asked the Minister of Aviation whether a licence granted to an operator for a particular route may be transferred to another company without further reference to the Air Transport Licensing Board.

In the event of the reconstruction or amalgamation of a company holding an air service licence, Regulation 16 of the Civil Aviation (Licensing) Regulations, 1964, provides a 28-day period in which a successor company may apply for any such licence to be transferred to its name. Otherwise there is no provision for such transfers between companies.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether, in view of the recent reduction in the Bank Rate and the attempts made by building societies to restrict their mortgage interest charges to 6¾ per cent. per annum, he will request the Agricultural

University Air Squadron		Numbers of members leaving squadrons	Number of former members commissioned into the R.A.F.	Col. (c) as % of Col. (b)
(a)		(b)	(c)	(d)
Aberdeen	…	102	19	19
Birmingham (also covers Keele)	…	155	20	13
Bristol	…	144	19	13
Cambridge	…	180	10	6
Northumbria (covers Durham and Newcastle)	…	142	25	18
Edinburgh	…	117	11	9
Glasgow (also covers Strathclyde)	…	185	28	15
Hull (also covers Sheffield and York)	…	111	24	22
Leeds	…	157	13	8
Liverpool	…	119	24	20
London	…	186	30	16
Manchester	…	124	17	14
Nottingham (also covers Leicester)	…	166	24	14
Oxford	…	177	12	7
Queens, Belfast	…	121	14	12
Southampton	…	191	24	13
St. Andrews	…	103	7	7
Wales (Squadron formed in October 1963)	…	3	1	33
Total	…	2,483	322	13
Note: National Servicemen and R.A.F. University Cadets are excluded.

No. The rate of interest charged by the Corporation depends on the rate at which it can raise long-term funds by the issue of debenture stocks to cover existing and future commitments. The Corporation always endeavours to make its loans available to farmers on the most favourable terms it can and it will undoubtedly reduce its interest rate as soon as it is in a position to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish a list of the university air squadrons, together with information concerning the percentage of their members who have joined the Royal Air Force in the quin-quennial period 1959 to 1964.

Statistics of membership are readily available only for full calendar years, not university years. For the six calendar years 1959–64 inclusive, the information is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will take steps to ensure that no statements are made by representatives of his Department concerning Government decisions on the future of the Territorial Army before such decisions have been made.

Yes. This would be normal departmental practice.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many military personnel are at present training on Dartmoor; and what proposals he has for the reduction of this number in the future.

The Services are expected to use Dartmoor for training this year for about 160,000 man/training days. So long as training requirements remain at their present level I see no prospect that Dartmoor will be used less.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the number of widows of naval ratings, with three orphan children of school age, who have to pay fees for a son at the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook; and what are the reasons for such charges, in view of the fact that, until recently, no fees were charged for orphans.

Two. Fees were introduced at the Royal Hospital School, to enable Greenwich Hospital to fulfil its commitments, including the provision of full educational opportunities for orphans.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence, what is the income limit, gross or nett, at which widows of naval ratings, with three orphan children of school age, who have to take full employment, are charged fees for an orphan son at the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook; and what specific charges against wages are deductible in the assessment of income of such widows.

There is no such income limit. All cases are considered individually; and account is taken of exceptional expenses which parents are obliged to meet.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will state the first year in which officers' sons were accepted for the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook, the number of such entries in each year since, whether they were orphans and the ranks of their fathers, stating whether cadet entry or lower deck entry.

Sons of commissioned officers have been re-admitted since 1949. The number of officers' sons entered in each year since 1949 is as follows:

1949	…	14
1950	…	9
1951	…	7
1952	…	13
1953	…	22
1954	…	22
1955	…	20
1956	…	30
1957	…	45
1958	…	43
1959	…	29
1960	…	38
1961	…	55
1962	…	37
1963	…	50
1964–65 (School Year)	…	39

Records are not maintained in a form which makes it practicable to give details of ranks of the fathers, since rank is not relevant for the purpose of considering applications. No distinction was drawn between direct entry and other officers prior to the introduction, with effect from the Autumn 1964 entry, of a restriction of 10 per cent. on the admission of sons of direct entry officers. The 39 officers' sons entered in the 1964–65 school year i.e. the first complete school year for which the new arrangement was operated comprise 13 sons of direct entry officers, which included two orphans, and 26 sons of officers promoted from the lower deck. The classification of the sons of officers entered over the 16 year period could not be ascertained without considerable research, but the following table shows the classification of all officers' sons at present in the School:

		Direct entry Officers	Officers with a minimum of 4 years service as ratings
Both parents dead	…	—	—
Father dead	…	5	3
Mother dead	…	4	2
Both parents living	…	67	130

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will state the first year in which fees were charged for entries into the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook, the number of fees charged, and the total amount in each successive year.

Fees were first charged in 1957 and were applied only to boys joining the School from 1st January, 1957. Thus the number of fee-payers in each of the early years increased each term. The numbers paying fees at the end of the financial years 1956–57–1964–65, together with the total amount brought to account in each year, is given below:

Financial Year			Number of Boys for whom fees were paid	Total Amount
				£
1956–57	…	…	68	1,510
1957–58	…	…	240	11,839
1958–59	…	…	372	21,164
1959–60	…	…	474	36,618
1960–61	…	…	579	49,851
1961–62	…	…	636	56,323
1962–63	…	…	650	60,523
1963–64	…	…	676	64,114
1964–65	…	…	668	63,500*
* Estimated

asked the First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Economic Affairs what was the extent of the grant made by his Department towards the cost of the survey recently carried out in the South-West; whether he is aware that distribution of the survey report has been severely restricted; whether this restriction was made at his request or with his prior knowledge; and what action he proposes to take to see that copies of the report are available if necessary at an economic price for those wishing to study its contents.

The Government made a grant of £8,750, representing half the cost of the survey which was commissioned by the Joint Committee for the Economy of the South-West. An additional £750, representing half the cost of printing the report, has since been authorised.I am aware that the first print proved insufficient to allow a wholesale distribu? tion, but I understand that the Joint Committee, with whom the decision on publication and distribution lies, are considering reprinting the report, which will then be available for purchase at an economic price.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much money the Arts Council contributed to the Royal Shakespeare Company, Sadlers Wells, the Covent Garden Opera Company, and the National Theatre in 1964; and how much of the Government grant he intends to earmark for these purposes in 1965 and 1966.

The grants from the Arts Council in the years in question were as follows (the figures for 1965–66 are estimated):

	1963–64	1964–65	1965–66
	£	£	£
Royal Shakespeare Theatre:	47,000	88,000	93,000
Sadler's Wells:	400,000	425,000	520,000
Covent Garden:	815,000	1,055,000	1,025,000
National Theatre:	130,000	142,000	160,000

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will earmark an increased amount of the grant to the Arts Council for the Royal Shakespeare Company, in view of the fact that this Company is not only doing useful work in London but pays regular visits to the provinces.

No specific sum is earmarked for the Royal Shakespeare Company and the question of an increase does not therefore arise.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will earmark an increased amount of the grant to the Arts Council for the Royal Shakespeare Company, in view of the fact that this Company is not only doing useful work in London but pays regular visits to the provinces.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the proportions of the Arts Council Grant which go to opera, ballet and drama respectively.

In 1964–65 Arts Council grants for opera, ballet and drama totalled about £2,320,000, of which nearly £650,000 went to drama. The balance of £1,670,000 includes £1,055,000 for Covent Garden. The Arts Council inform me that this cannot accurately be apportioned but it is estimated that total grants for opera and ballet respectively were about £1,160,000 and £510,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much of the Arts Council grant was spent on the London Opera Centre in 1964–65; and what is the estimate of expenditure for 1965–66.

In 1964–65 the Arts Council grant to the London Opera Centre was £36,500 of which £6,500 was in respect of capital expenditure. The estimated corresponding figure for the year 1965–66 are £44,500 and £9,500 respectively.Equivalent capital grants are also made to the Centre by the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, which receives grant through the Arts Council.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he is taking to increase the facilities for management training.

In recent years a substantial development of education for management has taken place and progress is being maintained. As I informed the hon. Member yesterday, the establishment of the Business Schools at London and Manchester Universities is going ahead. A new Chair in Industrial Management is being established at the College of Aeronautics, Cranfield. In addition the management departments at a number of major technical colleges and colleges of commerce are being expanded under current building programmes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what means of communication are available to the Civil Defence services in the event of an emergency apart from Post Office facilities and the emergency communications that would be made available by the Territorial Army.

I regret that it would not be in the public interest to say more than that special facilities have been provided for use in an emergency.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he received the petition, signed by 300,000 people, presented by the Anti-Vivisection League calling for a replacement of experiments on living animals by more humane methods; and what action he will take.

This petition was presented to the House by the hon. Member for Hornchurch (Mr. Lagden) on 8th May. I am at present studying the recommendations of the Littlewood Committee for control of experiments on animals. Choice of experimental method is not a matter for which I have responsibility.

asked the Minister of Labour how many persons, male and female, and persons under 18 years of age, male and female, respectively, were registered as unemployed at the June, 1965, count at the Gateshead Employment Exchange and associated Youth Employment Office, and in the Northern

Date				Numbers registered as unemployed at the Gateshead Employment Exchange and associated Youth Employment Office					Tyneside Group %* rate
				Men	Boys	Women	Girls	Total
June, 1965	…	…	…	836	60	107	9	1,012	2·2
June, 1964	…	…	…	1,089	80	155	14	1,338	3·1
June, 1963	…	…	…	1,542	216	211	33	2,002	4·3
June, 1962	…	…	…	1,111	96	214	18	1,439	3·2
Percentage changes between:—
1962 and 1963	…	…	…	+39	+125	-1	+83	+39
1963 and 1964	…	…	…	-29	-63	-27	-58	-33
1964 and 1965	…	…	…	-23	-25	-31	-36	-24

Date				Numbers registered as unemployed in the Northern Region
				Men	Boys	Women	Girls	Total	%
June, 1965	…	…	…	21,028	1,032	5,625	602	28,287	2·2
June, 1964	…	…	…	28,227	1,757	7,736	999	38,719	3·0
June, 1963	…	…	…	40,054	4,148	9,976	2,357	56,535	4·3
June, 1962	…	…	…	30,397	2,549	8,052	1,145	42,143	3·2
Percentage changes between:—
1962 and 1963	…	…	…	+32	+63	+24	+106	+34
1963 and 1964	…	…	…	-30	-58	-23	-58	-32
1964 and 1965	…	…	…	-26	-41	-27	-40	-27
* A separate percentage of unemployment cannot be quoted for the area of the Gateshead Employment Exchange and associated Youth Employment Office which form part of the Tyneside travel-to-work group.
There were on 9th June, 1,198 unfilled vacancies notified to the Gateshead Employment Exchange and associated Youth Employment Office and 16,178 to Employment Exchanges and Youth Employment Offices in the Northern Region.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will publish the average weekly wages earned in Devon and Cornwall as compared with the prevailing national average wage.

Figures of average earnings are not available for areas less

The following table gives the information:than "regions". The average weekly earnings of adult male manual workers in manufacturing and the other industries and services covered by the Ministry's half-yearly enquiries in the South Western region were £16 19s. 8d. in October, 1964, the latest date for which information is available, compared with a United Kingdom average of £18 2s. 2d.

asked the Minister of Labour what is the proportion of women to men in insured employment in the King's Lynn area, in Norfolk as a whole, and in the whole of the country, respectively.

The proportion of female to male employees in employment in King's Lynn, Norfolk, and Great Britain, was 54 to 100, 56 to 100 and 56 to 100 respectively at June, 1964, the latest date for which information is available.

asked the Postmaster-General what plans he has for a British communications satellite.

The United Kingdom has no plans for a British communications satellite. The United Kingdom is participating, with other countries, in the establishment of a global commercial communications satellite system and it is open to British industry to tender for the supply of equipment for that system.

asked the Postmaster-General when Subscriber Trunk Dialling will be introduced in the Maghera Telephone Exchange.

I expect to introduce S.T.D. for Maghera subscribers towards the end of 1966 or early 1967.

asked the Postmaster-General how many persons are waiting for telephone installations in the borough of Harrow; and what is the average time between application and installation.

Leaving aside orders in course of provision, there are five applications for telephones on the waiting list in the borough of Harrow, all of which should be met within two or three months when additional cables have been provided. For all other applications, the average time to give service is three weeks.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how soon after the end of the month the Trade and Navigation accounts were published by the Stationery Office during the period January-April, 1964; and how soon after the end of the month the corresponding Overseas Trade Accounts were published during the period January-April, 1965.

On average after 18¼ and 21 working days, respectively.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will give the amounts of money guaranteed by the Export Credit Guarantee Department for the years 1962, 1963, and 1964, and the amounts paid out under the scheme for those years.

The following is the information:

	1962	1963	1964
Liabilities assumed on guarantees under Sections 1 and 2 of the Export Guarantees Act 1949, as amended (£ million)	919·4	1,117·8	1,394·8
Claims paid under guarantees (£ million)	5·5	5·2	4·6

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will refer the provision of modular operating theatres to the Monopolies Commission, in view of the fact that there is only one main supplier at the present time.

My right hon. Friend will bear my hon. Friend's suggestion in mind, but a reference to the Monopolies Commission is not made in all cases where the statutory conditions for reference are satisfied.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will list the categories of business property assessed for rating purposes on the value of the turnover derived from carrying on such business.

All business properties are assessed on the basis of their rental value. In areas where there is no direct rental evidence for certain classes of premises reference is made to their

£ million
Year			Investment Allowances	Initial Allowances	Annual and other Allowances	Total Cost
1955	…	…	106	21	284	411
1956	…	…	77	60	312	449
1957	…	…	59	98	350	507
1958	…	…	42	138	348	528
1959	…	…	111	102	366	579
1960	…	…	169	98	410	677
1961	…	…	205	109	479	793
1962	…	…	203	114	531	848
1963	…	…	264	120	600	984
1964	…	…	322	142	731	1,195

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in view of the rise in the cost of living over several years, what steps he will now take to improve public service pensions.

I have nothing to add to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Brighton, Kemp-town (Mr. Hobden) on 14th June.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give details of the appeal machinery and the machinery for settling disputes between valuers of works of art over valuation for tax purposes; and on how many occasions in each of the last five years such machinery has been used.

The valuation of works of art for the purposes of assessment to Estate Duty is a matter for negotiation between the Estate Duty Office and the executors or other accountable persons; in the absence of agreement appeal may be made to the High Court under Section 10, Finance Act, 1894. Where

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the annual costs of investment, initial and annual allowances, over the period 1955 to 1964.

The estimated costs of the allowance on capital expenditure in the years in question are as follows:works of art are offered in satisfaction of Estate Duty, the question of the value at which they are to be transferred, may similarly be referred to an independent Panel. There has been no appeal of either kind within the last five years.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the number of people which his Department has in training in connection with valuation of works of art for the administration of the provisions of the Finance Bill, giving details of who is carrying out this training; what is the time at which those concerned are expected to complete it; and what will be the total extra cost to public funds.

None.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the approximate cost of extending the relief available to blind persons under Section 9 of the Finance Act, 1962, to persons disabled to the extent of 75 per cent. or more, using the tests applied under the National Insurance Acts to determine the degree of disability.

There is not enough information to make an estimate but the cost in terms of tax would probably not be large.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has yet received a report from Lord Hinton on the results so far of the latter's study of co-ordination of transport.

Yes. Lord Hinton has kept me in touch with the progress of his studies by a series of reports.

asked the Minister of Transport if he is aware of the danger to vehicles turning out of Parliament Square into Great George Street due to the angle of the curb and the surface of the roadway; and if he will take steps to improve this corner in the interest of road safety.

This is a matter for the Greater London Council. I understand that the radius of the curb has been so designed that it necessarily limits the speed at which vehicles can negotiate the corner, but also reduces the width of the carriageway which pedestrians must cross. It is therefore considered suitable for the site. The road surface, constructed to British Standard specification, was laid only five years ago. The Westminster City Council intend, however, as agents for the highway authority, to investigate the condition of the surface and carry out any works they find necessary.

asked the Minister of Transport if, when making a decision on proposals for withdrawal or reduction of rail passenger services, either before their publication by the Railways Board, or after receipt of the Transport Users' Consultative Committee's report, he will give an assurance that he will take into account the statistics of freight traffic on the line relevant to the proposed closure.

Statistics of freight traffic are not directly relevant to rail passenger closure proposals. The estimate of savings to be achieved by a passenger closure may, however, be affected by the Railways Board's intentions about retention of the line for freight services, and to that extent I take these into account. Reductions in passenger services as distinct from closures, do not require my consent.

asked the Minister of Transport what proposals have been made to him for the withdrawal or curtailment of passenger services or closure of stations to passenger traffic on the Wrexham, Chester, Northgate and New Brighton railway line; and whether he will make a statement on the future of such services and stations.

The Railways Board has sent me details of a proposal to withdraw all rail passenger services on the lines between Wrexham, Chester North-gate and Bidston (via Shotton and Neston).Under the procedure which I have instituted I am considering, in the light of the views of the Economic Planning Councils for Wales and the North West, whether or not the proposal is, wholly or in part, so obviously unacceptable on planning grounds that it should not be published, at least for the present.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will now take steps to ensure the efficient collection of waste paper by local authorities, in view of the demands for this waste by paper mills and the contribution it can make in lessening imports and improving the balance of payments situation.

The hon. Member will know that the Economic Development Committee for the paper and board industry have just appointed a working party, on which the Board of Trade and the Department are represented, to consider how supplies of waste paper can be increased. My right hon. Friend prefers to await their report before considering whether to raise this matter with local authorities.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will seek the views of the Building Surveyors Institute on steps to put an end to jerry-building in formulating Government policy on this matter.

I have quite recently, in reply to my queries received some interesting suggestions from the Institute for which I am grateful.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government when he will make a statement on the Government's plans to eradicate jerry-building.

There would in my view be advantage if the building industry itself took a major part in setting and maintaining satisfactory standards of private housebuilding. I am accordingly proposing as a next step to discuss with the National House-Builders Registration Council how their scheme can be adapted and extended to provide the guarantee of quality which I intend to secure as part of the national housing plan. The Council have shown by recent actions in raising standards, in extending to 10 years the period of guarantee against major defects, and in disciplining members who are responsible for bad work, that they are concerned to make their scheme an effective weapon against jerry-building. I shall make a full statement of the Government's intentions when these and other consultations have been completed.

asked the Minister of Technology if he will list the ways in which he is seeking technological co-operation with European countries.

I listed the main projects of official technological co-operation with European countries in my own areas of responsibility, in my Answer to the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds on 23rd June, 1965.In the atomic energy field, co-operation with a number of European countries is maintained by way of intergovernmental agreements, by agreements between the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and national atomic energy organisations, and by membership of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the European Nuclear Energy Agency. We also maintain contact with the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), through a number of channels including the United Kingdom/Euratom Continuing Committee. The next meeting of this Committee is on 8th July, 1965.Other possibilities of co-operation in advanced technologies with European countries are being considered by my Department.