§ 46. Mr. Thomas Reidasked the Minister of Labour what were the average numbers of registered unemployed during the three and a half years after the first and after the second world war.
§ The Minister of Labour (Mr. Isaacs)Comparable figures are not available for any year before 1921. The average number of insured persons unemployed in Great Britain in 1921 was 1,837,000 and for the three and a half years ending December, 1948, the average was 352,000.
§ Mr. ReidIn view of the unprecedented dislocation of trade and industry which was caused by the last war, and the unprecedented shortages of food and raw materials, how does my right hon. Friend explain the remarkable contrast between this period and the corresponding period after the first world war?
§ Mr. KeelingCan we also have the equally relevant comparison with the third Matabele war?