§ 23. Mr. TINKERasked the Minister of Health if he has considered the letter of protest sent from the Tyldesley Urban District Council against the proposal made by the Lancashire County Public Assistance Committee for the employment of able-bodied recipients of relief on the catchment areas of the county on relief scales of pay; and what action does he propose to take?
§ The MINISTER of HEALTH (Sir Hilton Young)Yes, Sir. I am informing the council that their protest was due to a misunderstanding of the arrangement made with the South Lancashire Rivers Catchment Board. I see no reason to interfere with the arrangement made by the public assistance committee.
§ Mr. TINKERDo I take it from that reply that the Government, through the Ministry of Health, are sanctioning public work to be done at rates of pay much below the trade union rates of pay?
§ Sir H. YOUNGThere is no question of rates of pay involved in this matter at all.
§ Mr. KIRKWOODAccording to the question put down here we are asking able-bodied men to do work in the form of relief, and they are getting relief pay for it, and is the Minister not in a position to interfere and see that work of that nature is paid for at the standard rate of wages of the district?
§ Sir H. YOUNGThere is no question of rates of pay and wages in this matter at all. It is simply a matter of payment of relief. The work is done as a condition of relief, and if it were not done by those in receipt of relief it would not be done at all.
§ Mr. LANSBURYIs it the policy of the Ministry of Health to allow public works to be carried through on a basis of relief, and does the right hon. Gentleman intend that the men shall be set to ordinary work and only receive Poor Law relief?
§ Sir H. YOUNGThe right hon. Gentleman could not have observed my reply to the supplementary question. It is not ordinary work, but work which would not be undertaken on a commercial basis if it were not done as a condition of relief.
§ Mr. LANSBURYIt is absolutely untrue, and the hon. Member knows it. I never made any such statement.
§ Mr. GORDON MACDONALDIs there no trade union rate of pay for this class of work?
§ Sir H. YOUNGI do net think that it is possible to say that any trade union rate of pay would apply to work which, if not undertaken under those conditions, would not be undertaken at all.
§ Mr. TINKERIn view of the unsatisfactory nature of the reply, I beg to give notice that I shall take the first opportunity of raising this matter on the Adjournment.