§ MR. LEA (St. Pancras, E.)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board how many unemployed in St. Pancras were registered from January 1906 to March 1907 in each month respectively, and how many in each successive month were given employment through the committee; what was the nature of the work given to these men; what requests for money or help were made by the St. Pancras Unemployed Committee to the Local Government Board during the last fifteen months; and what money grants to this body have been made by the Local Government Board during that period.
§ *THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (Mr. JOHN BURNS,) BatterseaI am informed that the total number of the unemployed registered by the St. Pancras Distress Committee from January 1906 to March 1907 was 2,567. The total number of persons in each month for whom work was provided through the committee was approximately 2,316. Of these 999 were employed on work provided by the borough council, eighty-eight on local work to which the Central (Unemployed) Body contributed, and 1,229 on work 215 provided by that body. I will send my hon. friend a statement showing the particulars for each month. The work provided by the borough council consisted of extra road sweeping, painting lampposts, and general labouring work. The local work to which the Central Body contributed consisted of reducing the gradient of a road and laying out gardens. Payments out of the parliamentary grant were in London made not to the Distress Committees, but to the Central (Unemployed) Body, and no request for a payment from the grant was received by the Local Government Board from the St. Pancras Distress Committee.