asked the Minister of Public Building and Works, in view of the high cost of conventional grass cutting methods, to what extent he has considered the use of modern methods of grounds maintenance, such as the application of growth retarders, on the large areas for which he is responsible.

Extensive experiments have already been carried out by my Ministry on the use of growth retarders both at home and overseas. More work will be necessary before any final conclusions can be drawn. I agree with my hon. Friend as regards the financial importance of this subject and it is being dealt with accordingly.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he is now able to announce his plans for further cleaning of buildings within his responsibility.

I intend to continue with the cleaning programme at the Tower of London and at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. In addition, I shall be making a start this year on the Old War Office, beginning with the Whitehall façade. I also hope to clean Gwydyr House in Whitehall. In Edinburgh a start will be made on the Old Register House.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what progress is being made with the development of noise suppressors to road drilling machines; and what steps are being taken to ensure their use.

The manufacturers are making good progress in developing quieter concrete-breaking equipment and I am examining the means and practicability of ensuring the use of noise suppressors.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works whether he will consider in due course curtaining the great windows of the Banqueting Hall in Whitehall.

I agree with the view of my advisers, that curtains would be out of place.

asked the Attorney General if he will refer to the Director of Public Prosecutions the illegal employment of eight children in the making of a television commercial at the Mayfair Theatre on 29th April.

If my hon. Friend will give me particulars of the employment to which he refers, I will have the matter investigated.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity whether she will now announce the date when Her Majesty's Government intend to implement their declared policy of introducing equal pay for equal work.

I have nothing to add at present to the reply given to the hon. Member for Tynemouth (Dame Irene Ward) on 13th May, 1968.—[Vol. 764, c. 175.]

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what has been the result of her further inquiries into the case of the man who had received £11 a week unemployment pay, earned £10 a week on the side, had not worked for two years, and had no intention of working and made excuses to would be employers to make himself unsuitable; and what steps she now proposes to take to stop this type of abuse.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers he was given on 25th March and 13th May. No one has been able to identify or provide evidence against any person in this alleged case of fraud.—[Vol. 761, c. 178–9; Vol. 764, c. 176–7.]

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity if she will make a statement concerning her recent meeting with representatives of the Clerical and Administrative Workers Union and the Association of Scientific and Technical Workers regarding the present dispute with the National Steel Corporation.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what discussions she has now had with the British Steel Corporation about the non-recognition of the Clerical and Administrative Workers Union as a negotiating body for a substantial number of clerks employed in the steel industry, following her meeting with officials of the union on the subject of the dispute.

Representatives of the Association of Scientific, Technical and Managerial Staffs, and the Clerical and Administrative Workers Union on 27th May expressed their unions' strong resentment at the Corporation's decision not to recognise them for national negotiations.My right hon. Friend has since discussed the problem with the British Steel Corporation and also with representatives of six organisations which the Corporation have recognised for national negotiations. My right hon. Friend can at present see no solution that would be satisfactory to all parties concerned, nor any immediate initiative which would be likely to help. We are keeping a close watch on the situation and will intervene again if this will help.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity if she will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table showing the average increase in prices in each of the nationalised industries in the last five financial years, and the comparable figures for food, housing, clothing, and services.

Yes.Following are the figures:—

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity whether she has completed her consideration of the report of the Advisory Committee on the Cost-of-Living Index; and if she will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend proposes to make a statement on the report at the time of publication which is expected to be about the end of this month.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity whether she will now seek to establish, arising from her consultations with the Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress a code of conduct for the closure of factories resulting from rationalisation and reorganisation.

A booklet prepared in the light of these consultations and approved by the National Joint Advisory Council will shortly be published.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity how many men earn less than £12 10s. 0d. a week as a basic wage; and how much she estimates it would cost to implement such a minimum wage.

Exact information is not available, but approximate estimates based on the Family Expenditure Survey suggest that about a million men are earning less than 6s. 3d. per hour exclusive of overtime premium, which is equivalent to £12 10s. 0d. for a 40 hour week. The direct cost of increasing the rates of these men to 6s. 3d. for the first 40 hours would be something over £100 million a year. This estimate makes no allowance for any increase in overtime rates or for the possible repercussions on the pay of other employees.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity, what projections have been made from the most recent available data of the proportions of the total male and of the total female population of Great Britain over school-leaving age that will be ready to engage in gainful occupation in 1970, 1980, 1990 and 2000.

The most recent projections of the Working Population, which are currently being revised, were those published in the November, 1966 issue of the Ministry of Labour Gazette.The totals expressed as percentages of the forecast total populations over school leaving age are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity, if she has now received replies from all the bodies she consulted with regard to new health, safety and welfare legislation; and if she will make a statement.

288 bodies have re-plied and a further 29 have said they will be doing so shortly. No replies have been received from the remaining 217.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what was the cost of the British exhibit at the exhibition at Strasbourg to celebrate the signing of the European Water Charter; and on what basis the photographs were selected.

The cost was £700. The selection of photographs was approved by the Water Resources Board, who are responsible for water conservation in Britain, and the exhibit illustrated their work.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what was the cost to his Department of the repatriation of British citizens abroad in 1967 or any-recent convenient period; and how many citizens in all were repatriated in the same period.

During the financial year 1967–68 about £182,000 was spent on repatriation from foreign countries. Recoveries during the same period were about £100,000. The number of cases (including families) was 3,377.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what reports he has received concerning the safety of British subjects in Saigon, following the renewal of Vietcong attacks on the city, including the indiscriminate use of rockets; and if he will make a statement.

As hon. Members know one British journalist was killed in the Viet Cong offensive in early May. Reports from Her Majesty's Ambassador in Saigon, who keeps in constant touch with the British community, are that there have been no British casualties resulting from the latest indiscriminate bombardment of the city by rockets and mortars.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what representations have been made to the Government of Israel to ensure their noninterference in any endeavours which may be made to release the British ships trapped in the Suez Canal.

We have been in touch with the Government of Israel with a view to making fresh arrangements for the release of the trapped ships, but the substance of our discussions must remain confidential.

asked the Minister of Social Security when her Department's scheme for the repatriation of immigrants started; how many immigrants in all have been repatriated under this scheme; and what has been the cost of this scheme to date.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Tonbridge (Mr. Hornby) on 27th May. The cost has been about £120,000.—[Vol. 765, c. 153–4.]

asked the Minister of Social Security if she will make a statement regarding the recent Report, Command Paper No. 3545, by the National Insurance Advisory Committee; and if she will give an assurance that she will reject the Report's recommendation regarding the curtailment of the rights of occupational pensioners to unemployment benefit.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, North-West (Sir B. Janner) on 29th February. I am at present considering the recommendations in detail.—[Vol, 759, c. 420.]

asked the Minister of Social Security whether she will institute an official study, or provide funds for an independent study, of the social and economic problems of fatherless families.

I am at present considering this in relation to other research priorities and to the extended use of the Family Expenditure Survey mentioned in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentford and Chiswick on 27th May. —[Vol. 765, c.1199.]

asked the Minister of Social Security whether she is aware that between 19th March and 23rd April the Retail Price Index rose by 2·2 points; and, as this is equivalent to a 1·8 per cent. increase in the cost of living in just over a month and a 3·6 per cent. increase since devaluation, whether she will now seek to increase all social welfare benefits.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to him on 23rd April.—[Vol. 763, c. 44.]

asked the Minister of Social Security whether she will take steps to increase the rate of sickness and unemployment benefit for a married woman to the £4 10s. rate when her husband is receiving a State retirement pension.

This is only one of the problems which arise from the special position of married women in national insurance. Together with others it is being examined in the context of the preparation of the White Paper on the Government's proposed new earnings-related pension scheme.

asked the Minister of Social Security by how much the additional contributions paid after retirement age by those still in work fall short actuarially of the increment in pension received after retirement, bearing in mind the pension forgone in the interim period.

This depends on a number of individual factors including the beneficiary's sex and marital status, the period during which retirement is deferred and the rate at which pension would be payable during deferment.On current rates of benefit the increments earned by a married man who retires at the average retiring age of 66 would normally be about two-thirds of the actuarial value of the pension forgone and additional contributions paid.

asked the Minister of Social Security at what date in the autumn she proposes to increase supplementary benefit rates.

I am tomorrow laying before Parliament draft Regulations pro-

asked the Minister of Social Security how many social security offices have been reduced to caller status as a result of the policy of amalgamation.

Since the inception of the Ministry of Social Security in August 1966, 50 local offices, all of which were former National Insurance offices, have become public enquiry offices, of which 29 are attended full time and 21 on one or more days during the week.

asked the Minister of Social Security (1) how many social security offices are planned for amalgamation with other offices;(2) if she will make a statement about future policy in relation to the amalgamation of social security offices.

As my right hon. Friend said on 30th May in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Brentford and Chiswick (Mr. Barnes), it is planned to amalgamate the whole of the office networks of the former Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance and of the former National Assistance Board. It is expected that the final single network will include some 750–800 offices providing full time facilities for people making either contributory or supplementary benefit claims and inquiries in person; and perhaps a further 350 public caller offices offering the same facilities part-time. But a full outline of my right hon. Friend's plans is to be found in her above quoted reply of 30th May.—[Vol. 765, c. 273–4.]

asked the Minister of Social Security how many social security offices have been reduced to caller status in towns with a population of 55,000 or more.

So far only one office, viz. Rugby, but it is expected that in the next few years the backroom work of offices in some other towns of similar size will also be transferred to neighbouring offices.

asked the Minister of Social Security how much money it is estimated will be saved in the current financial year as a result of amalgamations of social security offices.

It is not practicable to isolate the overall financial savings resulting from amalgamations, which arise not only from the concentration of backroom work into larger units (which normally affords staff savings) but also from the integration of former National Insurance Offices with the area offices of the former National Assistance Board.

asked the Minister of Social Security what action she proposes to take to include nasal cancer in the Schedule of Industrial Diseases.

Nasal cancer amongst woodworkers was given consideration last year by the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council. It has been awaiting the results of current research into cases in the Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire furniture industry.In the light of the report on the results of the research, published in the

asked the Lord Privy Seal if he is aware of the dissatisfaction among hon. Members caused by their inability to question him orally in the House more than once up to the Summer Recess; and what steps he intends to take to remedy this.

I am not aware of any such general dissatisfaction. The position is no different from that of a number of other Ministers, whose Departments are top for Questions once every five weeks. I am always ready to consider representations made to me regarding the question roster, but I am not convinced that there is need for change in this case.

asked the Secretary of State fur Defence whether he will make a statement about the result of his consultations with other governments during his visit to the Far East.

I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the statement which I made after Questions today.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will make a statement on his recent talks with allied Defence Ministers on Singapore and South-East Asia;(2) if he will make a statement on his recent talks with Commonwealth Governments on the defence of South-East Asia.

I draw the hon. Member's attention to the statement on the subject made today after Questions.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence to which countries the results of any research, at the Ministry of Defence establishment at Porton Down, Wiltshire, into any deadly germs have been sent.

There are arrangements for the exchange of information on Defence R. and D. with the United States, Canada and Australia and with other members of N.A.T.O. These include information on defence against biological warfare. In addition much of the work of the Microbiological Research Establishment is published in scientific literature and is therefore generally available.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if he will seek to ensure that all decisions taken by the Services Committee, and the reasons for such decisions, as they affect the House as a whole, are made available to hon. Members in written form at the Vote Office.

The recommendations of the Services Committee are contained either in Reports to the House, which are available in the Vote Office or in reports to Mr. Speaker. Recommendations which affect the House as a whole, but are not of sufficient importance to be included in a Report to the House, are brought to the notice of Members either by means of answers to Questions, or by a notice in the all-party whip. An order of the House would be required to report the Minutes of the Proceedings of the Committee after each meeting, but I propose to consider the possibility of including such an order in the Order of Reference of the Committee, when it is appointed next Session.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what recommendations have been made by the Services Committee concerning the giving of sufficient advance notice to the Press and to the public generally concerning the time, place, and date of all meetings of committees of the House which are open to the public.

The Services Committee have arranged for a notice to be placed outside St. Stephen's Entrance each week, showing the time and place of meetings of all committees of the House which are open to the public. The first of these notices is in position today. The Press are informed by the Committee Office of public meetings of Select Committees.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is now able to make a further statement on the proposed siting of an aluminium smelter in Scotland.

The discussions with the British Aluminium Company, to which my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade referred in his statement on 29th May, are still continuing. It remains our aim to complete them as soon as possible. [Vol. 765, cc. 1797–1800.]

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if, following his consideration of the letter of 11th June sent to him by the hon. Member for Bothwell, he will now take steps to exempt disseminated sclerosis sufferers from paying for prescriptions; and if he will make a statement.

No. I would refer to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Health to my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Mr. Victor Yates), on 21st March, which explained the definition of chronic sickness and the reasons for it.—[Vol. 761, c. 143–5.]

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportions of the reckonable expenditure of local authorities in Scotland are being met by the Exchequer through rate support grant in 1967–68 and 1968–69; and what are the proportions being so met of such expenditure in England and Wales in the same years.

The aggregate amounts of Exchequer grants for 1967–68 and 1968–69 were determined at 62·5 per cent. and 63·5 per cent. of the estimated reckonable expenditure in Scotland and 54 per cent. and 55 per cent. in England and Wales. These percentages are made up as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how much money was received for school meals in Lanarkshire in the month preceding the increased charges; how much has been received in the month following the increase; and if he will make a statement.

During the periods referred to, which include the Easter holiday, the average daily receipts were £2,195 and £2,341 respectively. There was a fall in the total uptake of school meals but an increase in the number of meals provided free.

asked the Minister of Transport, what modifications have been made to diesel cars on British Railways as a result of the recommendations made by the inspecting officer of the inquiry into the fire which occurred in a diesel car near Radlett in February, 1966.

The British Railways Board, whose responsibility it is to carry out safety precautions, have decided as a result of these recommendations to make 18 different modifications to reduce fire risk on various types of diesel multiple-unit vehicles.They report progress on this regularly to the Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways. On 1st January, 1968, 2,000 out of 3,992 individual modifications have been completed.The position will be further reviewed in the report on the fire in a diesel multiple-unit at Sandridge on 12th June.

asked the Minister of Transport what representatives of motor cycling interests are members of the National Road Safety Advisory Council.

Members of the Council are appointed to serve as individuals, and not as representatives of particular bodies or interests.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what was the cost to public funds of police and security arrangements in connection with the visit of Mr. Daniel Cohn-Bendit; and if these are to be recouped from the British Broadcasting Corporation.

The only additional cost to public funds will possibly be for overtime worked by some of the police officers concerned. It is not possible, without a disproportionate expenditure of time and effort, to establish the cost, especially as under Police Regulations overtime is payable only if time off in lieu cannot be granted within three months.No costs will be recouped from the British Broadcasting Corporation. These duties were a police responsibility.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made by the Stamp Committee; and when it is likely to report.

In the course of 16 meetings the Committee has had informal discussions with the representatives of most of the interests concerned, and has put to my right hon. Friend proposals for research projects. It is too early to say when the Committee is likely to report.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the decision to refuse entry to Miss Caroline Lee Mitchell, a citizen of the United States, following her arrival at Heathrow Airport on 6th June, 1968.

Miss Mitchell was refused entry because she came for the specific purpose of seeking employment and had no work permit. Before setting out from the United States she had been informed by a British consular officer of the need for a permit. The immigration officer offered to admit her for a month, with a "no employment" condition, to enable her to visit relatives; but Miss Mitchell declined, on the ground that employment was her sole intention and that she had no desire to enter the country for any other purpose.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has for making better provision for severely disturbed boys and girls in approved schools.

Jointly with my right hon. Friend die Minister of Health, I propose to develop a new range of child care establishments which will specialise in meeting these needs: they will combine many of the treatment possibilities of a school, a children's home and a hospital.I also propose to develop improved facilities for intensive care within the approved schools, with special emphasis on the needs of severely disturbed girls.Action is in hand to find suitable sites, to prepare detailed plans for the new facilities and to make arrangements for staff training. The local authority and professional associations will be consulted about these plans, both to secure the benefit of their knowledge and experience and to ensure that the new facilities are provided in harmony with the proposals in the White Paper "Children in Trouble".

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated annual cost of the continuing closure of the Suez Canal to British shipping and their associated interests.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the Answer which my right hon. Friend gave to my hon. Friend the Member for The Hartlepools (Mr. Lead-bitter) on 27th May.—[Vol. 765, c. 166–7.]

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will have consultations with the Civil Service unions to discuss the provision of name badges for those civil servants who are in contact with members of the public.

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I have sent to his letter of 26th May on this subject.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why he refused to act on the advice of Sir Miles Thomas, head of the National Savings movement, and introduce a new savings scheme linked to the cost-of-living index; and if he will reconsider his decision.

I would refer the hon. Member to what I said in my Budget Statement on this subject.—[Vol. 761, c. 271.]

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in view of the fact that National Savings increased by less than 2 per cent. between April, 1965, and April, 1968, and that the real value of money declined by 11 per cent. in the same period, what new steps he is taking to sustain National Savings.

I am always looking for new ways of increasing the level of National Savings, and I am confident, that the National Savings measures announced in the Budget will prove effective. It was encouraging that in 1967, National Savings increased by £131 million.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many individuals paid the £15¼ million of Capital Gains Tax collected in the year 1967–68; and how many taxpayers were in the £0– £50, £50–100, £100–200, £200–500, £500– £1,000 and above £1,000 categories of tax paid.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many individual taxpayers are claiming to carry forward a loss in respect of transactions subject to Capital Gains Tax from the financial years 1967–68 to 1968–69.

This information is not available.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement to clarify the regulation to the effect that when a choice of seat belts is offered for installation in a new car, the cus- tomer's election is in the nature of a separate purchase with the result that no Purchase Tax is payable.

Motor car seat belts are not chargeable with Purchase Tax. No tax is therefore payable when such belts are fitted to a tax-paid car.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will, in future, not permit the chairman of a local committee of the New Towns Commission and the leader of the local borough council to be one and the same person, in view of the conflicts of interest of the two bodies which can arise.

No, I do not accept that such office is incompatible with other public service of the kind mentioned.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what reports have been received from the Alkali Inspector about air pollution and chemical smells on Tees-side; and what action he proposes to take in the light of these reports.

The Chief Alkali Inspector has reported that recently sea mists have hindered the normal dispersion of industrial emissions. The reasons for the occurrence of these mists, which are not frequent, are being examined by scientific experts and future action will be decided in the light of their findings.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the standard quantity for wheat and barley in each year since its inception; what quantity from home grown sources was produced; what was the target indicator price; what was the average realised price; and to what extent the deficiency payment for wheat was abated because the annual production fell below the standard quantity and the average realised price fell below the target indicator price.

The arrangement for abating

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the estimated public expenditure on the provision of courses in management studies in technical colleges.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the local education authorities which have secondary reorganisation schemes covering the whole or part of their areas either implemented or approved.

The information is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many places were available in primary and secondary schools, respectively, in England and Wales on the last date for which figures are available; and how many more places need to be provided in order to prevent overcrowding.

I do not collect statistics of the number of places available in schools. Local overcrowding is often due to the difficulty of providing additional accommodation exactly where it is needed quickly enough to deal with rapid population growth and movement.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children under five years of age are now attending primary schools or maintained nursery schools in the Agbrigg Division of the West Riding; what proportion of their age group in that area these children represent; and what is the comparable proportion for England and Wales.

285 pupils in January, 1967, representing an estimated 7·6 per cent. of the population aged over two and under five years. The comparable percentage for England and Wales was 8·6.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the announcement of the finalised major building programme for the year 1968-69 in relation to schools to be built in Coventry will be made.

On 21st June.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the outer London boroughs which have submitted revised development plans in accordance with section 31 of the London Government Act, 1963.

The following is the information:

• Barnet.
• Bexley.
• Enfield.
• Kingston.
• Merton.
• Waltham Forest.
• Croydon (excluding secondary schools)
• Hounslow(excluding secondary schools)
• Richmond (excluding secondary schools)

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the average length of service given by trained married women returning to part-time teaching.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why he refused to make a grant to the swimming club section of the Cardiff Mentally Handicapped Society; and, in view of the importance of this facility to the youth club of the society, whether he will reconsider his decision.

No formal application for this project has been put to the Department. On the limited information available as a result of informal inquiries that were made by the Society, it appeared that the project would not be eligible for a grant. Arrangements are in hand for a meeting between officers of the Society and officers of the Department with a view to seeing if there is any basis on which assistance could be given.

asked the Minister of Health what is the present deficiency of hospital beds in each region of England and Wales.

According to the measures for provision of beds in relation to population used in the original Hospital Plan only the Sheffield region shows a current numerical deficiency. Less signi-cance is now attached to the bed as the unit for measuring hospital provision. The number of beds is falling gradually as hospital facilities are used more effectively: the major problem on which new capital provision is concentrated is obsolescence in quality, in kind, in location and in supporting facilities.

asked the Minister of Health if he will advise hospital medical staff to seek the guidance of the coroner before a decision to disconnect a respirator which is maintaining an apparently hopeless case.

No. Whatever the circumstances, the point at which a respirator is disconnected is always a matter for medical decision.

asked the Minister of Health how many British emigr6 doctors he has succeeded in persuading to return home in the last two years.

Since October, 1967, when a special mission from my Department visited North America, 33 British doctors have returned, or are expected to return shortly, under arrangements made by my Department to take up posts in the National Health Service. I have no figures as to the number of doctors who have made their own arrangements to return.

asked the Minister of Health what reports he has received from the health authorities on Tees-Side on the health hazards arising from the air pollution and smells emanating from local chemical works.

None.

asked the Minister of Health what projections have been made from the most recent available data of the number of the total male and of the total female population of Great Britain in 1970, 1980, 1990 and 2000, and of the corresponding numbers of those over school-leaving age and of those over 60 years of age.

The official projections based on the mid-1967 population estimates are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what percentages of the total male and total female population of Great Britain were gainfully occupied in 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940, 1950, 1960, 1965, 1966 and 1967; and what percentages these figures constituted, respectively, of the total male and total female population over school-leaving age.

I have been asked to reply.The following table, derived from the censuses of population, shows the information for years as near as possible to those referred to in the Question.

asked the Postmaster-General how many complaints he has received since the beginning of 1968 from official trade organisations and local authorities concerning delays in postal deliveries and the consequent damage to business; and what action he has taken.

Complaints of this sort could have been made to any of my many hundreds of Head Postmasters and Postmasters and it would be very costly to assemble the information the hon. Gentleman is asking for. But I can assure him that we look carefully into delays that are brought to our notice and we take all reasonable measures to ensure that mail entrusted to us reaches the people for whom it is intended promptly and safely.

asked the Minister of Technology how many of the staff on average travel by air between Royal Aircraft Establishment, Bedford, and Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farn-borough, each day.

On average, seven members of the staff make the round trip between Royal Aircraft Establishment, Bedford, and R.A.E., Farnborough, on each working day.

asked the Minister of Technology when he plans to introduce the kilometre as the standard distance measurement.

The introduction of the kilometre as the standard distance measurement is a matter of general policy, and not one solely for the Ministry of Technology. It lies outside the industrial field, in which progress is already being made to introduce the metric system. No decision has yet been taken by the Government concerning the kilometre as the standard distance measurement in preference to the mile.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the estimated number of jobs that will accrue at the Bristol factory of Rolls-Royce as a result of the recent industrial development certificate granted to that firm.

The Board of Trade does not disclose details of industrial development certificates issued to individual companies as these relate to commercial information given to the Board in confidence.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when the industrial development certificate for extension to the Bristol factory of Rolls-Royce was granted; and whether he had been already informed of the proposed closure of the Rolls-Royce factories at Cardiff and Bentham when that certificate was sought by the company.

An industrial development certificate was issued to a subsidiary of Rolls-Royce for a project in Bristol on 24th May. The Board of Trade were informed on the same day of the proposed closure of the factories at Cardiff and Bentham.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if any tenant has yet been allocated the advance factory in Bellshill Industrial Estate; whether he proposes to build another factory on the estate; and if he will make a statement.

Four advance factories have been announced since 1964 for Bellshill. Three have been completed and are occupied and the fourth, due for completion next month, has been allocated. The claims of Bells-hill will be considered in any future programme, but we have no immediate plans to build another factory there.