§ MR. SAMUEL EVANS (Glamorganshire, Mid)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has in consideration or in contemplation a proposal for the division of the South Wales Coal Mines District (No. 13) into two parts for inspection by two of His Majesty's Inspectors of Mines; and, if so, whether he will appoint as the new inspector a gentleman who has a knowledge of the Welsh language, so that he may, if necessary, hold direct communication with Welsh-speaking miners.
§ *MR. RITCHIEYes, Sir. I propose to divide the South Wales District into two. As I said just now in answer to the hon. Member for East Denbighshire, I am making some re-arrangements of the Mines Inspectors' districts. I found that the work of the South Wales district has recently grown enormously, and is now too heavy a charge for any one chief inspector. One division of it will be retained by the existing inspector for South Wales. The other will be taken by another inspector set free by re-arrangements elsewhere. I do not propose to make any new appointment, but there will continue to be in South Wales, as at present, four Welsh-speaking assistant inspectors.
§ MR. SAMUEL EVANSAre the new appointments to be Welsh inspectors, or are they to be transferred from England?
§ *MR. RITCHIEIf the hon. Gentleman implies by that that we ought to appoint a Welsh-speaking chief inspector, I have to inform him that, unfortunately, there are none of the chief inspectors 276 who can speak Welsh; but, as the hon. Gentleman knows, the assistant inspectors are men who come in closer contact with the miners than the chief inspectors, and those all speak Welsh. I can only say that Welsh Members may take it from me that, whenever the opportunity arises, I shall be only too glad to take care that Welsh-speaking sub-inspectors are appointed when appointments are made in Welsh-speaking districts.
§ MR. SAMUEL EVANSMay I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he will take into consideration the possibility of appointing as chief inspector one of the assistant inspectors who does know Welsh?
§ *MR. RITCHIEIf there was any vacancy I should be glad to take the matter into consideration, but the hon. Gentleman will understand there is not really any vacancy for a chief inspector at all. I am sure the hon. Gentleman will not desire that a district should be taken charge of by an assistant inspector instead of a chief inspector. I shall be glad to take into consideration any recommendation of the hon. Gentleman, and I will take care when new appointments are made in Welsh-speaking districts, if it is at all possible to meet the desire of the hon. Gentleman, to have a Welsh-speaking inspector in Welsh-speaking districts.
AN HON. MEMBERasked whether in North Wales, where a vacancy had occurred, the right hon. Gentleman would appoint a Welsh chief inspector to take the place of Dr. Foster, who had resigned.
§ *MR. RITCHIENo; a vacancy has not occurred, simply because, as I informed the hon. Gentleman, we are making re-arrangements in Wales. We are going to divide up Dr. Foster's district, and to allot it to two of the existing; inspectors, and there are none of those inspectors who can speak Welsh. I cannot appoint an unnecessary inspector in order to get an inspector who can speak Welsh.