HC Deb 30 May 1933 vol 278 c1705
30. Sir COOPER RAWSON

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been called to the fact that in Sussex application has been made to permit the admission of Italians to fill the key position of dyers in the manufacture of buttons owing to the impossibility of securing competent men locally; and will he consider the desirabilitw of trans ferring men from other parts of the country to fill these positions?

The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the MINISTRY of LABOUR (Mr. R. S. Hudson)

In accordance with the usual practice in such cases, steps are being taken to verify as far as may be practicable that suitable labour is not already available in this country. I may add that such permits, where issued, are ordinarily made subject to the condition that British employes are taken into training.

Mr. THORNE

Is this a new industry that has been established in Sussex, and are we to understand that there is no one qualified either in Yorkshire or Lancashire?

Mr. HUDSON

I do not know that it is exactly a new industry. I think it is a new process.