§ 17. Mr. Hector Hughesasked the Minister of Labour why he refuses to release the apprentice urgently required by Messrs. Sparks, of Aberdeen, for highly skilled work on Cleveland auto-lathes making parts for 20-ton railway waggons for U.N.R.R.A.; and if he will reconsider this refusal, in view of the fact that these waggons are needed to supply devastated Europe, that operators skilled in the use of these lathes are scarce and that this scarcity is delaying the making of 153.300 parts of such 20-ton waggons for which Messrs. Sparks have orders.
§ Mr. IsaacsDistrict Manpower Boards, in deciding deferments, are required to pay special regard to the importance of railway wagon production. The Manpower Board concerned however reached their decision in this case having regard to all its individual circumstances, including particularly the fact that the young man in question was transferred to railway wagon production only after his deferment had been cancelled in respect of his . previous work, which was of an entirely different character. This young man of 19 cannot be described as a key man and I do not propose to intervene to stop his call up.