§ COLONEL HOWARD VINCENTI beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade if he can state in how many industries there have been reductions of wages between 1st September, 1892, and 28th February 1893; how many cotton mills and tinplate mills have suspended working during that period; and how many thousand operatives were thereby deprived of their means of livelihood?
§ MR. MUNDELLAParticulars as to changes of wages, as far as Trade Unions are affected, are published in the Annual Trade Union Reports, and the figures or 1892 will be published shortly. The Labour Department is informed that between September 1st, 1892, and February 28th, 1893, 45 tinplate mills were suspended; 41 mills which had suspended before September 1st were still closed at the end of February, 3,000 operatives were affected by the suspension of the total 86 mills. No reduction of wages has taken place. With regard to cotton mills, owing to the dispute in that trade, which has lasted now for 17 weeks, 410 mills and sheds have been suspended, and 50,000 operatives directly affected thereby. No reduction of wages has taken place.
§ MR. FLYNN (Cork, N.)Was the closing of the tinplate mills due to the operation of the M'Kinley Tariff?
§ MR. MUNDELLACertainly.