HC Deb 03 July 1895 vol 35 cc136-8

"The first paragraph of Section 9 of the principal Act (which relates to the cleaning of machinery) shall apply, so far as the dangerous parts of machinery are concerned, to young persons in like manner as it applies to children, and for this purpose such parts of the machinery shall be presumed to be dangerous as are so notified by an inspector to the occupier of a factory."

MR. ASQUITH moved, in line 1, page 4, after "machinery, shall," to insert "unless the contrary is proved," and explained that he made this proposal for the protection of the occupier.

Amendment agreed to.

*MR. M. OLDROYD (Dewsbury) moved to leave out from "the," in line 3, to "factory," in line 4, and insert "in a factory erected after the commencement of this Act the traversing carriage of any self-acting machine." This Amendment was, he said, not controversial. There was no provision in the clause for the erection of any additional machinery in factories. This clause would apply to woollen and worsted industries among others, and he thought it important that provision should be made for an increment of machinery in existing factories, the construction of which precluded conformity with the regulation in the new clause. He therefore asked the House to make the clause only apply to factories erected after the passing of the present measure. Unless this were done, the clause would inflict considerable hardship upon owners and occupiers of woollen factories. In every change of fashion there was involved a considerable change in the amount of spinning required, or it might be, in other branches of the trade, and the clause, if passed in its present shape, would act as a restriction upon the woollen and worsted industries particularly. He trusted that the House would see the fairness of this Amendment, and would agree to the restriction of the clause to those factories which should be erected after the passing of this Bill.

MR. R. G. C. MOWBRAY (Lancashire, S.E., Prestwich)

seconded the Amendment, which he considered to be most desirable.

SIR W. H. HOULDSWORTH (Manchester, N.W.)

said, he should like to see this Amendment accepted. In the case of any machine taken out of a factory, the new machine substituted for it was, to a great extent, necessarily a different machine. He thought that the words as they now stood in the clause were undesirable.

MR. ASQUITH

said, that he thought there was a considerable weight of authority in support of this Amendment. ["Hear, hear!"] In Grand Committee he understood that in the cotton trade no great hardship would be caused by the clause, but, in regard to the woollen and worsted trades, he had since been satisfied that the clause, as it now stood, would prevent the elastic adaptation of existing mills to meet changing requirements. He was, therefore, willing to accept the Amendment. This would involve the omission of the proviso. ["Hear, hear!]

Amendment agreed to.

Clause 13:—