§ CAITAIN COLOMB (Tower Hamlets, Bow, &c.)asked the Secretary to the Board of Trade, What number of persons during the past year have been sent back to the United Kingdom from the United States, and from other countries, by reason of their being destitute aliens; whether the Labour Correspondent, or any other Department of the Board of Trade, has collected information, or is investigating facts, respecting destitute aliens located in the United Kingdom; and, whether the attention of the Labour Correspondent has been directed to the alleged effects of unrestricted immigration of destitute foreigners upon the system commonly known in East London as "the sweating system?"
§ THE SECRETARY (Baron HENRY DE WORMS) (Liverpool, East Toxteth)I can only give the hon. and gallant Member information with regard to the number of persons sent back from the United States as destitute aliens, and in the first six months of 1887 the number so returned was 46. Of these, nine were said to be foreigners. Information collected by the Labour Correspondent on the subject of foreign immigration into the East End of London is given in the Return on Emigration and Immigration which was presented to Parliament during the present Session. The Labour 723 Correspondent has already made inquiries with regard to the sweating system, and is preparing a general Report, which I hope to present very shortly.
§ MR. PICKERSGILL (Bethnal Green, S.W.)asked, whether there would be any great difficulty in collecting and publishing statistics respecting foreign immigrants into this country from European ports similar to those statistics which were published by the Board of Trade as respected foreign immigrants from ports outside Europe?
§ BARON HENRY DE WORMSsaid, he was afraid that there would be very great difficulty in collecting such statistics. The question had been, and was still being, considered by the Labour Department.