asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, in view of the disparity of judgment by different General Certificate of Education examining boards, he will so far as possible institute a national standard for the assessment of examination results.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he is aware of the discrepancies between the standards of different examining boards for the General Certificate of Education; and what action he is taking to ensure that the standards of different examining bodies are co-ordinated with each other.

I would refer the hon. Members to my reply of the 11th February to the hon. Member for Leeds, South (Mr. Merlyn Rees).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science by what date he expects to achieve the objective that all teenagers should enjoy full-time education up to the age of 17 years; what plans he has to achieve this; and when an announcement will be made.

No such objective has been laid down by me. But I did refer in a recent speech to "full-time education or its equivalent up to the age of 17". This aspiration is of course already fulfilled amongst those small classes of the population who can afford to send their children to independent schools. How soon it can be fulfilled for the rest of the British people will depend on our social priorities and the rate of economic growth.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science by what date he expects that a quarter of the population will be enjoying some form of higher education; what new plans he has for this purpose; and when an announcement will be made.

This aim—for a quarter of the relevant age groups—will be fulfilled when our social priorities and our rate of economic growth permit. The Government are steadily unfolding their plans both for further educational expansion and faster economic growth.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the amount requested by the Oxfordshire Education Authority for minor works for 1965–66; and what they were allocated.

£374,350 and £102,000 respectively.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he is aware of the danger to health which can arise in areas of slum clearance when removal of tenants is undertaken over a long period of time, and when partial demolition of such areas is in progress; and if he will consult repesentatives of health authorities and local authorities in order to improve the present standards of such undertakings to ensure that transition from such areas to new homes is undertaken without distress to those persons involved in such removals.

I am sure that local authorities do their best to safeguard against any risks which may arise. I am aware that the County Borough of Bootle has a particularly difficult problem and that the Council is taking special measures to deal with it. The problems of resettlement were dealt with in "Moving from the Slums", a report by the Central Housing Advisory Committee. It was sent to all local housing authorities and the advice given still holds good.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will give the total annual cost of the International Control Commission in Vietnam and the amount contributed by Her Majesty's Government.

According to the unaudited accounts of the International Control Commission in Vietnam for the year from 1st July, 1963, to 30th June, 1964, the most recent year for which Her Majesty's Government have received accounts, the cost of the Commission was £1,376,438. Of this, Her Majesty's Government contributed £240,744. These figures do not include the salaries and allowances of the national delegations of the three supervising powers on the Commission (India, Canada and Poland), the cost of which is met direct by those powers and for which Her Majesty's Government have no figures.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will advance the date of issue of the Winston Churchill postage stamps to coincide with the launching of the memorial appeal.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will consider the issue of commemorative postage stamps of Sir Winston Churchill to coincide with Churchill Month and the memorial appeal beginning on 28th February, 1965.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will advance the date of issue of the postage stamps commemorating Sir Winston Churchill, to enable them to be on sale during the month of the memorial appeal.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will advance the date of issue of the postage stamps commemorating Sir Winston Churchill, to coincide with the Memorial Appeal beginning on 28th February, 1965.

I am sorry that it would simply not be practicable for me to have the stamps which I am issuing to commemorate the life of Sir Winston Churchill on sale by the end of this month. I shall be announcing the date of issue later.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what part of the 525 tons of apples, cherries, currants, gooseberries, loganberries, pears and plums so far taken up under the present quota of 850 tons for imported frozen fruit from Soviet bloc countries, concerned blackcurrants; and if he will take steps to ensure that subsequent quotas will specify the tonnage of each of the fruits listed, and hitherto grouped together under one quota.

Four Eastern European countries have quotas for the import of frozen fruits into this country amounting in total to 2,025 tons for the current year. Individual licences under these quotas do not usually specify blackcurrants separately and the information which the hon. Member seeks is therefore not available.These quotas are subject to negotiation and the countries concerned value some degree of flexibility in their use. It would not be practicable to negotiate separate quotas for all the fruits concerned but we do seek to negotiate limits to the amounts of particular types of fruit that can be brought in under the quotas, where this seems appropriate.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what plans Her Majesty's Government have made to give financial assistance to Messrs. Fords to expand their operations by reconstructing an existing factory in the Neath constituency or to construct a new factory in South Wales.

It would be open to the company to apply for financial assistance under the Local Employment Acts, 1960 and 1963, in respect of any project providing new employment in a development district. Financial assistance would not be available to the company for a project in Neath since this is not a development district.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what plans Her Majesty's Government have made for extending financial assistance to Messrs. Fords to enable this firm to build a new plant in South Wales; and if he will make a statement.

It would be open to the company to apply for financial assistance under the Local Employment Acts, 1960 and 1963, in respect of any project providing new employment in a development district.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what measures he is considering to assist the Ford Motor Company in its study of the Swansea area as a site for a new plant.

The Department is prepared to supply any factual information to the Ford Motor Company, as to any industrial concern, in its study of suitable areas for the location of new projects.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will change the basis of future quotas for imported bottled and canned fruit from one of money value to one of tonnage.

My right hon. Friend accepts that there may be some advantages in expressing quotas for canned and bottled fruit in terms of weight rather than value. These quotas are however subject to negotiation, and a balance of mutual advantage has to be struck. My right hon. Friend could not therefore give any undertaking to introduce this change, but will certainly keep the point in mind.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the estimated annual payment made by British firms to foreign firms by way of royalties and fees for the use of patents and technical information under licensing agreements; and what are the estimated annual receipts by British firms from foreign firms on this account.

This information is not yet available, but will be obtained in the Board's inquiry into overseas transactions in 1964 and subsequent years.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is yet in a position to announce the names of the remaining members of the Shipbuilding Committee of Inquiry.

Yes. I am pleased to say that the following have accepted my invitation to serve on this Committee:

• Mr. A. G. B. Burney, O.B.E., Partner of Binder Hamlyn & Co.
• Mr. D. K. Fraser, M.I.Mech.E., Managing Director, the G. A. Harvey Group of Companies.
• Professor M. J. Lighthill, F.R.S., Royal Society Research Professor, Imperial College of Science and Technology.
• Mr. Bowman Scott, M.B.E., Managing Director, Seltronic Group Ltd., and an independent industrial consultant.
• Mr. Charles Smith, J.P., General Secretary, Post Office Engineering Union.
• Professor Thomas Wilson, O.B.E., Professor of Political Economy, University of Glasgow.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that Golden Cross, Stroud, is dangerous; and what proposals he has, in addition to the minor works envisaged, to make this crossroads safer.

No additional works are envisaged. The minor works planned are expected to provide sufficient improvement.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will give details of improvements to the A.1 north of Morpeth, in view of the present unsatisfactory nature of the road.

Work is due to start within the next two years on the following major improvement schemes:—Morpeth By-pass (£1,250,000), Alnwick By-pass (£1,100,000), Felton Cemetery (£30,000), Felton Lanehead (£60,000), Lonning Head (£50,000), Middleton to Detchant Lodge (£40,000), West Mains Diversion (£75,000) and Scremerston (£40,000).Also in the programme are schemes at Cat Inn (£50,000) and Haggerston Diversion (£200,000), due to start in three to four years.In addition, considerable maintenance and minor improvement work will be undertaken within the next few years.

asked the Minister of Transport what progress is being made in preventing the excessive emission of fumes from the exhausts of motor vehicles.

The development of exhaust control devices in this country and also in the United States continues, as does medical research here into possible dangers to health from exhaust fumes.Meanwhile, I am continuing roadside checks to combat the avoidable nuisance of smoke from diesel-engined vehicles.

asked the Minister of Transport if he will introduce legislation to make it obligatory for motor manufacturers to fit anti-splash flexible extensions to rear mudguards; and if he will make a statement.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave on the 26th January to my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster (Mr. Harold Walker).

asked the Chancellor of Exchequer what plans he has to alter existing tax structures so as to increase the value to industry of capital grants available in Northern Ireland and development areas.

I am not sure that I understand exactly what the hon. Member has in mind, but if he is referring to the position under the corporation tax I must ask him to await my legislative proposals.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in order to produce a better and more balanced use of the nation's manpower resources, he will introduce a payroll tax in areas of full employment only.

I will bear this suggestion in mind.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has about the availability of recent copies of daily Latin-American newspapers in the British Museum Newspaper Library.

I am informed by the British Museum that it receives copies of 19 daily Latin-American newspapers. These arrive in batches from time to time, mostly through embassies and other institutions, and are therefore necessarily received late.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will exempt Service pensioners from Income Tax.

I am afraid my right hon. Friend could not accept this suggestion.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to publish Public Expenditure in 1964–65.

The review of public expenditure is still in progress and I cannot make any forecast about the, publication of a further White Paper on the subject.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the additional cost if the unestablished portion of a civil servant's service performed prior to 1949 was reckonable in full for superannuation purposes.

If current as well as future pensions were adjusted, about £300 million in all, over a long period of years. The cost in the first full year would be about £38 million, and the continuing cost in the early years thereafter would be between £8 million and £10 million a year. These figures relate to service between 1st January, 1919, and 14th July, 1949, as records of service before 1919 are incomplete.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total private United Kingdom investment in Common Market countries in 1963 and 1964, respectively.

Following is the information—

Estimated United Kingdom Private Investment in E.E.C. Countries
			£ million
1963	…	…	60
1964 (preliminary)	…	…	80

The 1964 figure includes the United Kingdom 40 per cent. share of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group purchase for some £60 million of an interest in Montecatini's petrochemicals business. The figures are net of disinvestment.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a state- ment on the extent to which the Welsh Office has effective liaison and consultation with adjoining regions of England, particularly in regard to Board of Trade and transport matters.

The Welsh Office has full and effective liaison with all other Departments on matters of joint interest to Wales and adjoining regions of England.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many retired (regular officers of the three Armed Services, including the Indian Armed Services, are 81 years of age or over and how many Regular officers' widows are 76 years of age or over.

I am obtaining the information and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance what weekly rate of retirement pension would have been earned actuarily by the joint contributions paid by an insured person and his employer if such contributions had been paid since the start of the Widows', Orphans' and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act, 1925, and since the start of the present National Insurance scheme in July, 1948, respectively.

The amounts of the weekly contributions for pensions—including, since April, 1961, the maximum graduated contributions and an estimated allocation to pensions from the flat-rate contributions—accumulated at 3½ per cent. interest from January, 1926, or July, 1948, until April, 1965, could have provided, for a single man then retiring at minimum pension age with average life expectation, a retirement pension of about 24s. 6d. a week or 20s. 6d. a week respectively; for a woman the corresponding figures would be 15s. 6d. and 13s. But, as explained in my reply of 5th February to the hon. Member for Blackpool, South (Mr. Blaker), this is not the way in which the retirement pensions of the National Insurance scheme are computed or financed.