be modified.

There is no standard practice in this matter. The type and extent of consultation, where this is called for, varies from case to case.

asked the Prime Minister on what dares he received the trade figures for January and February, respectively.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer given to the hon. Member for Fife, West (Mr. W. Hamilton) by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17th March.

asked the Prime Minister if he will exercise his powers under Section 14(3) of the British Broadcasting Corporation Licence and Agreement and make a radio and television broadcast on the policy of Her Majesty's Government in regard to the economy of the country.

No.

asked the Minister of Health what projects are to be undertaken in the United Kingdom as part of the World Health Organisation programme for 1965.

Full information is not yet available, but in addition to some hundreds of fellowships likely to be held in this country I am aware of assistance to be given to courses on statistics, advance nursing education, and teaching of physical therapy. There are also eight special reference centres provided in Britain for the World Health Organisation and a large number of experts who assist on advisory panels and committees.

asked the Minister of Health whether he will take steps to expedite the final settlement of revised salary scales for hospital engineers in the light of the recommendations of the Tyler Report, published in February, 1962.

I understand that the Whitley Council has reached agreement on revised salary scales for hospital engineers.

asked the Minister of Health how many patients are waiting for admission to Doncaster Royal Infirmary for treatment; and if he will give the figures for each of the past five years.

3,508 at the end of 1963. The corresponding figures for previous years were: 1962—4,070; 1961—4,106; 1960—3,414; 1959—3,283; 1958—4,577.

asked the Minister of Health what is the ratio of maternity beds to population in the Doncaster Royal Infirmary catchment area, and for the area of the Sheffield Regional Hospital Board; and how these figures compare with the national figure, respectively.

The ratios are 0·32 and 0·39 beds per thousand population compared with 0·44.

asked the Minister of Health what is the present ratio of beds to population in the area of the Doncaster Hospital Management Committee; and what was the ratio in 1949, 1954, and 1959.

About 5·09 beds per thousand population at the end of 1963. Broadly comparable figures for the earlier years are 1959—5·63; 1954—5·77; 1949—6·08.

asked the Postmaster-General if he will now allow the British Broadcasting Corporation to build and operate local broadcasting stations, in view of the successful experiments carried out two years ago.

I am sorry that I have nothing to add to the reply I gave to the hon. Member's Question on 19th March.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the number of employees working for the Herring Industry Board in 1946; what it is today; and whether their numbers vary in accordance with the numbers of the fishing fleet.

The Herring Industry Board has informed me that in 1946 it employed 34 non-industrial staff. Today the board employs 68 permanent non-industrial and about 114 industrial staff. Of this latter figure 54 are employed more or less on a permanent footing, the balance of 60 being employed according to need and this depends both on the supplies of suitable herring and on the market for the product.Whilst the Board is unable to give figures of industrial staff for 1946 the number must have been relatively few since at that time the board neither owned nor operated any refrigeration and oil and meal plants.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent he has consulted Highland local authorities regarding the planning of new towns in the Highlands.

I have no proposals at present for new towns in the Highlands.

asked the Secretary for Technical Co-operation what consideration he has given to the possibility of developing overseas service by young volunteers as a joint Commonwealth venture.

I have sympathy with the idea behind this suggestion and will keep the possibilities under review; but I see practical difficulties in putting it into effect at this stage.Schemes for overseas service by volunteers now exist in four Commonwealth countries including the United Kingdom. They are carried out by voluntary bodies with governments giving varying degrees of support. Any scheme of the kind suggested would have to be endorsed and executed by all these voluntary organisations and at a time when rapid development is the chief need, an attempt at such co-ordination might hinder rather than help.

asked the Minister of Transport how many employees of British Railways travel to work on free passes every day.

The British Railways Board tell me that this information is not readily available and that to provide it would entail a disproportionate amount of work.

asked the Minister of Transport in view of the large number of road accidents in 1963, what road safety campaigns he has arranged for 1964.

National campaigns are organised each year by The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, who work with my Department on road-safety publicity. We have chosen the theme—"Think ahead"—for the 1964 campaign, which will start in the week before Whitsuntide and will run for the rest of the Year. In addition there will be extra publicity for road safety at holiday periods and whenever other suitable opportunities occur.