§ 5. Mr. Hector Hughesasked the President of the Board of Trade where the 505 new factories to be established in Aberdeen are to be located; what they will produce; how many men and women, respectively, they will employ; and when they will be ready to start work.
§ Mr. H. WilsonThirteen new factories or extensions have been approved for Aberdeen and district, nine in the city itself, three in Bucksburn and one in Pitmedden; they will be engaged, on the production of paper and paper pulp, concrete goods, light castings, fertilisers, clothing, woodwork and grass drying plant, and on the maintenance and repair of motor vehicles (two establishments); one is a laundry. When in full production, they should employ about 220 men and 270 women. Seven of them have already been completed and two more are in course of construction.
§ Mr. HughesWhile thanking the Minister for that very satisfactory answer, may I ask him if he will bear in mind that considerable unemployment has been caused in Aberdeen by the dismissal of more than 100 workers from the Tullos Factory? Will he do his best to expedite the bringing into operation of new factories at the earliest possible moment?
§ Mr. WilsonYes, Sir, but I would remind my hon. Friend that unemployment is now only about one-fifth or one-sixth of what it was before the war.
§ Mr. HughesI agree.