§ 25. Sir Hugh Lucas-Toothasked the Minister of Works how many builders registration certificates have been issued since 1st January, 1946; whether such a certificate is issued to any applicant as a matter of course, or only after inquiry and subject to conditions; and whether he can give particulars of the average number of men employed by those issued with certificates during 1946.
§ Mr. Tomlinson56,053 registration certificates were issued between 1st January and 3oth September, 1946. Since the 21st March, 1946, no application for a certificate of registration may be refused except in cases where a certificate of registration previously issued has been revoked, or where the applicant has been convicted of illegal building under Defence Regulation 56A, and the court, before which he was convicted, has recommended that the application should be refused. Statistics are not yet available to show the average number of men employed by all firms registered during 1946, but an inquiry made in May this year showed that out of 19,754 men, mainly ex-Servicemen, to whom certificates were issued during the first three months of the year, 15,299 employed no operatives, 4,408 employed under 20 operatives and 47 employed 20 operatives or more.