asked the Minister of Public Building and Works how much of the £270·2 million spent by his Department in the financial year 1965–66 was spent in Scotland.

About £22 million was spent in Scotland out of a total of £215 million in the United Kingdom. The figure of £270·2 million includes work overseas.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works whether he has now studied the plan operated in Paris for the cleaning of privately- and publicly-owned buildings, details of which have been sent to him; and if he will put forward a similar scheme for London.

As I indicated to the House on 10th July, I am aware of the methods used in Paris and will consider them further in the course of discussions I am having with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Housing and Local Government.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works whether he will seek power to induce private institutions and local authorities to participate in a cohesive cleaning programme in selected areas of architectural importance, similar to that successfully operating in Paris.

I would refer my hon. Friend to my Answer today to a similar Question by the hon. Member for Tyne-mouth (Dame Irene Ward).

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the cost of the cleaning of Nelson's Column.

The estimated cost of cleaning is between £3,000 and £4,000. I would also refer my hon. Friend to my reply to his Question on 20th March.—[Vol. 743, c. 189.]

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the cost of the cleaning of the exterior of the Palace of Westminster.

The cost is of the order of £200,000, including the internal courtyards. I would also refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to a Question by the hon. Member for Sevenoaks (Sir J. Rodgers) on Monday 10th July.—[Vol. 750, c. 16.]

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of cleaning the exteriors of all the buildings in Whitehall not already schedule for cleaning;(2) what is his estimate of the cost of cleaning the exterior of the old War Office building.

The estimated costs of cleaning the exteriors of buildings for which I am responsible in Whitehall, and which are not already scheduled for cleaning, are

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the cost of cleaning the exterior of Burlington House.

The cost is estimated at £10,000. Considerable repairs to the stonework would also need to be carried out.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the cost of cleaning the exterior of the Tate Gallery.

The cost is estimated at about £8,000. At the same time as cleaning, repairs to the stonework would need to be carried out, and these are estimated to cost a further £3,000.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the cost of cleaning the exterior of Greenwich Hospital.

The cost is estimated at £70,000, including £3,000 for the cleaning this year of the Queen Anne Block.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is the estimated cost of cleaning the exterior of the British Museum; and whether he will make a special grant for this purpose.

The cost would be about £22,000. The programme which I announced in my Statement on 10th July will absorb all the money that can be made available for this purpose in 196768. I shall, however, consider the British Museum for inclusion in future programmes.

asked the Minister of Social Security whether, as part of her current review of the social services, she will consider the question of social security contributions and benefits for young men and women who are continuing full-time education; and if she will make a statement.

In considering the future development of the National Insurance Scheme I shall of course look at the implications for particular groups, such as students; but I have no statement to make at present.

asked the Minister of Social Security what is the average number of cases dealt with at each session of a medical appeal tribunal; and what is the average amount of time in minutes spent on the hearing of each case.

The average number of appeals and references decided per session is about 8 with an average time of about 20 minutes per case. In addition, tribunals deal with an average of about two applications for leave to review and applications for leave to appeal to the Commissioner on a point of law. Case papers are circulated several days beforehand to the tribunal Chairman and members who thus have an opportunity of studying them before a hearing.

asked the Minister of Social Security how many widows were refused unemployment benefit in 1966 because they had refused work offered them; and what investigations were conducted locally to ensure that the work offered to such women was suitable and not beyond their physical capacity.

I regret that the information asked for in the first part of the Question is not available. As regards the second part, unemployment benefit would not be refused unless the independent statutory authorities, who decide all claims for benefit, were satisfied on the facts of the individual case that the employment which had been refused was suitable.

asked the Minister of Social Security how many widows whose former husbands had already retired and had been drawing £2 10s. supplementary allowance for their wives, now do not qualify for widow's pension because they were under 50 years of age at the time of their husband's death.

I regret that the information requested is not available.

asked the Minister of Social Security how many widows have lost their pension on remarriage and subsequently failed to qualify for a pension although over 50 years of age because of the three-year marriage rule.

So far as the standard benefits of the national insurance scheme are concerned, widows in these circumstances can qualify for pension. I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which my right hon. Friend gave to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Pink) on 27th June.—[Vol. 749, c. 80.]

asked the Minister of Social Security what steps are taken by local offices of her Department to ensure that wives are aware that their husbands' cards are not being stamped due to ignorance, indifference, sickness or unemployment.

None. Nor would it be practicable to take such steps; but after the expired cards have been received in the Department steps are already taken to inform the husband of any deficiency in his contribution record. Credits would normally cover periods of non-stamping due to sickness or unemployment.

asked the Minister of Health if he will give details of how he proposes to ensure the anonymity of the nurses who may come forward to give evidence in connection with his inquiry into the allegations made in the book, 'Sans Everything'.

The form of the inquiries is at present being considered.

asked the Minister of Health what is the waiting period at Winchester Hospital and the Lord Mayor Treloar Hospital at Alton, for urgent and for non-urgent gynaecological operations.

Gynaecological operations are not performed at Lord Mayor Treloar Hospital, Alton; patients are referred to the Royal Hants County Hospital, Winchester where emergencies are admitted at once and other urgent cases within 2–3 weeks. For less pressing cases the waiting time may vary from 2 to 15 months.

asked the Minister of Health if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT the waiting period, in each hospital region, for urgent and for non-urgent gynaecological operations.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Woking (Mr. Onslow) on 12th July 1967.—[Vol. 750, c. 107.]

asked the Minister of Health what information he has regarding the pilot scheme for the representation of appellants before mental health review tribunals referred to in paragraph 68 of the 1965 Report of the Council on Tribunals.

I am aware that the Council on Tribunals is exploring this possibility.

asked the Minister of Health how many cases of successful resuscitation following the kiss of life treatment have been notified; and what steps have been taken to give the widest possible advice on this method of saving life.

The number of such cases is not known, as there is no requirement to notify them. The mouth-to-mouth method of resuscitation is taught by the voluntary first aid societies and is publicised by them. Most ambulance staff are trained to use it.

asked the Minister of Health how many cases of brain damage are known to have been caused by boxing in each period of five years since the last war.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister of Labour what progress he has made with finding the 24 workers who are losing their jobs at Royal Air Force, Faldingworth, alternative employment; and if he will make a statement.

The workers have been interviewed and we are approaching local employers on behalf of those who have asked for our help. Ten have said that they intend to retire.

asked the Minister of Labour (1) why he has decided not to set up a court of inquiry into the long-standing dispute at the works of Roberts Arundel Limited, Chestergate, Stockport;(2) whether he is aware that the longstanding dispute at Roberts Arundel Limited has led to the Stockport branch of the Amalgamated Engineering Union black-listing the supplies to, and the products of, Roberts Arundel Limited; and what action he now proposes to take to settle this dispute.

I have had several meetings with representatives of both sides in this dispute. In my view a court of inquiry would not help to bring about a settlement at this stage. I understand that there have been some instances of "blacking". I am continuing to keep in touch with developments and if it appears at any time that it would help if I were to intervene again, I will not hesitate to do so.

asked the Minister of Labour what results have been achieved by the Occupational Guidance Service for adults which he introduced in March 1966; and whether he has any plans for an expansion.

I am glad to say that this service, which was introduced as part of a wider programme of improvement of our employment services, has been a decided success. The eleven experimental units had interviewed over 13,000 workers by 12th June 1967. After consultation with my National Joint Advisory Council I have decided to expand the service, which will be more than doubled during the next year. Some of the existing units will be expanded and new centres will be opened in Edinburgh, Manchester, Sheffield, Preston, Coventry, Middlesbrough, Luton, Southampton, Chelmsford, Plymouth, Wolverhampton, Leicester and Derby.

asked the Minister of Labour what progress he has made with plans for introducing equal pay for women; and if he will make a statement.

I would refer my hon. Friend to my reply to the hon. Member for Halifax (Dr. Summerskill) on 10th July, 1967.—[Vol. 750, c. 63–4.]

asked the Minister of Labour what are the numbers of men and of women unemployed and the percentage unemployment rate for the most recent convenient date and for the same date in each of the previous five years for the Brechin, Montrose and Stonehaven employment exchange areas.

Following is the information:

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is now his estimate of the total cost of the Polaris base at Faslane; and how much expenditure will have been incurred up to 31st July.

£45 million and £32·5 million respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements he has made for the official opening of the Polaris base at Faslane.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will seek to grant pensions to those members of the Polish forces who were enrolled in Pioneer Corps by allied military authorities at the end of the war, subsequently reclassified as civilians and disbanded without discharge certificates, and therefore not classified as ex-Servicemen.

No. These men served in non-military labour units and are not eligible to receive Service pensions.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will seek to institute an inquiry into the serious loss of important industrial traffic to the railways which affects the lines serving the community and industries and the jobs of railwaymen, with power to call upon any body or persons, who are in a position to give evidence, and issue a report.

We see no need for such an inquiry. The Railways Board is making strenuous efforts, by the development of new techniques and services, to win back industrial traffic lost to rail and to offset the effects of declining output on major traffics such as coal and steel products.

asked the Minister of Transport whether, as a means of relieving pressure on the police, local licensing authorities and the courts, she will seek to institute a system of enforcement of the payment of road fund licences by means of a stick-on official notification of presentation of a road fund licence within a given period.

No. I have no reason to think that such notices would be particularly effective and investigation of the apparent offence would still be necessary on the present basis.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she will introduce an additional method of enforcing the payment of road fund licences by enabling the police and traffic wardens to stick on to windscreens of vehicles failing to show a licence a notice that such a licence must be produced and authenticated on the attached tear-off slip by a local postmaster, police station or licensing authority, who will return this to the appropriate licensing authority, and that failing this, within seven days an automatic fine will, subject to appeal, be imposed.

No. Apart from the difficulties of identifying and prosecuting offenders where the notices had not been cleared, it would not be practicable to determine a proper level for an automatic fine to be fair to all.

asked the Minister of Transport what consideration she has given to the representations regarding her Department's proposals for conurbation transport authorities made by the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association; and whether she will make a statement.

In framing my detailed proposals for passenger transport authorities I am taking account of the representations which the Association has already made to me. I have also recently told them that I would be happy to meet their representatives, along with those of the other bus operator associations, if they so wished, to discuss any further views they may have on major points of policy.

asked the Minister of Transport (1) what financial contributions are made annually to the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association by bus companies half or more than half controlled by the Transport Holding Company;(2) whether she will give a direction to the Transport Holding Company requiring them to ensure withdrawal from the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association of bus companies half-owned or controlled by the Transport Holding Company, in view of that association's current actions against her proposals for conurbation transport authorities;(3) whether she will give a direction to the Transport Holding Company that it shall prevent bus companies in which it has a controlling or half interest from participation or contribution of funds to the campaign against the proposed conurbation transport authorities by the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association.

None of the bus companies wholly-owned by the Transport Holding Company and only one in which they have a half but not a controlling interest is a member of the Passenger Vehicle Operators Association. In the circumstances a direction would not be appropriate.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will state a date for inauguration of any of her Department's proposed conurbation transport authorities; and if she will make a statement on how far detailed proposals have advanced.

My aim is to set up passenger transport authorities in the conurbations of Greater Manchester, Merseyside, the West Midlands and Tyneside as soon as I have obtained the necessary powers.I intend to publish a White Paper setting out in detail my proposals for the new authorities generally, before introducing legislation.

asked the Minister of Transport whether in her proposals for conurbation transport authorities she will seek to include the necessary powers to reopen railway lines that have been closed but would be valuable to the community and profitable on social cost/benefit grounds.

The question of what rail passenger services should be provided to meet local travel needs in the area of a passenger transport authority will, under my proposals, be a matter for the authority itself. If the provision of any such services can best be met by the reopening of a closed line I envisage this as essentially a matter for negotiation between the authority and the Railways Board.

asked the Minister of Transport if her attention has been drawn to the accident that took place on the M4 motorway at Newport, Monmouthshire, on 9th July, 1967; and if she will now take steps to ensure that central barriers are erected on this type of road.

In so far as the Question refers to the M4 motorway, and road safety, in Wales, this is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales. As for the general matter of providing barriers on the central reservation, I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Mr. Gresham Cooke) on 21st December, 1966.—[Vol. 738, c. 328–9.]

asked the Minister of Transport whether she is aware of the growing practice of dual and in some instances treble parking of vehicles in narrow streets and roads, thus impeding the free flow of traffic; and whether she will seek to provide that only single-line parking is to be allowed on any public highway with a width of 15 feet or less.

The control of double or treble banking of parked vehicles is a matter for which local authorities, and the police already have powers; we are not at present satisfied that there would be any advantage from trying to formulate general Regulations which cannot take account of local conditions.

asked the Minister of Transport how many former railway workshops are now being advertised for sale or to let; where these workshops are located; and for how long they have been without tenants.

I am informed by the British Railways Board that the former railway workshop at Darlington North Road, and parts of the former workshops at St. Helens and at Trent, near Nottingham, are now being advertised for sale or lease after previous attempts to dispose of them. These premises have been vacant since last year.

asked the Minister of Transport if she will give a general direction to the British Railways Board to disclose, in response to inquiries by hon. Members on constituency matters, information which is in its possession or is readily available; and if she will make a statement.

No. The Railways Board are always ready to assist hon. Members by supplying information which is not commercially confidential.

asked the Minister of Transport whether she will seek powers to set up a special inspectorate to inquire into, and to report direct to her, any major railway traffic problems raised by hon. Members, who require answers for constituency and parliamentary business, and to enable such an inspectorate to require persons and organisations to give any necessary information.

Such an arrangement is unnecessary, and would tend to undermine the responsibility of the Railways Board for day-to-day management. The Railways Board is always ready to help hon. Members who approach them on such matters.

asked the Minister of Technology what precise and detailed research is being done on the effects of sonic boom on the well-being of patients in hospitals and mental hospitals, on the health of animals, on glass-houses and windows in buildings of various kinds, including stained glass, and on the fabric of ancient buildings.

My Department and other Departments concerned will investigate any reports of adverse effects of sonic booms. We also have a programme of scientific research into the nature and effects of sonic bangs which bears on several of the problems mentioned.

asked the Minister of Technology what public reaction there has been so far to the current series of sonic-boom tests; since these tests are of a low intensity officially regarded as tolerable, what information on the probable public reactions to higher intensity tests he expects to obtain from them; and if it is his intention to initiate a series of higher-intensity tests, again without warning the public when and where they are to occur.

A number of complaints and inquiries have been received. The Government will have to decide whether higher intensity tests should be initiated in the light of the results of the current series. I prefer not to anticipate in detail the information which this series will provide about higher intensity tests, but valuable lessons should be learned.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what study he is making of ways in which technological developments in agricultural machinery can be transmitted more quickly to manufacturing industry.

I have been asked to reply.My Department has established an informal Consultative Group on which the major agricultural engineering interests in the United Kingdom are represented, to determine how the resources for research and development of Government establishments can best be utilised by the industry with a view to stimulating the application of advanced technology to its products.

asked the Minister of Technology whether he will make a statement about Government support for the Islander aircraft which is expected to enter service shortly.

I am glad to be able to say that the Islander project is proceeding very satisfactorily. The manufacturers plan to deliver the first 2 or 3 aircraft next month. Following a request from the company the Government has decided to extend by £300,000 the £250,000 interest bearing loan about which the Minister of Aviation informed the House on 19th October 1966. My Department is of course giving the manufacturers technical advice and help and will be closely associated with their sales efforts at home and abroad.—[Vol. 734, c. 41.]

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proposals he has for improving public service pensions.

I would refer my hon. Friend to my speech on the Public Service and Armed Forces Pensions Commission Bill on 3rd February, 1967. —[Vol. 740, c. 989–90.]

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps have been taken to obtain from all authorised dealers in gold coins the names and addresses of those to whom they sold gold sovereigns in more that numismatic quantities in the 12 months preceding the introduction of Statutory Instrument, 1966, No. 438.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs when the Robens Commission on the future of the Maltese economy is going to report; and whether their report will be published.

The report of the Joint Mission on Malta will be formally handed to the Government of Malta and the Government of the United Kingdom on 18th July. The question of its publication is a matter which will have to be decided in consultation with the Malta Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs what effect the closing of the Suez Canal is having on the activity of Malta Dockyard; whether employment in the Dockyard is affected; and what steps he is proposing to take to assist the Dockyard.

In common with other dockyards in the Mediterranean, the Malta Dockyard has suffered a shortage of work as a result of the closing of the Suez Canal; I understand that this has not resulted in any dismissals yet; we have decided to allocate the next refit of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker Wave Ruler to the Malta Dockyard. This refit is due to start in August and is expected to take a month, during which time it will give employment for up to 500 men.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what study he has made of the list of over 60 food prices which have increased in a wide range, details of which have been sent to him, including Kraft cheese products, Armour corned beef and Carr's chocolate biscuits; and whether he will refer these increases to the National Board for Prices and Incomes.

Of these price increases, 7 had been notified and approved under the Early Warning System; 52 relating to various sizes and varieties of cheese made by one firm are being examined under the constant watch procedure, and the remainder relate to imported foods or to items which are not of economic significance.My right hon. Friend the First Secretary of State and I will not hesitate to consider a reference to the National Board for Prices and Incomes should this at any time appear desirable.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether, in connection with the present controlled use of cyclamates as artificial sweeteners in soft drinks, and the consideration which he is giving to the possible further use of such artificial sweeteners in foodstuffs, he has requested the manufacturers of cyclamates to satisfy him that as a result of research and technological development it will be possible to ensure that the consumption of cyclamates will not result in toxic cyclohexamine being left as a residual product in persons consuming them; and with what result.

Research data on the metabolism of cyclamates and the incidence of cyclohexylamine were put before the Food Additives and Contaminants Committee for their appraisal and I am now studying their Report.