§ 14. Mr. Ellis Smithasked the Secretary for Mines whether he has given consideration to the resolution dealing with the administration of colliery disaster relief funds forwarded by the city council of Stoke-on-Trent; and is it intended to institute legislation to deal with the funds in order to secure a uniform scale of payments, control of administration, and to enable the unused balances to be available at once for colliery disasters?
§ The Secretary for Mines (Captain Crookshank)The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative, and to the second part in the negative. In my reply to the City Council of Stoke-on-Trent, of which I am sending the hon. Member a copy, I have indicated some of the principal difficulties involved in their proposal, and in this connection I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to a question by the hon. Member for Tottenham, North (Mr. R. C. Morrison) on 12th November last year, of which I am sending him a copy.
§ Mr. SmithWill the Minister give further consideration to this matter, and consider also the calling together of the Mine Workers' Federation, the colliery proprietors and the committee of management of this body?
§ Captain CrookshankPerhaps the hon. Member will first give consideration tc the documents which I am sending to him.