§ 25. Sir J. POWERasked the Minister of Labour whether, in view of the fact that the fluctuation of the index number of the cost of living was not more than four points during 1928, he is now pre-pared to carry out a fresh inquiry into the cost of living with a view to the index being placed on a more modern basis?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDI regret that conditions of employment are not sufficiently normal to warrant the extensive inquiries which would be necessary in order to provide the data required to form a basis for a revised cost of living index number. It is desirable that a revised basis, when determined, should receive general acceptance and serve for a long period of years, and in view of this I think that the revision cannot well be undertaken at the present time.