§ 60. Major NATHANasked the Lord Privy Seal his estimate of the number of unemployed for whom employment has been found and, separately, the number of those employed who have been kept from unemployment by reason of schemes for the relief of unemployment initiated by His Majesty's present Government; which are such,schemes; and the cost thereof to the taxpayer and/or ratepayer?
Mr. THOMASI am not in a position to add anything to the information given in the White Paper recently issued.
§ Major NATHANIn view of the fact that the White Paper referred to matters in futuro, and that this question refers to matters from the date when the present Government came into existence to the present time, is the right hon. Gentleman unable to give the House any test 2719 whereby they may judge the result of the labours of the Government in this direction?
Mr. THOMASIf a test of the labours of the Government were the only point under consideration, the hon. and gallant Member has only to see how hard I work. The real difficulty is that there are certain schemes that directly give employment, and other schemes that indirectly give employment. There are no means by which, without tremendous cost and expense, one can definitely say what is the actual number of schemes in operation on a given day, and it would only mislead the House to give figures.
Sir F. HALLBut have not so very few schemes been put into operation by the right hon. Gentleman, that he could easily issue a report?
Mr. THOMASThe hon. arid gallant Gentleman will appreciate that in the last three years of the late Government £10,000,000 was sanctioned, but in our short period of office, we have sanctioned over £80,000,000 of work.