asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, if he will prohibit the importing of meat from countries where the humane slaughter of animals is not enforced; and which are those countries, according to the latest information available to his Department.

No. Definitions of humane slaughter differ so that it would be invidious to list countries where humane slaughter is not practised, but in fact the very great majority of our supplies do come from slaughterhouses whose practices can reasonably be described as humane.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, whether he will consider having an office for the Meat and Livestock Commission in Mid-Wales.

It is for the Commission themselves to decide how best to organise their business, but I understand that they are likely to have offices in Wales for the staff operating there.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, how many representations he has had as to the ineffectiveness of the sheep dips at present available because they afford little protection either against blow-fly or lice; what reply he has sent; and whether he will make a statement.

The only representation received since the organochlorine dips were withdrawn from sale in January, 1966 related to complaints following the 1966 dipping season. From inquiries made it appeared that the difficulties were due to failure to carry out the manufacturers' directions and a proper dipping procedure.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, how many notifications of price increase have been made to his Department to the latest convenient date; how many have been rejected and how many approved; what is the average price increase of those approved; and whether he will make a statement.

Between 20th July, 1966 and 13th May, 1968 476 proposals for price increases have been examined by my Department under the early warning system. Of these, 175 have been rejected, withdrawn or modified and the remainder accepted as justifiable. It is not possible to give the average price increase.It would be wrong, however, to judge the success of the early warning system by these figures. Manufacturers are aware of the rigorous scrutiny my Department gives to proposed price increases, and the great majority only make proposals when they believe them to be well-founded.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what plans he has to enable milk retailers to make delivery charges to cover increases in costs due to the implementation of the recommendations of the Report of the National Board for Prices and Incomes in respect of the remuneration of milk distributors.

No recommendation so far implemented will increase the costs of any milk retailer.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many farm holdings have been amalgamated in pursuance of his present policy thereon; and how much compensation has been paid out for such amalgamations.

In England and Wales we have approved eight proposed amalgamations, involving 14 outgoers, between 31st October, 1967 when the Farm Structure Schemes started and 30th April, 1968. One outgoer's grant of £1,364 has been paid and these approvals are expected to result in the payment to outgoers of a further £10,863 in grants and £1,980 a year in annuities. We are now considering over 500 applications from intending amalgamators and nearly 700 applications from prospective out-goers.In Northern Ireland in the same period 14 amalgamations have been approved which are expected to result in outgoers' grants of £3,400 and annuities of £1,920 a year.In addition to these payments to out-goers, there will be grants to help the amalgamators meet the incidental expenses of amalgamation and the cost of remodelling works. These are estimated to amount to £29,636 in England and Wales and £21,455 in Northern Ireland in respect of the amalgamations approved in the first six months of the Schemes.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he proposes following the publication of the Worth Committee on the Bacon Curing Industry.

As I announced in reply to the hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne (Dr. John Dunwoody) on 9th May, the Report of the Worth Committee will be taken fully into account by the Government in the review of the stablilisation arrangements for the bacon curing industry which is proposed. But many of the Committee's recommendations are directed primarily to the industry itself for action.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has had and what reply he has sent regarding the dumping of dairy products in the United Kingdom.

I have been made aware of the concern of the industry over the situation in the dairy products market. Our officials are discussing the position with representatives of the industry, more especially in regard to cheese.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied that the present level of potato imports is not injurious to home producers; and if he will make a statement.

There have been no imports of main crop potatoes this season, only imports of early potatoes, which meet a different kind of demand. The home grower is protected against them during the home marketing season by a duty on supplies from non-Commonwealth sources which is at a level of £9 6s. 8d. per ton from 16th May to 30th June.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, for what reasons he refuses to appoint in cases of foot-and-mouth compensation disputes an arbitrator from an area which has experienced infection from foot-and-mouth disease.

We do not refuse to accept arbitrators from an area which has experienced foot-and-mouth disease, when suitable persons are available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether in view of the small acreage of field beans grown in Scotland, he will extend the present scheme of grants for break crops to cover other crops more suitable to Scottish conditions.

My right hon. Friend is prepared to consider proposals on their merits. The present intention, however, is to confine the grant to break crops in need of special encouragement.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland in view of the altered composition of local authorities in Scotland, what steps he proposes to take to provide home rule for Scotland in the immediate future.

I am not clear what relevance the composition of local authorities has to this issue.

asked the President of the Board of Trade, if he will now announce the composition and terms of reference of the inquiry on the siting of the third London airport.

We hope to make an announcement soon.

asked the President of the Board of Trade to what extent imports have increased in volume and in value since devaluation; and what new initiatives he is taking to reverse this trend.

Comparing the middle quarters of 1967 with the five months since devaluation, the volume of imports increased by 10 per cent. and their value by 22 per cent. I am confident that the many measures already taken both to secure the necessary transfer of resources into export and import-saving industries and promote industrial efficiency will put the balance of payments on a sound footing.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will investigate the circumstances under which, following devaluation, imports of cotton cloth from Canada in the first quarter of 1968 showed a three-fold increase as compared with the first quarter of 1967, and a two-fold increase as compared with the quarterly averages for the whole of 1967.

I understand that imports of cotton textiles from Canada in the first three months of last year were reduced as a result of a long strike in the Canadian industry. The position before devaluation was that some cloths made in Canada were cheaper than similar cloth made in this country and it is probable that a lot of the cloth imported from Canada this year was contracted for at pre-devaluation prices.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to reduce the United Kingdom's adverse balance of trade with Canada; and if he will make a statement.

We are doing all that we can to encourage and increase exports to Canada. Following the three major promotional efforts last year, our aim for 1968 is to consolidate the impact of these and help exporters to exploit the new opportunities created by devaluation, through support for missions, store promotions and the participation of British manufacturers in a number of trade fairs and by the assistance that can be given by British Government officers in Canada to individual exporters.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when he proposes to introduce legislation to amend the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894; and if he will make a statement.

Following the submission of the Report of the Court of Inquiry under Lord Pearson's chairmanship I have discussed the recommendations for revision of the relevant parts of the Merchant Shipping Acts with all sections of the shipping industry and also with the fishing industry. A large measure of agreement has been reached and my Department has made good progress in preparations for legislation which will be introduced as soon as possible.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will now reply to the representation made to him recently by the hon. and learned Member for Aberdeen, North on behalf of the Aberdeen Fish Curers and Merchants Association, about the eligibility of equipment used in fish filleting for investment grants, which he stated in his letter of 23rd April was then under consideration.

I am sorry that I am not yet able to reply to my hon. and learned Friend but will do so as soon as possible.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will state the sterling value of United Kingdom exports to, and imports from, Finland since Finland became an associate member of the European Free Trade Association.

Finland became an associate member on 26th June, 1961; the figures from 1st July, 1961 are as follows:

UNITED KINGDOM TRADE WITH FINLAND
£ million
		Imports c.i.f.	Exports f.o.b.	Re-exports f.o.b.
July—December
1961	…	52·8	26·0	0·5
Year
1962	…	88·7	54·7	0·9
1963	…	98·6	53·8	0·8
1964	…	116·0	64·7	1·0
1965	…	116·2	71·9	1·1
1966	…	122·9	75·6	1·4
1967	…	129·9	71·3	1·3

asked the President of the Board of Trade what arrangements he has made to hold further bilateral discussions with the Norwegian Government concerning the expansion of aluminium smelting in the United Kingdom.

The E.F.T.A. Ministerial Meeting held in London last week invited the Governments of the United Kingdom and Norway to hold further bilateral talks and I have, therefore, arranged to visit Oslo on Tuesday, 21st May for a discussion with the Norwegian Minister of Commerce and Shipping.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what hazards to navigation continue to exist as a consequence of the partial removal of the obstructions between Horse Sand Fort and Southsea Beach and between No Mans Land Fort and Seaview, respectively; which parts of these areas are dangerous to small craft at high water ordinary spring tides; which parts at low water ordinary spring tides; and how they are marked.

The obstructions existing between Southsea Beach and Horse Sand Fort and between No Mans Land Fort and Seaview are marked by piles or a dolphin and are as shown on Admiralty Charts and as published annually in a local Notice to Mariners which is issued by the Queen's Harbour Master, Portsmouth and has a wide local distribution. The obstructions are dangerous to all craft at all states of the tide, although there are two clearly defined boat passages in the northern section.We intend to remove all the obstructions between No Mans Land Fort and Seaview this summer.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will alter the regulation so that Army wives, entitled to receive cheap milk for their babies while stationed in Germany, can be issued with equivalent milk coupons when returning home on leave from Germany.

Army wives on leave in this country from Germany can obtain cheap milk by using coupons issued by the Ministry of Social Security.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the results of research into brucellosis carried out on his behalf by the Microbiological Research Centre at Porton.

As my hon. Friend was told in reply to his Question on 11th March, 1968, the Microbiological Research Establishment has been studying for a number of years the basis of immunisation against brucellosis and the disease syndrome, and is developing a purified vaccine for man. No research into brucellosis has been carried out on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food by the Establishment.—[Vol. 760, c. 231.]

asked the Secretary of State for Defence, what research is being done for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on foot-and-mouth disease by the Microbiological Research Establishment at Porton.

None directly on behalf of that Department, but the Establishment has been making studies for and in collaboration with the Animal Virus Research Institute into the survival of the foot-and-mouth disease virus in the atmosphere, the meteorological conditions favourable to its transmission and into the possibility of its transmission to animals by way of infected milk tankers.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will hold a public inquiry into the permanent injury of Guardsman Stefan Szulimowska, aged 19 years, during his training at Pir-bright Camp, when a mortar smoke bomb overshot the area hitting the guardsman as he was sitting in a trench; and why no explanation was given his parents at the time.

No. There are statutory rules governing the inquiries which are to be held into accidents of this kind, and they have been fully observed.As regards the second part of my hon. Friend's Question, on their first visit to their son in hospital Mr. and Mrs. Szulimowski were met by an officer who had been engaged in the exercise and was able to give them a first-hand account of the accident.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if, as Guardsman Stefan Szulimowska of Salford sustained a compound skull fracture and the loss of the use of an arm and leg in a training accident, he will be paid special compensation by the Army above the £7 12s. a week he is now receiving from the Ministry of Social Security.

No.The assessment and payment of compensation under the Royal Warrant in a case of injury attributable to military service is entirely a matter for my right hon. Friend the Minister of Social Security.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he is now able to give the estimated cost to Government funds of the proposed radar research station at Orfordness.

In order to meet the wishes of the local authorities we have decided to change our plans for transporation of materials to the site, and fresh tenders are to be invited for the construction work. I am unable to give a firm estimate at this stage.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he took to alert the British electronics industry to the requirements of the American Government for equipment in the Anglo-American radar establishment at Orfordness.

None, because U.S. industry had already carried out research and development work on this type of equipment for the U.S. Government.As I said in reply to the hon. Member for St. Albans (Mr. Goodhew) on 29th February, 1968, the radio equipment for this research station is being provided and paid for by the United States Government.—[Vol. 759, c.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the benefits payable to widows or other dependants of Royal Air Force aircrew, both officers and airmen, killed on flying duty.

The widow of a Royal Air Force officer or airman who has been killed on flying duty (or in any other circumstances due to service) is normally eligible for:

(a) From the Ministry of Social Security, a widow's war pension under the War Pensions Scheme. This pension is normally at a higher rate than widows' benefits under the general social security schemes;

(b) From Defence (Air) Votes, a gratuity and, in some circumstances, a pension. The gratuity is based on the length of service completed by the husband at the date of his death and related to the type of commission or engagement on which he was serving. The pension is paid if the husband would have qualified for retired pay or pension at the time of his death.

Both the Service pension and the war pension carry additions for eligible children, and a rent allowance may be payable with the war pension.A widow is invited to submit claims for these awards to enable her precise entitlements to be established and payment to be made with the least possible delay.Special arrangements have been made to ensure that the widow is not left without funds during the period immediately following her husband's death. A temporary allowance, related to the husband's emoluments, is paid from Defence (Air) Votes for the first thirteen weeks without formal claim. A widow may also receive benefit for her children, and in some cases for herself, during this period from the Ministry of Social under either the War Pensions Scheme or the National Insurance Scheme.The foregoing relates to benefits from public funds. In addition, when an officer or airman has contributed to the R.A.F. Dependants Fund a pre-nominated dependant is eligible for a grant on his death which is currently £400. Dependants may also benefit from private life insurance policies. Aircrew are advised to take out such policies and a contribution is made from Defence (Air) Votes towards the extra cost of premiums covering Service flying risks.I am writing to my hon. Friend to give him fuller details.

asked the Minister of Transport what plans he has for improving the A5 trunk road between Dordon and Fazeley.

The improvement to dual carriageway of the length of A5 between Dordon and Quarry Hill was completed in 1967. The needs of the trunk road traffic from there to Fazeley are being considered in relation to the highway network for the expanded town of Tamworth.

asked the Minister of Transport what expenditure is at present being incurred on further investigations in the Merstham area, in connection with the proposed routes for the M23 and the M25.

About £13,000.

asked the Minister of Transport when he expects a decision will be reached concerning the proposed routes of the M23 and M25, and their intersection.

Later this month.

asked the Minister of Transport why his Department allowed changes to be made to one of the overhead signs on the elevated section of the M4 near the exit to the South Circular road at midday on Thursday, 11th April, 1968; whether he is aware of the congestion which was thereby caused on the east-bound carriageway; and whether he will make a cost benefit study to optimise the timing of such operations.

The delay to traffic was caused by the installation of experimental traffic surveillance equipment on a gantry over the eastbound carriageway. Work of this nature needs to be done in off-peak traffic periods. Sunday work is generally limited to operations which require the complete closure of a carriageway and involves additional costs. In this particular case the acquisition of labour would have been more difficult because of the holiday period. Where it is appropriate to do so the Department arrange for work to be carried out on weekdays between peak traffic periods. Maunday Thursday was chosen for this particular work because traffic is usually well below average just before Easter.Our engineers understood from the manufacturers, who carried out the work, that the equipment would be installed in half an hour. In fact, the work proved to be more complicated than had been envisaged and took one and a half hours to complete. We regret the delay which was thereby caused to traffic.We do not propose to make a cost benefit study of these operations. Conditions vary tremendously from site to site. Site features, time of day, likely traffic flow and weather are among those items which are taken into consideration in order to minimise delays to traffic. In our view this is sufficient.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has now received the separate accounts of the Sheffield parking meter scheme for the last current year; and whether it has made a surplus.

No. Local authorities are not required to submit these accounts to my right hon. Friend.

asked the Minister of Transport what estimate he has made of the saving of administrative cost, expressed in terms of shillings per pound of parking meter revenue, on the basis of allowing unlimited meter feeding whilst at the same time making any necessary adjustment to meter charges so as to ensure that about 10 per cent. of meters are free during normal peak periods.

We have made no such estimate. Meter feeding defeats one main purpose of many parking meter schemes in that it reduces the turnover

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE ON PARKING METER SCHEMES
				Revenue	Expenditure	Surplus
				£	£	£
To 31st March, 1968
Manchester C.B.C.	…	…	…	549,200	356,600	192,600
To 31st March, 1967
Westminster C.C.	…	…	…	3,851,491	2,411,375	1,440,116
Camden L.B.C.	…	…	…	857,624	608,266	249,358
City of London	…	…	…	466,266	332,427	133,839
Tower Hamlets L.B.C.	…	…	…	15,496	21,379	Nil
Islington L.B.C.	…	…	…	119,642	164,157	Nil
Hackney L.B.C.	…	…	…	85,653	93,402	Nil
Croydon L.B.C.	…	…	…	231,340	200,585	30,755
Greenwich L.B.C.	…	…	…	62,219	80,122	Nil
Kingston-upon-Thames R.B.C.	…	…	…	124,030	107,291	16,739
(The schemes in Redbridge, Kensington and Chelsea and Merton are recent and the first figures will be those for the period ending 31st March, 1968.)

asked the Minister of Transport if he will list those local authorities now operating parking meter schemes, or other on-street parking schemes earning a revenue from parking charges, indicating which of them have submitted accounts to him; and if he will in each case tabulate the revenue, expenditure, and surplus of the scheme.

The local authorities operating parking meter schemes or other on-street parking schemes earning a revenue are as follows:

Birmingham	Liverpool
Brighton	Luton
Bristol	Maidstone
Bury St. Edmunds	Manchester
Cambridge	Merton
Camden	Newcastle
City of London	Plymouth
Croydon	Redbridge
Greenwich	Southampton
Hackney	Southend-on-Sea
Hull	Sheffield
Islington	Tower Hamlets
Kensington and Chelsea	Westminster
Kingston-upon-Thames	Wolverhampton
Leeds	Worthing.

Local authorities are not required to submit accounts in respect of their schemes to my right hon. Friend. However, the City of Manchester have sent figures relating to their parking meter scheme as at 31st March, 1968 and the Greater London Council have made available information supplied to them by the London Boroughs showing revenue and expenditure on the London schemes as at 31st March, 1967 as follows:

asked the Minister of Transport if he will direct that some of the £1 million he has allocated to a road safety campaign should be expended on promoting the use of reflective safety number plates, in view of the fact that these plates are now in use in accordance with the Road Transport Lighting Act, 1967, and have been a definite aid to road safety.

No. The subjects in the opening stages of the campaign are those which are expected to produce the largest reductions in casualties, or have already proved their road safety value.

asked the Minister of Transport whether his recently announced new campaign for road safety will include special provisions for the observance of the law on the obtaining and holding of a certificate of road worthiness of vehicles where appropriate.

No. The subjects in the opening stages of the campaign are those which are expected to produce the largest reductions in casualties. The vehicle testing requirement has already been well publicised, and is still advertised by posters in garages, post offices etc.

asked the Minister of Health what is the estimated starting date for the building of the proposed new Colchester and District General Hospital; and what is the target date for its completion.

The scheme is in the first group which, on present plans, it is hoped to start in the period after 1971–72. It will take about four years to build.

asked the Minister of Health how many doctors were employed in the National Health Service as general practitioners, consultants, junior hospital doctors, and other appointments, respectively, at the latest convenient date.

There were 19,863 doctors providing full general medical services at 1st January, 1968.There were 9,015 consultants, 2,713 other senior hospital doctors (i.e. senior hospital medical officers with and without allowances, medical assistants, senior registrars and other senior staff), 10,819 junior hospital doctors in the grades registrar and below, and 4,606 part-time medical officers employed in the Hospital Service at 30th September 1967.In addition, there were over 3,000 public health medical officers in the Health Services provided by local authorities at 30th September, 1967.All the figures relate to England and Wales. Some doctors work in more than one branch of the Health Service.

asked the Minister of Health, what response the Registrar General has had to the questionnaire he sent to selected people on the 10 per cent. sample census, asking if they would voluntarily give detailed information about their earnings and other information about their total income for the financial year 1966–67.

Of some 20,000 questionnaires sent out, 63 per cent. were returned completed. About 10 per cent. were returned because the addressee could not be traced.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales, what plans he has to set up a Welsh Water Resources Board to work in conjunction with the existing Water Resources Board.

Ministerial responsibilities in the field of water conservation now lie, as regards Wales, with my right hon. Friend. In the discharge of these responsibilities he will continue to be advised by the Water Resources Board, which has an unrivalled knowledge and expertise which it would be wasteful and indeed impracticable to duplicate; and, on matters of particular relevance to Wales, by the Welsh Committee of the Board. My right hon. Friend has no plans for the setting up of a separate Water Resources Board for Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity, what proportion of the 15,000 immigrants in Southall are currently unemployed.

The number of Commonwealth immigrants registered as unemployed at the Southall Employment Exchange on 6th May, was 221. Information is not available on what proportion this is of those living in the area.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity, what she estimates will be the percentage change in average weekly earnings in real terms during the 18 months following 31st July, 1968; and what was the corresponding change between 20th July, 1966 and 31st December, 1967.

It is estimated that between July, 1966 and December, 1967 average weekly earnings rose by between 2 and 3 per cent. more than retail prices. It is not the policy of the Government to publish forward estimates of this kind.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity when she will appoint the members of the Distributive and Retail Training Board; and if she will include members who have recent practical experience of these trades.

I hope to appoint the members of the Distributive Industry Training Board by July after consultation with appropriate organisations in the industry. The membership will include persons who have had practical experience of these trades.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what experience the recently appointed Chairman of the Distribution and Retail Training Board has of these trades.

After consultations with representative organisations I decided that a chairman drawn from outside distribution would be more acceptable to the industry as a whole than a person identified with a particular sector of these trades.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity if she is now able to announce the result of the review of classifications for the purposes of the selective employment tax.

My right hon. Friend is proposing shortly to lay an Order giving effect to changes which will remove certain anomalies in the present system of payments under the Selective Employment Payments Act, 1966.The first change will make slaughterhouses in the private sector eligible for payments under Section 1 of the Act where they are not already so eligible. Local authority slaughterhouses already receive repayments of the tax under Section 4 of the Act.The second change will be to make eligible for payments under Section 1 the activity of testing manufactured goods where carried out on behalf of a manufacturer to ascertain whether the goods meet statutory requirements. This will remove an anomaly in the field of testing.Thirdly, the Order will simplify the administrative arrangements for payment of refunds to local authorities and to charities.The draft Order, which will be subject to approval by Resolution of each House of Parliament, will be laid before the Whitsun recess.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish more detailed returns showing the amount and composition of the country's invisible earnings.

Detailed information is published annually in the Balance of Payments Pink Book and quarterly in Economic Trends. It is hoped to publish further detail this year, including separate figures on the contribution of banking and insurance.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total sum spent on display advertising in Welsh language and English language newspapers in the financial year 1967–68.

Expenditure in 1967–68 by Government Departments on the purchase of space for display advertising in newspapers and magazines was approximately £5,188,000. Of this about £33,600 was spent on newspapers published in Wales, including £1,050 in Welsh language publications.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the annual gross amounts per head invested in National Savings in Wales in each of the last five years.

Year ending 31st March:

					£	s.	d.
1964	…	…	…	…	24	2	8
1965	…	…	…	…	26	13	8
1966	…	…	…	…	25	7	4
1967	…	…	…	…	31	16	10
1968	…	…	…	…	30	18	7

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what was the total money accruing to the Revenue from the sale of matches in the financial years 1964–65, 1965–66, 1966–67 and 1967–68; and what were the rates per box at which these were collected;(2) what is the current taxation per box on matches imported from European Free Trade Association countries;(3) what is the current taxation per box on matches imported from Commonwealth countries;

From September, 1963, until the present, the match duty has been charged at the rate of 13s. 9d. per 7,200 matches on matches made in the United Kingdom and on matches of E.F.T.A. origin, and at the rate of 14s. 5d. per 7,200 matches on other matches, including those from Commonwealth countries. The average contents of a box of matches have varied during this period, but for a box containing 50 matches these rates would be equivalent to 1·15d. a box and 1·2d. a box respectively.The revenue receipts have been as follows:

			£ million
1964–65	…	…	10·64
1965–66	…	…	10·31
1966–67	…	…	9·70
1967–68	…	…	9·73 (provisional)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer in which Departments is the head of the Accountant General's Division a qualified accountant.

None. The nature of most Departmental work does not make professional accountancy qualifications essential, but professional advice is always available when required.

asked the Postmaster General why he has not given the percentage thereon represented by each of the price rises announced by him on 10th April.

Full details of all the old and new charges (not all of which were increases) have already been circulated in the OFFICIAL REPORT. It is open to any hon. Member to calculate the differences as percentages if he wishes. In any case, many of the changes could not be expressed in that form because the basis of charging has changed, and like is not being compared with like.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is yet in a position to give a decision on the request by the Glasgow magistrates for additional police powers to deal with the carrying of offensive weapons.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what further steps he is now taking to improve the police manpower situation.

In the four months ended 30th April, total manpower available to the police has gone up by 210 of whom 109 are police officers. My right hon. Friend has the situation constantly under review but the first essential is to make the most effective use of available manpower.

asked the Minister of Social Security what progress is being made in her Department with the introduction of electronic data processing equipment to facilitate the handling of routine transactions, the upkeep of records, and for other purposes.

My Department has made use of electronic data processing techniques for many years.Computers are currently used for keeping the records of graduated contributions, for statistical work and for pay. Work in progress will enable them to be used for the calculation and payment of short-term National Insurance benefits, for the administration of pensions and family allowances, and for accounting purposes.

asked the Minister of Social Security what is the total number of people now regularly receiving special supplementary benefits.

On 23rd April, 1968, the most recent date for which figures are available, 2,584,000 persons were receiving regular weekly payments of supplementary benefit under the Ministry of Social Security Act.

asked the Minister of Technology if he is satisfied that the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority steam generating heavy water reactor on offer to Imatran Voima, Finland, is both technically and commercially fully competitive with reactors on offer from other countries; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. The United Kingdom Energy Authority and myself are completely confident that the steam generating heavy water reactor is technically and commercially competitive with other reactor systems on offer in Finland. In a commercial competition, we are not, of course, in a position to know details of offers made to Imatran Voima by other countries.

asked the Minister of Technology what Her Majesty's Government and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority are doing to ensure that the Finnish Government make their choice of nuclear reactors for Imatran Voima on grounds of technical and commercial merit.

In August, 1967, before undertaking the preparation of this tender for the Finnish nuclear power station, the Authority sought and received the assurance of the Finnish Government that the only criteria to be adopted in the selection of the successful tenderer would be commercial and technical merit. During recent discussions with the Finnish Foreign Minister I was assured that this position still obtains.