§ 21. Mr. R. MORRISONasked the Minister of Labour how many unemployed miners have now arrived in London to take up temporary employment at the Royal parks; how many are married men: whether their wives and families accompany them; what arrangements were made for housing accommodation; and how long the work upon which they areengaged will last?
§ The MINISTER of LABOUR (Sir Arthur Steel-Maitland)The number of men from the depressed areas now in employment in the Royal parks is 420, of whom 260 are married. No dependants of these men have so far removed. Lodg- 925 ings were found in advance for the men through Employment Exchange machinery. The work itself will last about 12 weeks but it does not follow that the engagement of individual men will last so long. The men are expected to make every effort to secure more permanent employment, and the married men will be assisted to find accommodation and to remove their families under the special financial arrangements announced in the Press on January 17th.
§ Mr. MORRISONAre there any special financial arrangements to enable men who are here by themselves, as their families are still in the depressed areas, to keep two homes going?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDThat raises a different question. I should not like to say without examination. Perhaps the hon. Member will put down a question or communicate with me.
§ Mr. T. WILLIAMSDoes not the right hon. Gentleman think it advisable, instead of bringing married men from de pressed areas, to bring single men?
§ Mr. SPEAKERThat question does not arise.
Mr. BECKETTIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that there are already very large numbers of unemployed men in London, and has his attention been called to the remarks of two London magistrates about the tragedy of bringing men from one depressed area to another?
§ Mr. TOWNENDWhat facilities are provided for married men to return home, and at whose expense are they enabled to do so?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDIt is not contemplated that they should return home during the 12 weeks. The contemplation was that they should be able to find work as employment improved during the first months of the spring which will enable them permanently to get occupation outside the depressed areas.
§ Mr. MORRISON rose—
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe hon. Member is very considerably extending the scope of the question.
§ 44. Mr. KELLYasked the Minister of Labour the number of men, women and juveniles who have been placed in em- 926 ployment in the London area under the transference of labour scheme which deals with unemployment in the mining districts; and how many of these transfers were assisted from the Lord Mayor's Fund?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDThe numbers of direct transfers through the Employment Exchanges from the depressed areas to employment in the Greater London area are:
Men (since end of August), about 3,700.
Juveniles (since 17th February, 1928), about 800.
No separate figures of the number of women transferred to London are available. No part of the cost of fares has been borne by the Lord Mayor's Fund, but some 310 boys have received a grant in aid of maintenance from the fund.
§ Mr. KELLYMay I ask whether the grant of maintenance from the Lord Mayor's Fund for the 800 boys is a weekly sum paid to them for lodgings or because their wages are low?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDI should like to be precisely accurate on the matter, and perhaps the hon. Member will put the question down.
§ 49. Mr. THURTLEasked the Prime Minister whether the Government has under consideration any plans for providing useful employment for any considerable number of the existing unemployed; and, if so, will he specify what these plans are?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDI have been asked to reply. In the opinion of the Government the only really satisfactory method of reducing the number of unemployed is by re-absorption into industry, and not by the artificial creation of work. The general policy of the Government—of which the De-rating proposals are one example—is therefore directed to the removal of obstacles to the revival of industry. In so far as employment is not likely to be available for the unemployed In the future in their own trades or industries, arrangements for training and transfer are being developed to the utmost practicable extent. Since August, over 11,000 men, women and boys have been thus transferred by the Ministry of Labour, besides those who 927 have moved on their own accord, and the rate of transfer is increasing. At the same time certain facilities for obtaining Government grants remain available in aid of relief works set up by local authorities in areas of exceptional unemployment.
Mr. THOMASCould the right hon. Gentleman give the House any figures as to the number of people displaced in the industry into which these people have been put?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDIf the right hon. Gentleman will specify exactly what he means I will try to get him any figures that are available. I am not sure what exactly is the point which he wishes to raise.
Mr. THOMASI ask the right hon. Gentleman whether his Department has any knowledge of the number of people displaced in the particular industries in which these people, who have been trained for other work, (have already found employment?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDAS far as I am aware, no statistics exist as to the number of people displaced, nor have we reason to believe that numbers of persons are displaced. What is quite clear is that we are training people in some employments in which there is a need for workers who are not easily obtained at the moment, and in every case it must be quite clear that you cannot have instructional factories and yet be debarred from instructing the men in any occupation.
§ Mr. THURTLEArising out of the original answer, will the right hon. Gentleman ask the Prime Minister whether he is seeking to emulate a gentleman named Nero?
§ Mr. LANSBURYIs it not a fact that there are tens of thousands of unemployed men in London—men who were in London—and that these men are displaced by those who have been brought in to do work in the public parks?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDThe answer is "No."
§ Mr. LANSBURYIs it not a fact that there are tens of thousands of unskilled workers out of employment in London available for relief work in the public 928 parks, to which the right hon. Gentleman's Department is transferring men from other districts?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDThe answer is quite clear. The work in question would not have been set in hand at all had it not been for the policy of transfer, and for that reason no persons are displaced.
§ Mr. LANSBURYWill the right hon. Gentleman tell the House why that or similar work could not be put in hand in order that the unemployed men of London may get a chance of work?
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDSchemes of various kinds have, I believe, already been set up.
§ Mr. LANSBURYThat is untrue.
§ Mr. AUSTIN HOPKINSONDoes my right hon. Friend realise that if he persists in carrying his schemes to a successful conclusion, and if he reduces substantially the number of unemployed, he will ruin the chances of the Socialist party at the General Election?