§ 12. Mr. LUNNasked the President of the Board of Education why it is that only £2,000 has been allocated to the West Riding of Yorkshire from the Lord Mayor's Fund; whether an organisation has been set up in the area capable of dealing out relief to mitigate the distress in many mining villages; and when they are likely to begin to give relief to mining families in this area?
§ Lord E. PERCYGood progress has been made with the organisation of local committees in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and it is expected that they will be in a position at a very early date efficiently to undertake the administration of assistance from the Lord Mayor's Fund. It is not the fact that only £2,000 has been allocated to the West Riding. The Lord Mayor announced on 11th January that, pending a closer examination of the relative needs of different areas, the West Riding, like other areas, would receive from the Fund at least double the sums raised locally for the Fund up to the end of January. £2,000 has been paid to the Divisional Committee from the Fund as a first instalment, and further payments will be made as and when required.
§ Mr. LUNNIs the Noble Lord aware that in the West Riding of Yorkshire there are nearly 40,000 miners out of work and thousands of children badly shod and insufficiently clad, and is it not time someone wakened up and saw that in areas like that where there is suffering, and when so much is appearing in the Press as to the ghastly conditions in the North through the Prince of Wales's visit, action is taken and relief given in cases of that sort?
§ Mr. GRUNDYIs the Noble Lord aware that in three villages alone, through the stoppage of the Rother Main Colliery, which stopped between two and three thousand hands, there are extreme cases of poverty and privation?
§ Lord E. PERCYI am aware of those facts and the administration of the assistance that is necessary in the West Riding will depend simply upon the activity of the local committees. I hope the hon. Member will not under-rate the assistance which has already been given to the distress to which he refers. For instance, the distribution of boots to 1116 school children has been carried out very thoroughly and on a very large scale in the West Riding already in anticipation of assistance from the Lord Mayor's Fund, and there are no fewer than 10,000 children now being fed in the schools in the West Riding County area alone.
§ Mr. LUNNIs the Noble Lord aware that the relief that has been given in the way of boots was in no way connected with the Lord Mayor's Fund, and with no knowledge of the Lord Mayor's Fund, but from private charity in West Riding? How much more money than £2,000 has been sent for such a large area with such a large amount of distress?
Viscountess ASTORDoes not the Noble Lord think, if there was a capable woman on the central committee, things would really be better now?
§ Mr. SPEAKERI must point out to the Noble Lady that this has already been dealt with in answer to a previous question.
§ Lord E. PERCYThe hon. Member is not quite correct in his facts. As a matter of fact, a very large amount of the boots now being distributed are being distributed out of money which will be received back from the Lord Mayor's Fund.