HC Deb 27 April 1932 vol 265 cc369-70
24. Mr. EDWARD WILLIAMS for

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he can inform the House as to the methods in operation in Palestine for ascertaining the numbers of unemployed; and if it is proposed to adopt machinery for the purpose of arriving at reliable figures?

Sir P. CUNLIFFE-LISTER

District officers are responsible for the initial collection of unemployment statistics in the smaller towns and villages and immigration officers are responsible for this work in Jerusalem, Haifa and Jaffa-Tel-Aviv. It is proposed that the district officers should be assisted in this work by officers of the Departments of Health, Agriculture, Forestry and Education, which are in close contact with the public. The appointment has recently been approved of an additional officer in the Department of Immigration, who will act as adviser to the officers engaged in the collection of intelligence and be responsible for co-ordinating all the detailed reports.