asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will extend the benefits of the Forces' Family Pension Scheme to the widows of soldiers who gave colour service before 1st September, 1950; and why he has hitherto made this distinction.

No. The line was drawn in 1952. The resources have not been available to allow for service completed before 1st September, 1950.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what is the estimated cost of fitting out Chatham Dockyard for the construction of nuclear submarines;(2) what is the estimated cost of equipping, for the construction of nuclear submarines, a Royal Naval Dockyard at present possessing no facilities for conventional submarine construction.

To fit out Chatham to construct nuclear submarines would cost about £1½ million. The costs for other Naval Yards would be even greater. As I told the House on 27th April, our existing arrangements for constructing nuclear submarines are sufficient.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for further extending the nuclear submarine fleet following upon the order for five nuclear submarines on 5th March, 1966.

The precise rate at which we will continue to build nuclear hunter-killer submarines has not yet been settled.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what discretion is exercisable in court-martialling officers of the Royal Navy; why an officer was court-martialled and reprimanded for failing to lock up three sacks of out-of-date confidential books before jumping into the sea at night to risk his life to save others who were in danger from a floating mine; and what instruction is now given in Royal Naval training establishments on the priority officers should give to different aspects of their duty.

Discretion to order a court-martial depends upon the facts of the case. Here the facts are that the officer's failure to secure his confidential books was not connected with hunting the mine to which the hon. Member refers. If it had been, I am sure that there would have been no court-martial. All officers are expected, and trained, to put first things first if priorities clash.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will now make a statement on the organisation of common services in the Royal Ordnance Factory, Woolwich, after its closure.

After March, 1967, about 130 industrial employees and 50 non-industrial employees are likely to be required by the Ministry of Public Building and Works and about 230 industrial and 53 non-industrial employees plus 87 in constabulary grades by the Army Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the present establishment and cost, in sterling and foreign exchange, of the British base at Aden; and what are the expected establishment and cost of the facilities at Bahrain and Sharjah after 1968.

There are at present about 19,000 United Kingdom Service personnel in Aden and the Persian Gulf. The attributable theatre cost of our forces in this area is £66 million and the expenditure in foreign exchange £28 million. It would not be in the national interest to reveal such information relating to our future plans for deployment in the Persian Gulf area.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give estimates of direct costs in the Persian Gulf in each year up to and including 1969–70 in sterling and foreign exchange.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer I gave today to a similar question by the hon. Member for Oxford (Mr. Luard).

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what recognition has been made of the courage and skill shown by Lieutenant John Baker, Royal Navy, in swimming into the Firth of Clyde at night with high explosives strapped to his head to dispose of a floating mine which was a danger to shipping.

Lieutenant Baker showed great courage and skill, but this is the very high standard we expect of R.N. diving specialist.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the expected cost in sterling and foreign exchange, establishment, and military rôle of the proposed island bases in the Indian Ocean.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is his latest estimate of the costs of the new chain of island air bases in the Indian Ocean necessary to make them operational for the F111As.

We have not yet decided that it will be necessary to create any defence facilities additional to those already available to us in the Indian Ocean—much less that any island bases should be built.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals he has for the establishing of staging posts in the Indian Ocean for the F111As; and if these posts will be additional to the bases already on the mainland of Asia.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer I gave today to him and to the hon. Member for Oxford (Mr. Luard).

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what medical evidence was considered in the two recent courts-martial of parachutists who refused to jump; and whether he is satisfied that criminal proceedings are the best means of dealing with such cases.

Both soldiers were medically examined after their refusal and passed as fit to jump. This evidence was made available to courts-martial, which had rightly been convened to consider a question of military discipline.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will now give details of the economies in overseas defence expenditure foreshadowed in paragraph 21 of the Defence White Paper.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many patients from the Royal Navy, the Army, and the Royal Air Force have been treated at each of the Cambridge and Marie Louise hospitals, Aldershot, during the years 1963, 1964, and 1965, respectively;(2) how many civilian patients have been treated at each of the Cambridge and Marie Louise hospitals, Aldershot, during the years 1963, 1964, and 1965, respectively.

Following is the Answer:

		Cambridge		Louise Margaret
		Military Service	Hospital Civilians	Maternity Service	Hospital Civilians
1963	…	6,128	662	1,336	466
1964	…	6,369	674	1,266	564
1965	…	6,321	658	1,374	520

NOTE: The figures are those for in-patients. Service figures include the families of Service men.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many senior supporting staff will be responsible to the head of defence sales; where they are to be based; and what salaries they will be paid.

I would refer to the Answer I gave to the hon. Member for West Ham, North (Mr. Arthur Lewis) on 15th June.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he is aware that recruitment literature for boys training in the Army such as Come to Hong Kong with The Queen's Own Buffs and The Royal Kent Regiment, Trades and Employments taught in the Regular Army and other sundry recruitment promotional pamphlets and booklets exhorting the resident to join the Army, have been pushed through a letterbox in Herne Bay, Kent, where the resident is 60 years of age, and has no person of military age

	(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)
	Total of Army Land held in UK	Worldwide strength of British Army (British male)*	Acreage per man in relation to (2)	UK strength of British Army (male)*
1951	609,000	426,824	1·43	236,408
1966 as at 31st March	423,000	187,074	2·26	90,957

	(5)	(6)	(7)	(8)
	Acreage per man in relation to (4)	Total worldwide strength of British Army (Includes active UK Reserve Forces)*	Acreage per man in relation to (6)	UK strength of British Army (Includes active UK Reserve Forces)*
1951	2·58	554,000	1·10	363,584
1966 as at 31st March	4·65	299,214	1·41	203,097

				(9)	(10)	(11)
				Acreage per man in relation to (8)	Strength of Regular Field Force units in UK	Acreage per man in relation to (10)
1951	…	…	…	1·67	37,529	16·2
1966 as at 31st March	…	…	…	2·08	31,548	13·4
* Strengths include boy soldiers.

NOTE: Of the total of 423,000 acres held by the Army at 1st March, 1966, 328,805 acres are training land; 249,000 acres of this are let to farmers for agricultural purposes.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when the Inter-Services Committee considering the burial of Service men who have died abroad will present its Report.

The Committee has presented its report; this raises important issues which are now being studied.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many in his household; and what steps are being taken to prevent such wastage of Army funds.

Our recruiting policy observes the precepts of Matthew 13, verses 3 following.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what was the acreage of Army-held land in 1951 and today; what was the acreage of land per man in the Army, and per man in the Army stationed in Great Britain, respectively, at those dates.

This Answer involves a number of statistics, and the following are the relevant figures:Service men travelling on leave to and from Northern Ireland have had to do so by air because of the seamen's strike; and whether he will compensate them for the extra expense involved;(2) whether, during the period of the seamen's strike when it is impossible for Service men to travel on leave to and from Northern Ireland by sea, he will extend the free travel warrants to cover the full fare.

I understand that sea travel is still feasible, though personnel are advised to travel mid-week. It has always been permissible to send compassionate cases by air if necessary, and other special cases have been allowed during the strike. Those who make private arrangements for air travel do so at their own expense; I regret that I have no information about the numbers involved.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what changes he proposes to make in applying the principle of comparability of Service pay set out in Command Paper No. 945, in view of the continuing uncertainty in the Armed Forces and the fact that men and women now enlisting are doing so on the assumption that the Grigg formula will be used without modification to determine changes in their pay and allowances.

The matter is under consideration. I appreciate the value placed by the Services on a system of regular review.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the cost of training South Vietnamese troops in Malaysia at centres operated by British Service men; and what investigations he has made into the nature of the operations in which these troops are subsequently engaged.

The cost of this training in the last financial year was £26,000. The Answer to the second part of the Question is "None".

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the Polaris submarine fleet to be completed.

In 1969–70.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total of British Service men now in Malaysia and Borneo.

About 23,000, including Gurkhas but excluding the crews of the Far East fleet.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of the Gurkha brigade.

I have nothing to add to the Answer given by my predecessor to the hon. Gentleman on 22nd February, 1965.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements are made for the reporting and receipt of reports of sightings of unidentified flying objects; and how many of these reports have been received in the last 10 years from civilian and Service sources.

Reports of unidentified flying objects are received by my Department from both Service and civilian sources and are investigated. Between 1959 and 1965 351 reports were received. I regret that earlier figures are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made as to the value, courses and origins of reports of sightings of unidentified flying objects as well as of the objects themselves.

Reports are examined at their face value in the light of their possible air defence implications, and we do not carry our study beyond this point. No defence implications have been found.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give an estimate of the planned reduction in direct costs in Singapore and Malaysia by 1969–70 in sterling and foreign exchange, with an analysis of how the reduction is to be achieved.

No. It has never been regarded as being in the national interest to reveal our future plans for deployment of the forces in this sort of detail, and I do not propose to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the numbers of British troops of each Service at present serving in Malaysia and Singapore, respectively; and what is their estimated cost in sterling and foreign exchange for the current year.

The numbers, rounded to hundreds, are given below. Those for Malaysia include the men serving in Brunei. Gurkhas are included; the crews of the Far East Fleet are not.

		Malaysia	Singapore
R.N	…	900	2,500
Army	…	19,300	9,100
R.A.F	…	2,800	8,200
Totals	…	23,000	19,800

It is not possible to attribute defence expenditure separately to the forces serving in Malaysia and Singapore; but the approximate estimated expenditure in 1966–67 directly attributable to the forces in the Far East (excluding Hong Kong) is £235 million. Of this, about £85 million is foreign exchange.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what were the annual target totals agreed with the United States of America under offset arrangements for sales of British equipment as referred to in Command Paper No. 2902.

No such annual target totals have been arranged.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what sales of British arms and equipment to the United States of America have so far been secured in order to offset the purchase of the F111A; and to what extent these fall behind the amount agreed to by the United States Department of Defence;(2) if he will make a statement about the progress being made in selling British arms and equipment in the United States of America to offset the purchase of the F111A.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer I gave today to a similar Question by the hon. Member for St. Albans (Mr. Goodhew).

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what were the results of official discussions with Australia as to the provision by them of military facilities; what will be the costs of such facilities to Great Britain; and how much Australia will contribute.

We are still discussing these matters with the Australian Government. The position remains as set out in my written reply to the hon. Member for West Lothian (Mr. Dalyell) on 27th April.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements have been made with the Australian Government to provide base and servicing facilities for British forces east of Suez following their withdrawal from permanent British bases in that area.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what was the value of stocks held by the Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force at the end of each financial year from 1956 to 1966; and if he will give a broad analysis by categories;(2) what was the value of war and contingency stocks at the end of each financial year from 1956 to 1966; and if he will give a broad analysis by categories.

I regret that the information is not available. Stock valuation was discontinued in the war and has not been resumed.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the foreign exchange element of each item of United Kingdom support costs in Annex H of Part II of the Defence Review.

This information is not readily available, and a disproportionate amount of work would be involved in producing it.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the foreign exchange cost of the pay of civilians attributable to Great Britain's defence rôle east of Suez.

About £22 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the foreign exchange cost of the pay of civilians.

About £64 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what were the receipts from each country from military exports over the past five years.

It would be contrary to the normal practice to disclose detailed information concerning military equipment supplied to other countries.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what were the cost and countries of origin of military imports in each of the past five years.

Following is the information most readily available. A further breakdown of the figures could not be given without considerable extra work.

IMPORTS OF MILITARY EQUIPMENT 1961–65
£ million
Imports (c.i.f.)	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965*
North America	9	8	14	27	30
European NATO Countries	5	2	4	12	5
Other countries	5	11	4	5	2
Total	19	21	22	44	37
*Provisional.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give a list of all Her Majesty's Government's defence treaty obligations outside Europe with dates of termination and estimated direct costs in each case in sterling and foreign exchange in each year up to and including 1969–70.

Britain's defence treaty obligations outside Europe arise from N.A.T.O. (which is not confined to Europe, CENTO, SEATO, the Anglo-Libyan Treaty, the Simonstown Agreements, written undertakings concerning the protection or defence of Kuwait, Bahrein, the Trucial States, Qatar, and the Federation and Protectorates of South Arabia, the Anglo-Malaysian Treaty and the 1953 Declaration on Korea.Of these only the Anglo-Libyan Treaty has a fixed termination date. It is 1973.We cannot forecast whether, or to what extent, we shall be called upon actively to discharge our obligations under each individual treaty in any single year. It would therefore be impossible to forecast the annual cost of doing so.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will now make a statement on the future of the airfield at Chelveston, Northants.

The R.A.F. Station at Chelveston has been withdrawn from disposal, and the airfield is being held in reserve until our future requirements for airfields in the United Kingdom are finally settled.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what exercises for military jet aircraft involving either flying at low heights or at supersonic speeds have taken place over the county of Cardigan since 1st June, 1965.

Low level training flights by Service aircraft have taken place regularly, but none of these aircraft has flown at supersonic speeds. I understand that there have been some flights at supersonic speeds by aircraft under the control of the Ministry of Aviation engaged in research and development trials.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what restrictions are at present imposed by the commanding officers concerned or by his Department upon the flight of military aircraft at low heights or at supersonic speeds over the United Kingdom;

The speeds of modern jet aircraft make it impossible to confine low flying to uninhabited areas. However, we try to do essential low flying in the more sparsely populated areas in order to cause the minimum possible disturbance. Low flying practices by Service aircraft must always be authorised in writing and carried out at a height no lower than is absolutely necessary to achieve the object of the exercise. Supersonic flights by Service aircraft are normally carried out over the sea.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if a final decision has yet been taken by his Department concerning the future of Sculthorpe airfield.

The Royal Air Force Station at Sculthorpe has been withdrawn from disposal, and the airfield is being held in reserve until our future requirements for airfields in the United Kingdom are finally settled.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the value of the assault tracking which the United States of America have agreed to purchase from this country.

I regret having misled the House in answer to a supplementary question by the right hon. Gentleman on 13th June, 1966, in which I said that we had already been invited to provide assault tracking to twice the value of the tugs mentioned in the Question (HANSARD col. 1033). As I told the House in the debate on 11th May (HANSARD col. 474) the United States Department of Defense has decided to buy 2 million dollars worth of assault tracking. The order for harbour tugs would have been worth about the same amount. An initial order, worth about $500,000 is expected to be placed shortly by the U.S. Procurement Office in Germany.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what modifications have been made to the F111A since he ordered it.

No further modifications to the basic aircraft for service with the R.A.F. have been initiated.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for ordering a new submarine depot ship on which nuclear submarines would be based.

Design studies are at present being considered.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he will appoint a chief scientific adviser.

I am still considering the future of this appointment.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will make a statement on the total cost of British military purchases from the United States of America since the Nassau Agreement, including Polaris and the three aircraft C130, F4 and F111.

Expenditure on Polaris from the Nassau agreement to the end of 1965–66 is estimated at £37 million. The total dollar cost of all the projects mentioned over the 10 years from 1966–67 is estimated as under £600 million, assuming that the cost of the F111 A is fully offset, as I expect it to be.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether, in view of the inability of Western Germany to bear the full foreign exchange burden of the British Army of the Rhine, he will now consider as a matter of urgency the reduction of that force.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer I gave today to similar Questions by the hon. Members for Woolwich, West (Mr. Hamling) and Louth (Sir C. Osborne).

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many nuclear-armed United States warships are stationed in Hong Kong harbour.

None.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she will make it obligatory for transport operators using vehicles which are above conventional width or height or carry abnormal loads and are consequently likely to cause damage to bridges and other openings to display prominently on each vehicle or load the lateral and vertical clearance required, or otherwise ensure that a driver is aware more precisely of his responsibility and the limitations of his vehicle.

My right hon. Friend agrees that drivers of vehicles that are of unusual height or width or are carrying abnormal loads should have these factors constantly in mind when they are on the road. She does not, however, think that regulations as suggested by my hon. Friend would be appropriate.

asked the Minister of Transport when the White Paper on Transport policy will be published.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer given on 25th May to the hon. Member for Worcester (Mr. Peter Walker).

asked the Minister of Transport whether she will now introduce legislation for the purpose of compelling manufacturers of cars to provide safety belts on all cars produced in future.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will introduce legisla- tion making it compulsory for safety belts to be fitted in all cars that are used by driving schools for the purpose of instruction.

The proposals on seat belts which my right hon. Friend had previously said would be circulated soon, will apply to the front seats of new cars used by driving schools as to those of other new cars. She does not propose to compel manufacturers to fit the belts as many drivers will prefer to choose them themselves.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will consider replacing the general 70 miles per hour speed limit with new and severe restrictions on the speed of vehicles driven by persons under the age of 25 years, and to extend such limits to persons under 25 years driving motorcycles.

No. Any justification for such measures would be different from that on which the 70 m.p.h. experiment is based.

asked the Minister of Transport what plans she has for the introduction of new speed limits for drivers under the age of 20 years.

None at present, though this will be among the points to be considered by the official Working Party which my right hon. Friend has set up to review all aspects of speed limit policy. The Working Party's recommendations will be considered by the National Road Safety Advisory Council, but this is a major study which will necessarily take time to complete.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will seek to amend the lighting regulations for lorries over a certain size in such a way that large lorries are required to have more lights on the rear, and, in particular, additional rear lights on the top corners as is the case on large lorries on the continent of Europe and in America.

My right hon. Friend's Working Party reviewing lighting regulations is considering this question, and is obtaining further information about experience abroad where lights are required on the top of large vehicles, before making recommendations.

asked the Minister of Transport what further consideration has been given to the introduction of the disc parking system in place of meters.

My right hon. Friend is not aware that any local authorities are thinking of replacing parking meters by parking disc system. Two towns, Harrogate and Devizes, are contemplating control through parking discs.

asked the Minister of Transport when she will make regulations prescribing the maximum noise level permitted on the road by various classes of motor vehicles, including motor cycles.

The matter is being considered by my right hon. Friend's Working Party on the construction and use regulations. Further roadside testing has to take place and I doubt whether my right hon. Friend will be in a position to make regulations this year.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she will introduce legislation to provide for the extension to all retired pensioners of facilities for travelling at reduced fares between prescribed hours on the London Transport system.

London is included in the review of the working of travel concessionary fares for old people which my right hon. Friend announced in reply to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Heywood and Royton (Mr. Barnett) on 4th May.

asked the Minister of Transport what revenue has been earned from parking meters installed in the Greater London area since they were first installed; what balance was left over after the payment of all expenses to provide and maintain off-street car parks; and what proportion of this balance has been used for this purpose.

The gross income from the date of installation until 31st March, 1965 was £3,185,561. After payment of all expenses £796,525 was available for off-street car parks. £392,713, about half of this balance, had been used for that purpose.

asked the Minister of Transport what arrangements are being made to accelerate progress on the completion of motorways so that 1,000 miles will be completed in the early 1970s.

About 550 miles are now either open to traffic or under construction. We expect on present plans to ensure completion of the remainder by the early 1970s.

asked the Minister of Transport what decisions have now been taken on the line for the southern by-pass Doncaster to Thorne, and the motorway to the Humber in the Goole area.

Draft schemes for Thorne and Doncaster southern by-passes are being prepared. As regards the rest of the motorway, my right hon. Friend is considering the views which local authorities put to her on 15th June.

asked the Minister of Transport whether the further tests of reflectorised material for carriageway markings undertaken by the Road Research Laboratory have been completed; and when the results will be available.

The Panel on Road Markings set up in January, 1965, will report soon on the markings for edges of motorway carriageways to the Director of Road Research. Existing instructions to agent authorities will be reviewed in the light of the Panel's conclusions.

asked the Minister of Transport to what extent it is the policy of her Department to specify reflectorised markings for lane lines and the edges of carriageways on motorways, trunk roads, and classified roads, respectively.

The policy is for all lane and edge of carriageway lines on motorways to be reflectorised. The Traffic Signs Manual issued last February advises on the use of reflectorised markings on other roads.

asked the Minister of Transport how many miles of motorways and trunk roads, respectively, have reflectorised carriageway markings; and what percentage of mileage these represent.

This information is not readily available and to obtain it would entail an inordinate amount of work.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will provide information concerning the lengths of the Ml motorway on which repairs have been in progress since the commencement of the 70 miles per hour speed limit experiment; and how many lanes have been closed.

Improvements and repairs have been made over about 31 miles of carriageway. Lane closures are restricted to lengths of one mile at intervals of not less than one mile. It is generally necessary to close two of the three lanes in a carriageway, except at peak traffic periods.

asked the Minister of Transport what are the total aggregate costs of repairs to the Ml up to the end of this year, including repairs estimated for during this period; and what proportion of the cost of these repairs is devoted to the reinforced concrete section of the motorway, as opposed to the soft-top section.

Improvements to bring the Ml motorway up to current standards account for the greater part of the expenditure on the major programme of repair and improvement now under way.The aggregate costofrepairs up to the end of this year will be about £2·075 million of which about £270,000 is appropriate to the concrete section.The final construction cost per lane-mile, including all projected repairs and improvements, is about the same for the asphalt section as for the concrete.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will have the system of economic costing of road accidents, including the economic cost of road casualties, revised, and the basis of costing promulgated in a single form.

Yes, subject to the outcome of a review now in hand.

asked the Minister of Transport, in view of the fact that the effect of the introduction of new traffic islands and lights has been to increase the delays and congestion of traffic at Meole Brace, Shrewsbury, what action she will now take.

I am looking into this and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will give a general direction, in the public interest, to the British Railways Board to consider the costs and advisability of making provision for the improvement of the rail load gauge to allow carriage of road semi-trailers and vehicles by rail on the proposed new electrification schemes.

No.

asked the Minister of Transport when, in the light of Her Majesty's Government's proposals for the development of the Borders, she will give her decision on the publication of the British Railway Board's proposal to withdraw passenger services from the Edinburgh-Hawick-Carlisle line.

I refer my hon. Friend to the Answer given yesterday to the hon. Member for Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles (Mr. David Steel).

asked the Minister of Transport if it is proposed to commence the extension of the Bakerloo tube line to Bromley, via Lewisham, before 1970.

In London Transport's view a lengthy extension of the Bakerloo line is unlikely to be practicable. The case for a shorter extension is among the possibilities being tested in the London Transportation Study.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will give a general direction, in the public interest, to the Railways Board to ensure that where redundant British Railways assets and stock become available for sale on the closure of railway stations, they will be publicly advertised and that tenders will be invited where appropriate.

No. This is a matter for the Railways Board.

asked the Minister of Transport what were the hours worked and duties performed during 1965 by the chairmen and by the other 9 members of the British Railways Board, respectively; and what expenses were paid in addition to their salaries.

The Chairman and the Members of the Board are responsible for managing the country's railway system and its ancillary activities. The Chairman directs this work. Their hours of work are dictated by the demands of the job. They are not paid allowances, but reasonable expenses incurred directly on the business of the Board are reimbursed from Board funds.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she is satisfied that the employment of four part-time members of the British Railways Board during 1965 was necessary; and what were the duties or work they carried out.

Yes. Under the Chairman, the part-time Members are responsible with the full-time Members for the formulation of the Board's policy.

asked the Minister of Transport when she expects to be able to forecast the capital expenditure on British Railways for the year 1967 and 1968.

I have nothing to add to the reply, in respect of all nationalised transport undertakings, which was given to the hon. Member on 14th June.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will give a general direction, in the public interest, to the British Railways Board, to take steps to amalgamate their police forces with the appropriate local forces in each area.

No. Such amalgamations, even if desirable, would not be possible without fresh legislation.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will give the total numbers employed in the railway workshops on 15th October 1964 and 1st June 1966, showing separately the totals for monthly salaried and weekly paid employees.

My right hon. Friend is informed by the British Railways Board that on 15th October, 1964, the total staff of 46,581 employed for railway workshops consisted of 6,269 salaried and 40,312 other staff; on 2nd June, 1966—the nearest convenient date to the one asked for—the total was 42,900, made up of 6,073 salaried and 36,827 other staff.

asked the Minister of Transport what proportion of the output of British Railways workshops in 1965 was represented by sales to other nationalised industries and private companies, respectively.

My right hon. Friend is informed by the British Railways Board that the proportion of the output of their workshops sold in 1965 to other nationalised industries and to private interests was ·016 per cent, and ·018 per cent, respectively.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she is aware of concern about the British Railways Board's proposal virtually to discontinue the direct rail link between Shrewsbury and London; and whether, in view of the effect that this action will have on the whole mid-Wales area, she will meet a deputation to hear protests and suggestions before taking a decision.

I understand that the proposed new Shrewsbury-London service, although it involves a change at Wolverhampton for most trains, will, in fact, be generally faster and more frequent than the present one. Such proposals are a matter for the Railways Board and any representations therefore should be addressed to them.

asked the Minister of Aviation what military aircraft have been purchased or ordered by India in the past three years from the United Kingdom.

It is not the practice to disclose detailed information concerning military equipment supplied to other countries.

asked the Minister of Aviation when Stornoway Airfield is to be handed over to the Ministry of Defence; and if he will make a statement regarding the arrangements being made to safeguard the employment and the status, respectively, of any employees who may be displaced from their present jobs.

No arrangements for transfer have so far been made. The second part of the Question does not therefore arise at present.

asked the Minister of Aviation what is the expected total cost of Glasgow Airport; how much of it will be met from Government sources; what payments have so far been made by the Exchequer; and what part of the annual income of the airport will be derived from Government funds.

The estimated costs are respectively: £5 million; £2·5 million; £4 million, of which £2·4 million has been repaid by the Glasgow Corporation; none.

asked the Postmaster-General what proposals he has to raise the weight limits for parcel post to at least double the present size with corresponding increases in dimensions as suggested by the Economic Development Committee for the Movement of Exports.

The possibility of allowing heavier parcels in the overseas service is being urgently examined, though my earlier inquiries suggest there is relatively little demand for this.

asked the Postmaster-General how many men and women, respectively, are now employed in the Post Office services in the Brighton area; how this has varied in the last few years; and how this compares with other similar areas.

The following table shows the numbers of staff employed in the Post Office services in the areas controlled by the Head Postmaster of Brighton, Bournemouth and Torquay over

asked the Postmaster-General why it has been decided to close the sub-post office at Messrs. Boots Limited in Western Road, Brighton, the main post office covering the shops and business premises in this central area and also the only other sub-post office in this area at Messrs. Cliffords in Preston Street on 1st August; and what will be the nearest post offices for this area now and the distances between each.

The offices are to close because the Sub-Postmasters have tendered their resignations. The nearest Post Offices are in Western Road, Victoria Road, Queens Road and Ship Street; these are all within a radius of about half a mile of the area in question.I am having urgent inquiries made into the possibilities of providing facilities to replace the closed offices and will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Postmaster-General what further action he is taking on pirate radio stations; and whether he will make a statement.

As the House already knows, it is the intention of the Government to introduce legislation against pirate radio stations as soon as practicable.

asked the Postmaster-General what action will be taken to eliminate the interference from foreign stations on television reception within the Parliamentary constituency of Chesterfield and elsewhere in the north Midlands area.

The problem of interference to television reception from continental stations at times during the summer months is a general one to which there is no short-term answer. The B.B.C. tells me that reception from its station at Holme Moss is generally satisfactory in the north Midlands, but is subject at times to this type of interference. Reception of a weaker signal from Sutton Coldfield is also possible in the area, and is less affected by such interference.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he is aware of the need to continue the ban on the export of meat to the Continent for at least two months after the end of the seamen's strike; and whether he will take action to ensure this.

The ban will be continued for as long as is necessary to deal with the situation caused by the seamen's strike. I cannot say now what this period will be.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to what extent it is Government policy to use Government money in financing foreign breeds of beef cattle for the purpose of beef production in this country.

It is the Government's policy that in any importation of breeding stock for beef production no final charge should fall on public funds save possibly to meet the requirements of a research programme.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what have been the additional weekly costs of imported bacon this year compared with the corresponding period of last year.

The average weekly value (c.i.f.) of bacon imports in the first four months of 1966 was £2·25 million as compared with £2·01 million in the corresponding period of 1965.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the visit to Russia of the Joint Parliamentary Secretary and on the conclusions he reached in comparing the Russian and British fishing industries, with respect to their scientific developments and their organisations for seagoing marketing distribution and export.

A fisheries mission led by myself and including officials, scientists and industry representatives visited the U.S.S.R., between 3rd and 17th September, 1965. The aim was to learn more about the undertakings and research institutions of the Soviet fishing industry and to exchange information on fishery matters.I am sending a copy of a report on the mission to my hon. and learned Friend.