asked the Minister of Public Building and Works on whose advice, outside his Department, he restricted the number of 1¾ inch diameter sterling silver Prince of Wales Investiture medals to 7,500; and how many have now been sold to dealers.

Spink & Son Ltd., my commercial advisers in this matter, were consulted about the number of 1¾ inch silver investiture medals to be struck. Some 250 of these medals are being allocated to dealers.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is his estimate of the additional cost of Selective Employment Tax to the building industry in the West Country as a result of his Budget proposals.

The likely increase in costs is about £1¾ million in the South West Economic Planning Region in a full year.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works whether he will now make a further statement on the second and third reports of the Mann Committee.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to similar questions from the hon. Members for Runcorn (Mr. Carlisle) and Hornsey (Mr. Rossi) today.

asked the Minister of Public Building and Works what is the estimated cost to the building industry of the tax changes announced in the Budget; and what effect this will have on local authority housing costs.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to similar Questions from the hon. Members for Banbury (Mr. Marten) and Folkestone and Hythe (Mr. Costain) of today.

asked the Minister of Power what is the estimated total amount of coal which the British Steel Corporation will purchase in 1969; and if the purchase will be at a bulk and uniform price.

The British Steel Corporation tells me about 17½ million tons almost all of it coking coal.Arrangements for purchases and the prices payable are matters for settlement between the British Steel Corporation and the National Coal Board.

asked the Minister of Power whether he will ensure that the chairmen of the nationalised coal, gas and electricity industries are now paid the salaries recommended by the National Board for Prices and Incomes; and what action he has taken to implement the recommendation.

I have implemented the Government's decision announced by the First Secretary of State on 3rd April, 1969.

asked the Minister of Power if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT the amounts spent on advertising by the separate nationalised fuel industries in the years from 1963 onwards.

The amounts spent by the nationalised fuel industries on promotional advertising were as follows:

asked the Minister of Power if he will list the sites of nuclear power stations now built or proposed together with details on the fuel used, and the estimated unit cost of electricity now based on a 25-year life of the plant.

asked the Minister of Power how many men, as a result of pit closures within the last two years, have been redeployed to other employment and other positions within the National Coal Board, respectively; and, of the latter, how many have had to move to other pits once and also on more than one occasion.

Of the men on the books of collieries closed in the two years ended March 1969, 24,700 left the industry

asked the Minister of Power what plans there are to open opencast sites to produce anthracite to counteract a shortage of smokeless fuels in some areas.

The National Coal Board has asked me to authorise a site in Wales.

asked the Minister of Power what was the total production of coke in the years 1954 to 1968, respectively, in the United Kingdom, England, Wales and Scotland, respectively, and the amount that went to the domestic market in those years.

The statistics are as follows:—voluntarily or were declared redundant. It is not possible to identify how many of these figure in the substantial number of ex-mineworkers who have found other employment through the facilities of the Department of Employment and Productivity or on their own initiative. Some 25,700 men either remained on salvage work or were redeployed within the coal industry. I regret that the statistics do not distinguish mineworkers who have had to move more than once.

asked the Minister of Power (1) what representations he has received calling for the regulation of the charging of electricity consumers using privately-installed meters; and what action he proposes to take;(2) what study he has made of the practice of charges for electricity consumers using privately-installed meters; and if he will make a statement.

From several hon. Members as well as Electricity Consultative Councils, the Consumer Council and members of the public. All boards have fixed maximum resale prices and consumers can recover amounts they are over-charged. I am considering how means of enforcement may be improved.

asked the Minister of Power what action is being taken regarding the storage of gas underground.

The Gas Council is continuing its search for underground formations which are geologically and otherwise suitable for this form of storage but no application for an authorisation under the Gas Act, 1965, has yet been made to me.

asked the Minister of Power what is the estimated cost so far of the emergency measures taken to maintain supplies of gas during the shut-down of the Leman Bank field in the North Sea.

The Gas Council have informed my right hon. Friend that the additional cost has not yet been established; supplies have not yet been fully restored.

asked the Minister of Power how many explosions, fires and other accidents have been reported as a result of the conversion of homes and business premises to North Sea Gas; how many have caused personal injuries; and what has been the cost in each case.

The Gas Council inform me that, since the first conversion at Canvey Island in 1966 there has been a total of 71 accidents of all kinds in the use of natural gas, of which 24 have involved some personal injury. This should, of course, be viewed in the context of a total of half a million customers converted since that time. No information is readily available about costs.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will seek to amend Part III of the Rent Act, 1965, to ensure that magistrates impose higher and uniform penalties on landlords convicted of unlawful eviction of tenants.

The courts can already impose heavy penalties: a fine of up to £100 or up to six months imprisonment or both for a first offence, and a fine of up to £500 and up to six months imprisonment or both for a subsequent offence. The courts are of course wholly independent in the exercise of their powers to impose penalties for these as for other offences.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if the inquiries into the condition of all high buildings, including flats and offices, following the Ronan Flats disaster have now been completed; whether he is satisfied that all necessary steps have now been taken to prevent the occurrence of a similar accident; and if he will make a statement.

Good progress is being made with the appraisal and strengthening of high buildings in pre-cast concrete panel construction following the advice I gave to local authorities last November. Work is already going on in some cases. This advice also covered new buildings pending amendment of the Building Regulations. Proposals for such amendment are currently being considered by the Building Regulations Advisory Committee preparatory to consultation with interested bodies. The Department is also working closely with the British Standards Institution on improved Codes of Practice.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will give assistance to the London Borough of Brent to reinstate as park land the former prefab site adjoining Roundwood Park, Willesden.

Where authorities provided temporary housing on open spaces they were required to seek Ministerial authority under the Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act, 1945, for the site to be used for this purpose and the Minister undertook to assist with the eventual cost of reinstatement. At Roundwood Park there is no record of authority being sought or given under the Act. The authority has written to the Department asking for a meeting to discuss this and my right hon. Friend will consider the matter in the light of its representations.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government (1) if he will take steps to compensate developers for legal expenses incurred as a result of previous Government policy and now rendered abortive by the changes announced in the White Paper;(2) whether, in the drafting of the Finance Bill, he will provide for the repayment of charges already imposed by the Land Commission together with interest accrued on all developments that fall within the exempted categories in the White Paper.

I would refer the hon. Member to the White Paper which states that the new provisions will apply to chargeable acts or events occurring after the 5th April, 1969.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will now give to the Clun and Bishops Castle Rural District Council the necessary consent to go ahead with the scheme for sewering Kinsley Road, near Knighton.

No, but as my noble Friend, Lord Kennet, the Joint Parliamentary Secretary, has explained to the hon. Member, I am always ready to consider any fresh evidence as to the urgency of the need for the scheme.

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what estimate has been made of the increased number of local authority employees and the cost of such staff needed to deal with new Government legislation passed since 1965.

Increases in local authority staff since 1965 are due to a number of factors—for example, the greater use of part-time employees—and it would not be practicable to identify changes due to any one cause. But the manpower implications are an important factor in the Government's consideration of any new legislation and this aspect is now dealt with in the explanatory memoranda to Government Bills.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received from the Machynlleth Urban District Council regarding the provision of traffic signals at the Clock Tower, Machynlleth; and what reply he has sent.

Traffic signals at this junction have been the subject of representations since 1938. The most recent were submitted by the urban district council on 20th February, 1969.The council was told on 5th March that its request was being considered and on 11th April that we had asked Montgomeryshire County Council to take a traffic and pedestrian count in June and to supply recent accident statistics so that the whole position could be assessed afresh.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales on whose instructions orders were given for the immediate erection of two flag poles on all hospitals in certain areas of Wales before 1st April; what was the purpose of the flag poles; why they had to be up by 1st April; what was the total cost of provision and erection; and how many hours overtime pay was incurred to have them erected.

My right hon. Friend asked hospital authorities throughout Wales to fly Welsh flags on 1st April, where this could be done without undue expense, to mark the devolution of responsibility for the Hospital Service in Wales to the Secretary of State for Wales on that day. I am told that about £1,240 including payment for some 166 hours overtime was, in fact, spent by these authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many flag poles have been erected at Welsh hospitals in the course of the past two months; and what is the total cost thereof.

55 flag poles have been erected at a cost of approximately £1,240.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what progress there has been in the development of Rhayader, Radnorshire; what consideration he has given to the results of the recent referendum in respect of the road proposals made by his department; and whether he will make a statement.

A good beginning has been made, and Welsh Office officials will be meeting representatives of the local authorities and other bodies involved tomorrow to consider what further steps can now be taken. My hon. Friend will know that another advance factory is to be built in the town. The by-pass proposals have been published in draft and are at present in the objection period which ends on 7th June. My right hon. Friend has not yet heard from the Rhayader Rural District Council about the referendum which it conducted but he will consider all objections when the objection period expires, and if he thinks it necessary will hold a public inquiry.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the content and result of his recent conversations with the bank officials representatives.

I have made clear to the banks in my discussions with them the importance of maintaining a severe restraint on credit. The March figures showed that some progress has been made towards the 98 per cent. target, but, as I said in my Budget Statement, if the April figures do not show a satisfactory further improvement, I shall have to consider early action to reinforce pressure to bring bank lending under the ceiling.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the trades and professions for which expenditure on clothing is allowed as a tax deduction.

The cost of normal clothing is not an allowable expense, and relief would not in general be available to professional people. An allowance can be claimed by manual workers for expenditure which they are obliged to incur on the upkeep of protective clothing or tools. Flat-rate allowances have been agreed with trade unions to cover this, but the list is too long to reproduce in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will state for the latest convenient period of one year, how many successful prosecutions have been undertaken for non-payment of Purchase Tax on articles of gold and silver jewellery, and how many for evasion of the hallmarking laws and Merchandise Marks Act; to what extent such offences have increased or decreased over previous years; and what assessment he has made of the factors causing such evasion.

Five persons were convicted for the evasion of Purchase Tax on gold or silver jewellery in the year ended 31st March, 1968, compared with 3 persons in 1967 and one person in 1966. In the calendar year 1968, 157 persons were convicted in England and Wales for offences against the Merchandise Marks Acts, compared with 134 in 1967, and 143 in 1966. I regret that statistics of offences connected with hall-marking are not separately recorded.I do not think that these figures indicate any significant trend towards increased evasion, but we shall continue to keep a close watch on the situation.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research he undertook, before reaching a decision to tax pet foods, as to the alternative cost of feeding pets on fresh meat or fish, particularly that bought in small quantities.

My right hon. Friend took all relevant considerations into account when framing his Budget proposals.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give instructions to tax officers to give the appropriate tax relief to deserted, separated and divorced wives and families as soon as they are informed that the husband is evading his financial responsibilities; and if he will make a statement.

Where a wife entitled to payments under a maintenance order does not receive the full amounts due under the order, existing instructions to tax offices enable an appropriate adjustment to be made in calculating her tax liability or her P.A.Y.E. code number; but it may take time to establish what relief is due.If my hon. Friend has any particular case in mind I shall be glad to look into it.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what total additional amount he estimates will be levied from employers in the West Country as a result of his Budget proposals to increase Selective Employment Tax.

I estimate that the increased yield from tax-bearing industries in the South-West Region will be about £8·5 million in a full year.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what extra taxation he estimates will be paid by employees under the proposals of Command Paper No. 3883 in 1972, 1982 and 1992 in view of the fact that employees' contributions will be gross with no tax allowance;(2) how much he estimates pensioners will pay by way of taxation at existing levels under the proposals of Command Paper No. 3883 in 1972, 1982 and 1992.

Since the figures would depend upon the levels of income it is not possible to provide estimates for years so far ahead.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many householders living in the vicinity of Heathrow, Gatwick and Southend airports have sought and obtained a reduction in their rates on the grounds of aircraft noise; and how many applications for similar reductions are now under consideration by the Valuation Office.

103 and about 170.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is his estimate of the costs of taking all fishing rights for salmon, sea-trout, and brown trout in Scotland into public ownership.

The cost of taking this step would depend on the terms of the compensation considered appropriate. While it is not possible to make a precise estimate, compensation based on market value of fishings might be of the order of £25 million to £30 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what he is doing to recruit competent technical officers for fisheries and provide short formal training courses.

I presume this question refers to freshwater fisheries.Responsibility for recruiting local fisheries staff rests with district salmon fishery boards. I have no current proposals for formal training courses but district board staff take advantage of advice and guidance from my Department's freshwater fisheries scientists and the Inspector of Salmon Fisheries.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland to what extent the scarcity of salmon in Scottish rivers is related to the new fishery off Greenland; and if he will make a statement on this matter.

Salmon catches are affected by a number of factors and are liable to considerable fluctuations from year to year, but the effects of these factors cannot be isolated or measured. Although scientific investigations have shown that some salmon caught at Greenland would otherwise return to Scotland, the effect of the Greenland fisheries cannot yet be quantified since we do not know what proportion of the salmon feeding off Greenland originate from Scotland or what proportion of those that do so would normally succeed in returning. Research into these problems is continuing.Though salmon have generally been scarce this year, it is too early in the season to say whether this will continue. For some years—well before the development of the Greenland fisheries—there has been a gradual decline in the numbers of spring fish returning to Scottish rivers but, despite this, the total catches in recent years, with the exception of 1968, have been relatively high.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the Elizabethan garden behind Kew Palace is to be opened to the public.

Her Majesty has consented to open the garden on Wednesday, 14th May next. The garden will be open to the public immediately thereafter.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will take steps to stop the export of dogs and puppies to Japan in view of the recent cases in which these animals have been subjected to misery and painful deaths.

I have seen recent newspaper articles relating to the treatment of stray dogs in Japan.Last year, following a question by the hon. Member for Gillingham (Mr. Burden), we asked the Embassy in Japan to investigate allegations of ill-treatment of dogs imported from the United Kingdom. Their report made it clear that there was no evidence of these British dogs being ill-treated. It is known that the Japanese authorities have a serious problem in the control of large numbers of stray mongrels, and it seems possible that the newspaper articles refer to the measures taken in controlling these strays.On the evidence the Government would not be justified in taking any action.

asked the Prime Minister if he will seek the help of the South African Government in reaching a settlement of the Rhodesian problem.

I have nothing to add to the replies which my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs gave to a Question by the hon. Member for Worcestershire, South (Sir G. Nabarro) on 24th March.—[Vol. 780, c. 1014–15.]

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a statement on his meeting with the Finance and General Purposes Committee of the Trades Union Congress on 11th April.

I would refer the hon. Member to the speech of my right hon. Friend the First Secretary of State in the House on 16th April.—[Vol. 781, c. 1169–89.]

asked the Prime Minister which Minister is responsible for assisting from public funds voluntary and charitable work in the community.

Many Ministers assist voluntary and charitable work in their fields of responsibility, by grant-aid and otherwise.

asked the Prime Minister approximately how many representations he has received concerning the retention of the statutory provisions regarding Sunday observance; and if he will make a statement.

I have received about 70 representations on this subject since the beginning of this year.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he will make a further statement about the extent to which the Royal Air Force will use Lossiemouth Air Station when it has taken it over from the Royal Navy.

I am now considering which tasks should be put into Lossiemouth in the long term to make the best use of the station's facilities. I shall write to the hon. Member when a decision is reached.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity if she will make arrangements for the distribution of the White Paper, "In Place of Strife", among trade unionists; and if she will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has no plans for distributing the White Paper "In Place of Strife" among trade unionists, since this is a priced publication on sale at H.M.S.O. So far 52,500 copies have been printed and a reprint is under way.However, my hon. Friend will be interested to know that a cheaper abbreviated guide to the White Paper is in course of preparation.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity how many miners, listed by National Coal Board areas, are at the moment redundant; and what additional steps she is taking to find these men employment.

The following table shows the number of workers affected by colliery closures registered as unemployed on 10th March, 1969. Figures by National Coal Board areas are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity whether she will make a further statement on the costs and implications of introducing a national minimum wage.

The report was published today. I am confident that it will provide the basis for a more informed discussion of this important subject.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will name the four persons whose paid appointments were made within his patronage, giving in each instance the title of the appointment, the remuneration received and the home address of the recipient.

The four paid appointments within the patronage of the Secretary of State are:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the experiments at Cambridge in which chaffinches were artificially deafened took place.

During 1964 and 1965.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the chaffinches used in the Cambridge experiments were wild birds; and at what age they were taken.

Yes; some were taken as nestlings, others as adult birds.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many chaffinches were artificially deafened in the recent experiments at Cambridge; and how the birds were disposed of at the conclusion of the experiments.

Twenty. As required by law, they were killed.

asked the Postmaster-General if he will consider allowing a rebate for people owning colour television sets which are now unable to obtain the colour service in parts of the North and West Riding of Yorkshire owing to failure at Emley Moor; how long it will be before normal service is resumed; and if he will make a statement.

The B.B.C. tell me that since 7th April, B.B.C.2, with its colour content, has been available to the great majority of the households within the area formerly served from Emley Moor; and that a substantial further improvement will follow when, within a matter of months, Ultra High Frequency aerials are installed on the mast recently completed by the I.T.A. I have carefully considered whether any rebate of the colour television licence fee might be allowed; but concluded that it would be wrong to depart from the principle that refunds on broadcasting receiving licences are not generally payable.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will consult other relevant Departments and the veterinary profession with a view to making available through telephone operators the names and telephone numbers of veterinary surgeons willing to attend emergency cases during day or night.

Yes. I am consulting the veterinary profession, and will inform the hon. Member of the result.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what stage has been reached in the consultations concerning the proposed legislation to preserve occupational pension rights on change of employment.

The Government's proposals were outlined in chapter 6 of the White Paper, "National Superannuation and Social Insurance" (Cmnd. 3883) published on 28th January 1969. There have subsequently been informal, exploratory talks with interested organisations and a consultative document has recently been sent out for comments. A copy of this document has been placed in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish a table in the OFFICIAL REPORT showing the number of general medical practitioners in each executive council area whose list of patients exceed the permitted maximum of 3,500.

Number of doctors providing full general medical services in each Executive Council area in England whose lists of patients at 1st October, 1968 exceeded the maximum normally permitted by the regulations governing the general medical services (see notes below).

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, whether he will now make a statement about the chairmanship of the Medicines Commission.

I am glad to say that Sir Derrick Dunlop, M.D., F.R.C.P., F.R.C.P.E., has accepted my invitation on behalf of the responsible Ministers under the Medicines Act, 1968, to be the first Chairman of the Medicines Commission. We shall shortly be initiating consultations about the composition of the Commission with organisations representative of interests likely to be affected by the Act, and I shall make a further announcement in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what investigations have now taken place regarding the deaths from gastro-enteritis at the Manchester maternity homes; what precautions are being taken to prevent the spread of this disease; what action is proposed to prevent a recurrence of this type of epidemic; and if he will make a further statement.

The Manchester Regional Hospital Board are investigating the circumstances and will be sending me a full report. The usual precautions have been taken to prevent the spread of infection within the hospitals concerned, and other hospitals and medical officers of health in the Region have been informed of this unusually severe form of the disease. None of the three hospitals where deaths have occurred has a maternity unit.I understand that the cause of the illnesses has not yet been established with certainty although E. coli 0114 has been isolated from some of the babies. Further investigations are being carried out in consultation with the Public Health Laboratory Service. There is no evidence as yet of a specific epidemic.

asked the President of the Board of Trade on how many occasions in 1968 Lossiemouth Airfield was the only airport open in Great Britain to civil aircraft owing to weather and other factors; and on how many occasions it was one of two only so open in Great Britain.

I regret that this information cannot be provided without an undue expenditure of time and effort. It is the case, however, that Lossiemouth enjoys excellent weather for the purposes of civil aviation and was not closed during 1968.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he has yet concluded the agreement with the Motor Insurers' Bureau in relation to compensation for victims of hit-and-run accidents.

Yes. The Agreement was completed on 21st April, 1969, and applies in relation to accidents of this sort occurring on or after 1st May, 1969. I have placed copies in the Library. Copies are being printed and will be made available through the Stationery Office as soon as possible. I explained the main features of the Agreement in my reply to the hon. Member for North Angus and Mearns (Mr. Buchanan-Smith) on 15th October last.I should like to take this opportunity to repeat my thanks to the Motor Insurers' Bureau for its co-operation in this matter.—[Vol. 770, c.