asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to encourage more sixth-formers to study engineering subjects at university.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply of the 11th March to my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Renée Short) and to the hon. Member for Norfolk, Central (Mr. Ian Gilmour).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the Devon school building programme for 1967–68 will be announced.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer my right hon. Friend gave on 1st February to a Question from the hon. Member for Somerset, North (Mr. Dean).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the average weekly numbers of borrowings for the last 12 months from the Science Lending Library.

The average number of loans per week from the National Lending Library for Science and Technology during the 12 months before 1st March, 1965, was 4,352, which was an increase of 37·5 per cent. over the previous 12 months.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many student maintenance grants were reduced or refused altogether because of the means test in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement about future policy on student grants.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will now abolish the parents' means test for grants to students; and what estimate he has made of the number of girls deprived of further education because of the parents' means test.

It would cost about £18 million to abolish parental contributions in 1965–66. I believe that there are other educational objectives of higher priority.Under 70 per cent. of the awards to students in first degree and comparable courses were reduced to take account of a parental contribution in 1963–64 compared with about 73 per cent. in 1958–59; figures for intervening years are not available. Under the regulations no award is reduced below £50 per annum.No estimate can be made of the numbers deterred from undertaking further education by the present provisions.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many improvement projects were carried out in England and Wales, respectively, during the last five years through the scheme whereby local education authorities enjoyed discretion to proceed with improvements to school buildings where the cost of improvement was less than £2,000.

The discretionary procedure for minor works under £2,000 was introduced in October, 1961. From that date to the end of March, 1963, projects to the value of almost £5 million were carried out in England and to the value of £340,000 in Wales. The corresponding figures were £5·1 million and £242,000 for the financial year 1963–64 and £4·3 million and £198,000 for the first nine months of 1964–65. My Department does not collect statistics of the number of projects involved.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what consideration he gave to the consequences likely to arise from his decision to terminate the scheme whereby local education authorities enjoyed discretion to proceed with improvements to school buildings costing less than £2,000; and whether he will reconsider this decision, in view of the value of this scheme in enabling local education authorities to meet local needs promptly.

I recognise that this decision reduces the freedom of individual local education authorities to carry out as many small projects as they might wish, but I consider that this disadvantage is more than counterbalanced by the need to secure a more equitable and rational distribution of the total sum available to all authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, following his cancellation of the present limit of £2,000, what is the limit below which he will allow local education authorities to carry out minor improve-

EDUCATIONAL MINOR WORKS PROGRAMME
			1963–64	1964–65	1965–66
			Work started	Estimate	Allocations
			£(m)	£(m)	£(m)
1. English local education authorities	…	…	8·80	11·02	16·00
2. English voluntary schools	…	…	2·60	2·90	3·35
3. Welsh local education authorities	…	…	0·67	0·84	1·15
4. Welsh voluntary schools	…	…	0·08	0·11	0·20
5. Teacher training	…	…	0·13	0·15	0·20
6. Special Services	…	…	0·05	0·08	0·10
7. Projects under £2,000	…	…	5·40	6·75	—
8. Total	…	…	17·73	21·85	21·00
9. 1962–63 winter programme late starts	…	…	0·67
10. 1963–64 winter programme	…	…	2·70
11. Total	…	…	21·10

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will now make a statement about a comprehensive school at Holsworthy.

No. I understand that the Devonshire local education authority is considering the possibility of establishing such a school but has not yet reached a decision. No proposals have yet been submitted to my right hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science by how much he has cut the capital minor building programme for the East Sussex education authority for the year 1965–66; and how this compares with the previous two years.

All minor capital projects must be included within an authority's allocation but the choice of projects is at their discretion.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the distribution of the total spent or to be spent on minor works in 1963–64, 1964–65, and 1965–66, between works up to £2,000, other works for local education authorities, and for voluntary schools, and any other expenditure.

The information is as follows:

The authority's minor works allocation for 1965–66 is £120,000. The authority's proposals for that year totalled £622,000. For 1963–64 and 1964–65 the authority's allocations were respectively £88,000 and £100,000 compared with proposals of –473,000 and £414,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the practice of local education authorities in advising their staff with regard to supplying information about pupils to concerns which wish to use such information for the purpose of sales of encyclopaedias and other products.

This is a matter for local education authorities. I do not know what advice they give to their teachers, but I am sure they would not wish information about pupils to be given to business concerns for such purposes.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the amount requested by the Cheltenham education authorities for 1965–66; and what it has been allocated.

Cheltenham is not a local education authority and its minor works proposals and allocations are included in those for the Gloucestershire Local Education Authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he intends to convert the grammar schools at Fareham and at Purbrook to comprehensive schools.

The preparation of plans for a comprehensive system of secondary education will be a matter for consideration in the first instance by individual local education authorities, in the light of guidance my right hon. Friend will be issuing in a circular. The Hampshire authority has so far submitted no plans of this kind to my right hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what changes of policy have been adopted by his Department for 1965–66, concerning the control of expenditure on educational minor works projects for the County Borough of Chester, compared with the policy adopted in recent years.

Local education authorities' allocations for minor capital projects in 1965–66 cover all work, including projects costing under £2,000 which previously did not count against the allocations.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what curtailment there has been in the school building programme; and if he will make a statement.

There has been no curtailment. The major school building programme for 1965–66 will be £80 million compared with £64 million in 1964–65; the minor works programme will be £21 million in 1965–66 compared with expenditure on minor works of about £22 million in 1964–65. The total of work to be started in 1965–66 will therefore be over £100 million compared with about £86 million in 1964–65.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, in view of the rise in the cost of living, he will now review the scale of teachers' salaries.

Negotiations have already started on new pay scales for teachers.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what discussions he is having with the teachers' organisations on alternative methods of financing the payment of salaries within the teaching profession.

None. As my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has already said, the Government are reviewing the whole question of local and central government finance and hope in due course to initiate discussions with the local authority associations.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will now take steps to integrate independent schools into the State system.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will now make a policy statement on the future of the public schools.

I would refer my hon. Friends to the reply I gave on 11th March to my hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire, South-East (Mr. Park).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give an assurance that parents' means and social position will not be the deciding factors in determining the future education of children; and if he will make a statement on his proposals for providing a large percentage of places at public schools for boys whose parents cannot afford such education.

The answer to the first part of the Question is, Yes. On the second, I shall be making a statement in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will take steps to abolish the necessity to have a foreign language at O level before a pupil can be considered for admittance to a university.

I understand that there is no such general requirement, but in any case admission requirements are a matter settled by each university.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will encourage all local authorities to change their present educational system gradually to that of comprehensive schools for all pupils and to eliminate their present grammar and denominational schools.

I shall be issuing a circular to local education authorities calling on them to submit plans for the reorganisation of secondary education on comprehensive lines. This will involve considering the position, but not the elimination, of all maintained schools in their areas, including grammar schools and denominational schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether the circular sent to local authorities concerning their schemes for the introduction of comprehensive secondary education dealt with the issue of compulsion.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what response he has so far received from local education authorities to his circular, inviting them to prepare schemes for secondary education along comprehensive lines.

This circular has not yet been issued.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he intends to circularise local authorities inviting schemes to reorganise secondary education; and whether inducements will be offered to those local education authorities organising on comprehensive lines.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he intends to circularise local education authorities inviting them to prepare their comprehensive secondary education schemes; and whether he will make a statement.

I would refer my hon. Friends to the answer I have given today to the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr. Geoffrey Lloyd).

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether local education authorities will be compelled to prepare schemes for secondary education on comprehensive principles.

I propose to settle the terms of the circular after consultation with the local authority, teacher and other appropriate associations to whom I hope shortly to send a draft.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will increase the number of places in nursery schools or nursery classes at primary schools.

No—except where the establishment of a nursery class in existing premises is likely to produce a net increase in the number of teachers.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, if, following his review of Government policy for the arts, and the visit of his Parliamentary Secretary to the North-East, he will make an annual grant to the North-Eastern Association for Arts, in order to ensure the survival of the Stone Art Gallery.

Grants to the North-Eastern Association for Arts are made through the Arts Council. It is for the Arts Council to decide the size of these grants and for the North-Eastern Association itself to decide on their distribution.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many undergraduates leave university before completing their courses, giving figures for the total number of undergraduates in universities, the number leaving after the first year, the number leaving after the second year, and the number leaving after the third year, for the past three years, respectively.

The latest available information is in Appendix Two (A) of the Robbins Report on High Education and relates to the 21,800 undergraduates in arts, science, and technology who entered universities in 1957. Of these, 6·9 per cent. left during the first year before completing their courses, 4·0 per cent. during the second year and 3·4 per cent. during the third and fourth years, making a total of 14·3 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the Schools Council will report on measures to ensure comparability of marking standards between the different examining boards in the examinations for the General Certificate of Education.

The Schools Council, on which my right hon. Friend is represented, is actively examining this important and complex question and will, I am sure, report on it when practicable. At present I cannot say when this is likely to be.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has now decided to establish new medical schools in order to relieve the shortage of doctors in the National Health Service.

This matter is under consideration, but I am not yet in a position to make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's programme for sponsoring and encouraging British participation in space research.

Her Majesty's Government have sponsored scientific space research since 1957. Facilities for experiments in space are provided through rocket firings from Woomera, through the Aerial satellites launched in the Anglo-United States satellite programme, and through United Kingdom participation in the European Space Research Organisation. Grants are made to university scientists to assist them in financing approved experiments for inclusion in these programmes. Expenditure in the current year is just over £2 million, of which nearly half is the United Kingdom contribution to E.S.R.O.The programme is an expanding one. A third Aerial satellite, the first to be constructed in this country, is scheduled to be launched in 1967 and the contract for the first E.S.R.O. satellite has been awarded to a British firm.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will advise all senior schools, through the local education authorities, to appoint an official careers master or mistress.

I am sure it is well understood that it is part of the responsibilities of all secondary schools to help their pupils to make suitable choices on careers in consultation with the Youth Employment Service. My right hon. Friend hopes shortly to issue a pamphlet giving some detailed guidance.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has now given final approval to the provision of a hall, two classrooms and kitchen for the Doddinghurst Church of England controlled primary school; when tenders will be invited; and when he expects the work will be completed.

Approval was given on 15th March. I understand from the authority that tenders have been invited, and it is hoped to complete the work early next year.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will take steps to introduce a scheme to encourage women scientists to remain in or return to industry after having had children.

I do not wish to underestimate the resources of talent that might be tapped in this way, but this is primarily a matter for individual employers to consider in relation to their own special requirements and capabilities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, in view of the importance of increasing scientific personnel and of the wastage of qualified women scientists following marriage, he will take steps to introduce a Government scheme to encourage such women to remain in or return to industry after having had children.

I do not wish to underestimate the resources of talent that might be tapped in this way, but this is primarily a matter for individual employers to consider in relation to their own special requirements and capabilities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proposals he has for increasing the number of places for university and advanced technology students by 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what further steps he is taking to increase the existing number of university places by 1975.

As I told the House on 24th February, the Government accept the Robbins Committee's objective of 218,000 university places by 1973–74, which implies an increase of 66,000 places in the next nine years. I am not yet in a position to make a statement about 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has for increasing the number of university places in the next 10 years.

As I told the House on 24th February, the Government accept the Robbins Committee's objective of 218,000 university places by 1973–74, which implies an increase of 66,000 places in the next nine years. I am not yet in a position to make a statement about 1975.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what evidence he has accumulated of the use by education authorities of single industrialised building systems in new constructional projects; which of these are considered to be most suitable; and if he will make a statement.

Systems of industrialised building were used for one-fifth of all the major school building projects started in 1963–64. This is encouraging, but I hope that we shall achieve a considerably higher figure in the next few years. A special unit which was set up in my Department last year to stimulate productivity in educational building collates technical information about the various systems available. Officers of my Department are ready to advise local education authorities and the governing bodies of schools and colleges and to help them to select a system suitable to their needs.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) whether he will arrange for an inspection of the toilet facilities available to male and female staff at St. Francis Xavier's School, Oldbury;(2) whether he will give approval to the application made by the Worcestershire County Council in respect of classrooms for St. Francis Xavier's Catholic School, Oldbury;(3) what consideration he has given to the representations made to him in the letter from the hon. Member for Oldbury and Halesowen of 5th March on the state of St. Francis Xavier's Catholic School, Oldbury, and the need for its immediate replacement; and what action he proposes to take.

I have asked Her Majesty's Inspector for a report on the St. Francis Xavier school, about which my hon. Friend wrote to me on 5th March. My right hon. Friend is considering sympathetically the proposal put to him by the managers for additional building.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will

STUDENTS OF AGRICULTURE IN FURTHER EDUCATION AND APPRENTICES IN AGRICULTURE
	Educational Years
	1954–55	1959–60	1960–61	1961–62	1962–63	1963–64
ENGLAND AND WALES
(1) Agricultural colleges and farm institutes (full-time students only)	2,994	3,261	3,337	3,381	3,503	3,685
(2) Full-time students in courses leading to recognised qualifications in agriculture (all establishments other than agricultural colleges)	2,039	2,119	2,080	2,138	2,211	2,567
(3) Sandwich students in agriculture	—	24	23	24	25	24
(4) Part-time day students in agriculture forestry and fishing	1,616	3,186	4,245	5,003	6,347	6,959
(5) Day release students from agriculture, forestry and fishing	1,176	3,737	4,681	5,699	6,819	7,535
(6) Apprentices in agriculture and horticulture	424	657	677	685	894	1,090
WALES
(1) Agricultural colleges and farm institutes (full-time students only)	200	217	220	199	192	233
(2) Full-time students in courses leading to recognised qualifications in agriculture (all establishments other than agricultural colleges)	200	223	220	199	159	223
(3) Sandwich students in agriculture	—	—	—	—	—	—
(4) Part-time day students in agriculture	31	332	325	436	472	641
(5) Day release students from agriculture, forestry and fishing	31	630	547	568	707	651
SCOTLAND
(1) Agricultural colleges (full-time students only)	407	464	485	471	444	415
(2) Full-time students in courses leading to recognised qualifications in agriculture (all establishments)	481	523	547	543	549	543
(3) Sandwich students in agriculture	n.a.	n.a.	n.a.	n.a	n.a.	n.a.
(4) Part-time day students in agriculture	642	1,704	1,403	1,373	1,579	1,545
(5) Day release students from agriculture, forestry and fishing	12	255	380	427	646	744

1 Figures for England and Wales relate, in the first column, to the whole educational year, in the other columns, to a particular date in the first term. Figures for Scotland relate to the whole year; figures of apprentices to April of the second year at the head of the column.2 Figures in lines (2) include the majority of students in lines (1). Figures in lines (4) include the majority of students in lines (5).3 The apprenticeship figures for Scotland have not been obtainable in the time available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, as part of an enlarged teacher training programme, he will authorise the establishment of a teacher training college at Croydon.

My right hon. Friend will consider this, possibility carefully, along with others.

The information is given in the following table of figures.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many applications have been made for teacher training since the end of July 1964; and how many applicants have been successful in gaining places in colleges of teacher training.

Some 37,000 applicants had registered with the Clearing House by the beginning of this month. It is too early to say how many will eventually be admitted to colleges for the coming academic year.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what further plans he has for encouraging married women scientists to return to the teaching profession.

I hope that more science teachers, both graduate and non-graduate, will respond to the national campaign which my right hon. Friend has just launched to persuade more married women teachers to return to service. They will be particularly welcome in the girls' secondary schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps are being taken by the West Riding Education Authority to recruit married women teachers.

Like many other local education authorities they rely upon making personal contact, through various channels, with those who live in their area or move into it. To facilitate the return to teaching of women with young children, they offer nursery places where these are available, and they try to arrange suitable posts for women who can only give part-time service. They have also supported my Department's national campaigns with their own local advertising.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science at how many secondary schools, universities and other publicly-financed educational institutions in the United Kingdom instruction in the Portuguese language is normally available; and if he will name such establishments.

I understand that Portuguese may be offered as a degree subject in 13 universities (Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Durham, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London (King's College), Manchester, Newcastle, Oxford, Sheffield, Wales). Courses are available in further education establishments in Birmingham, Carlisle, Leicester, Leicestershire, Liverpool, London, Middlesex, Surrey and Warwickshire. So far as is known, two maintained grammar schools and four independent schools also teach the language.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many courses for teachers have been held under the auspices of his Department in the years 1962–65, respectively, with particular reference to the eradication of racial prejudice through educational means.

My Department will have held in this period three short courses for teachers concerned with the problems involved in international understanding and its inculcation in the schools; and nine other short courses will have been held to promote greater knowledge and understanding of other member countries of the Commonwealth, other countries in Europe and the welfare and educational problems of overseas students in Britain.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what advice he will give to educational institutions to help them to avoid giving certificates of admission to citizens of other Commonwealth countries whose real intention may be to seek employment here.

I propose to consider this in consultation with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary when we have received the report of the mission which is to consider with certain Commonwealth Governments the problems which have arisen over immigration control.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many of the 53 members of the staff of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research who returned to work in the Department after completing sandwich courses were still in the employ of the Department 12 months later.

Thirty-seven have stayed more than 12 months. 11 who completed sandwich courses less than 12 months ago are still with the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will announce his plans for the future of the university colleges at Cardiff, Swansea, Bangor and Aberystwyth.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer given to my hon. Friends the Members for Rhondda, West (Mr. Iowerth Thomas) and for Pontypool (Mr. Abse) on 18th November 1964.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the recommendations of the Parry Committee on Latin-American Studies.

The Government, after consulting the University Grants Committee, accept the broad objectives of the Report of the Committee on Latin-American Studies. The precise scale and pace of developments in this field will require further consideration and the University Grants Committee have been asked to enter into discussions with the Universities and to put forward detailed proposals.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will introduce legislation, in the interests of efficiency, to amalgamate all police forces in England and Wales into one national police force.

No. I do not agree that the interests of efficiency require this.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will ensure that the proposed Bill to outlaw discrimination and incitement will not be capable of evasion by directing such discrimination or incitement to the religion of the person against whom such discrimination or incitement is practised.

I am aware of this consideration, and will bear it in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, using the powers residing in Her Majesty's Government by virtue of Section 75 of the Government of Ireland Act, he will cause an inquiry to be made into the suitability or otherwise of applying the proposed anti-discrimination and incitement legislation to Northern Ireland.

No. I do not think such an inquiry is called for.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the Report of the Committee on Jury Service.

The Report is with the printers and my right hon. Friend hopes to publish it next month.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many Commonwealth immigrants have now been admitted to this country, including wives, children and dependants, since the passing of the Commonwealth Immigrants Act; how many have come from the various countries; and what estimate he has made of the number who entered illegally;(2) if he will give in column form the number of Commonwealth immigrants including wives, children and dependants who were admitted to the country for each of the last 10 years, and the 10 countries from which they mostly came.

For an estimate of the number who evade the immigration control (not necessarily in breach of the law) I would refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend gave on 4th February to Questions by the hon. Member for Darwen (Mr. Fletcher-Cooke) and others. As to the other figures I give below statistics of admissions and embarkations of citizens from the various countries since 1st July, 1962, and estimates of the net balance of immigration from Commonwealth territories in the Caribbean, Asia, East and West Africa, and the Mediterranean, which are the only figures available for the period before 1st July, 1962.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that between 1938 and 1964 the number of indictable offences involving the use of violence rose from approximately 60,000 a year to 260,000 a year; what are the corresponding figures for Northamptonshire; and what steps he is taking to reduce these offences.

The figures quoted by my hon. Friend appear to cover not only offences of violence against the person and sexual offences but also offences of breaking and entering, and to relate to the years 1939 and 1963. The corresponding figures for Northamptonshire (including the County Borough of Northampton) are 282 and 1,661. My right hon. Friend is determined to do everything in his power to build up the strength of the police and enable them effectively to combat crime.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will require the Chief Constable of Preston to submit to him a report on the circumstances of each case leading to a conviction in which radar speed testing equipment has been used, in view of the cases in the county borough of Preston in which such equipment has been used in a manner such as to produce results of doubtful accuracy.

My right hon. Friend is informed that radar speed meters have been operated since last autumn by the Preston Borough Police without difficulty, and he does not think that any useful purpose would be served by requestin reports from the Chief Constable on all the cases in which the equipment has been used.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make regulations as to the design and performance of radar speed-testing equipment so as to ensure that such equipment is used only in such a way as will ensure the accuracy of the information which it purports to record.

Radar speed-testing equipment is in general use and works satisfactorily. My right hon. Friend is not aware of any evidence to suggest that the making of regulations is necessary.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that a red Commer van, registration No. OO7324, which has been in continuous use since December, 1964, without a Road Fund licence, is parked almost every day at the corner of Courcy Road and Wood Green High Road, and that, although the police have on occasions warned other motorists for parking within the yellow-band area of this street, no action has been taken against the owners of this van; and whether he will instruct the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police to investigate this situation.

I understand that inquiries are being made in regard to the vehicle that I believe my hon. Friend has in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will ask the Commissioner of Police to have an investigation made into the number of vehicles parked on the roads of London without Road Fund licences, some of them abandoned with defective petrol tanks.

My right hon. Friend is not convinced that he would be justified in asking the Commissioner to undertake such an inquiry at the present time.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that since October, 1964, a derelict van has been left abandoned in Atherton Mews, Forest Gate, with petrol in the tank, and that Joseph Turner reported this to the police; and what action has been taken to date by the police with regard to this.

The Commissioner of Police informs my right hon. Friend that there is no record of a complaint to the police by Mr. Joseph Turner about a van abandoned in Atherton Mews, which is a private road.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many persons in British Guiana have been imprisoned without trial; how long they have been deprived of their liberty; and if he will now give instructions for their release.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Manchester, Wythenshawe (Mr. Alfred Morris) on 15th March.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will take steps to erect a limited number of office blocks on a speculative basis in new towns or growth points in Scotland.

Although the Board of Trade has powers to build offices in development districts there has been hardly any demand for these even in relation to specific projects. In these circumstances there must be doubt whether occupants could readily be found for advance offices. But my right hon. Friend will keep the situation under review. The building of office blocks in new towns is a matter for the new town development corporations.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he anticipates a further deterioration in the unfavourable United Kingdom balance of trade with the United States of America resulting from the recent decision of the United States Government to discourage holidays abroad; whether he contemplates the use of quotas or other import restrictions to counterbalance such a deterioration; and if he will make a statement.

It is too soon to say what the effect will be on our balance of payments with the United States of America. The Government do not contemplate measures of the kind mentioned by the hon. and gallant Member.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if, in the light of the new information of fraudulent practice made available to him by the hon. Member for Erith and Crayford, he will now set up an inquiry under Section 165 of the Companies Act into the affairs of the Universal Health Studios Limited.

My right hon. Friend has carefully considered my hon. Friend's suggestion. He is, however, aware of no grounds for appointing inspectors to inquire into this company's affairs under Section 165 of the Companies Act.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what proportion of British exports are purchased for consumption by manufacturing firms abroad which are either associates or subsidiaries of British companies.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when he expects to receive the report of the inquiry into the Cadco project in Glenrothes; and whether he will make a statement.

The inspectors appointed under Section 165 of the Companies Act to investigate the affairs of three companies in the Cadco group are making good progress; but I cannot say when their report is likely to be received.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what was the total financial assistance given to firms in the North-East development districts for the 12 months ending 31st March, 1964 and the nine months ending 31st December, 1964; and what was the average capital commitment for each job to be created.

The information is given in the following table:

OFFERS OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO FIRMS IN NORTH-EAST DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS
		Loans	Grants	Total	Total assistance per estimated additional job
		£'000	£'000	£'000	(£)
April, 1963-March, 1964	…	1,995	2,093	4,089	480
April-December, 1964	…	4,889	3,264	8,153

asked the President of the Board of Trade what changes he is making in the staffing arrangements for the Export Credits Guarantee Department.

In the interests of recruitment and management, I have decided to integrate the staffing arrangements of the Export Credits Guarantee Department with those of the Board of Trade. The necessary arrangements will be worked out in consultation with the Staff Associations through the normal Whitley machinery. The Export Credits Guarantee Department will remain a separate unit for operating purposes.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will recommend to the Agricultural Research Council that the hill farm they wish to establish in the northeast of England should be sited in Wensleydale, Swaledale or in Teesdale; and whether he will make a statement.

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to the recommendation which my right hon. Friend has had from his Agricultural Advisory Council that he should establish an experimental husbandry farm on the eastern side of the Pennines. I am afraid it is not possible to make financial provision for such a farm at the moment. If it is eventually approved, its location would depend primarily on where a suitable farm could be found within the area suggested.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is aware that pesticides like dieldrin continue to be sold after a ban has been imposed on their sale; and what steps he takes to enforce such bans.

These pesticides may still be sold for some uses. If my hon. Friend has evidence that sales are being made for uses that have been discontinued, perhaps he would let me have full details. All the restrictions are, of course, voluntary and there are no powers to impose a legal prohibition, but the organisations concerned have agreed to co-operate in giving effect to the restrictions.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what is the total number of electors in the areas now proposed to be added to the County Borough of Bristol by the Local Government Commission, whose report he proposes to accept.

The areas which it is intended to add to Bristol have a population of about 1,000. My right hon. Friend is unable to say how many of these are electors.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, as nearly 90 per cent. of the money raised by the Irish Sweepstakes comes from the United Kingdom, he will now launch a national lottery to cover such racing events as the Derby, Cambridgeshire and four others to help finance major improvements in British hospitals.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the Mantaro project, in Peru, for which an Anglo-German consortium is submitting proposals, was considered during recent discussions in Bonn; and with what result.

Yes. Germany will offer, under the Offset Agreement, loan finance of about DM100 million (£8·8 million) in respect of certain United Kingdom goods and services and of associated local costs in the Mantaro project. This is a useful first-fruit of my discussions with the Federal German Ministers and will, I hope, enable the commercial negotiations between the Anglo-German consortium and the Mantaro Corporation in Peru to be satisfactorily concluded. The project would involve United Kingdom exports of over £20 million.

asked the Prime Minister, in the light of recent Ministerial discussions in Rome and Bonn and with Commonwealth countries, which of his five pre-conditions for British entry into the European Economic Community remain as the basis of Her Majesty's Government's policy.

The five conditions we stated in October, 1962, reflect essential aspects of British policy, but we cannot usefully turn these into precise bargaining conditions for a new European negotiation until one is in prospect.

asked the Prime Minister why the responsibility for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation's United Kingdom National Commission was transferred from the Department of Education and Science to the Ministry of Overseas Development.

Prime responsibility for relations with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation was transferred from the Department of Education and Science to the Ministry of Overseas Development because of the growing importance of aid and technical assistance in the activities of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. The National Commission is an integral part of our arrangements for maintaining relations with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, and it is therefore appropriate that responsibility for it also should have been transferred to the Ministry of Overseas Development.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many cadets were accepted for entry into the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, in each of the years from 1954 to 1964, inclusive.

Numbers of cadets accepted for entry into Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, are as follows:

Year			General List	Supplementary List
1954	…	…	244 (5)	—
1955	…	…	160 (1)	—
1956	…	…	107 (2)	—
1957	…	…	157 (2)	—
1958	…	…	157 (—)	—
1959	…	…	160 (3)	—
1960	…	…	231 (8)	39 (5)
1961	…	…	146 (2)	186 (10)
1962	…	…	171 (—)	205 (5)
1963	…	…	198 (3)	192 (8)
1964	…	…	229 (2)	261 (9)

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the 600 cadets at present in the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, have their registered next-of-kin living in Northumberland and Durham, respectively.

The total number of R.N. cadets of United Kingdom origin at Dartmouth in March, 1965, and those who have their registered next-of-kin living in Northumberland and

Total Number of Cadets		Northumberland		Durham
General List	Supplementary List	General List	Supplementary List	General List	Supplementary List
269	199	3	2	2	4
468		11

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will now make a statement on the progress of discussions on the case for an independent inquiry into the disposal of Government surplus goods at public auctions.

So far as the sales of the surpluses of the Defence Services are concerned, I have made a most thorough examination of the arrangements and have decided that a formally constituted inquiry is not required. In this connection, I would refer to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Erith and Crayford (Mr. Dodds) on 12th March.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the wreck of the s.s. "Richard Montgomery", which lies off Sheerness.

The s.s. "Richard Montgomery" is an ammunition ship which grounded off Sheerness on 20th August, 1944. In 1952, explosives experts considered the whole problem of removing either the ammunition or the wreck and came to the conclusion that it was safer not to disturb them. Last autumn, following sensational magazine and Press accounts of the likely effect of an explosion, a Working Party, including representatives from the Port of London Authority, the Medway Conservancy Board and the Home Office, was set up to re-examine the explosive risks in leaving the wreck alone or in attempting to clear it.The Working Party has now advised in an interim report that the wreck, and the ammunition in her, should still be left alone, that the likelihood of an explosion is no greater now, indeed possibly rather less, than it was in 1952, and that the results of an explosion, although serious, would not be on anything like