HC Deb 16 March 1931 vol 249 c1669
71. Captain WATERHOUSE

asked the Minister of Labour if she can state the comparative wage cost per hour of hosiery workers in Japan. Czechoslovakia, and Leicester?

Mr. LAWSON

I regret that comparable statistics are not available.

Captain WATERHOUSE

In view of the importance of these statistics in the industry, will the hon. Gentleman try to get them, and will he say if he thinks the Government are able properly to weigh the difficulties of the various trades without such statistics?

Mr. LAWSON

I may say that we have certain scrappy information at our disposal, which would be of no use to the hon. and gallant Gentleman, but I will undertake to communicate with the International Labour Office to see if we can get the figures for the two countries concerned. It is almost impossible to get the figures for Leicester, because the wage agreements do not fix hourly rates, and the available statistics of earnings are for the whole of the country and not for one particular town.

Captain WATERHOUSE

If the hon. Gentleman gets the Consular Service to get hold of the foreign figures, I think I or my hon. Friend the Member for East Leicester (Mr. Wise) might be able to get them for Leicester.

Mr. FREEMAN

Will the figures for India be included as well?