§ 36. Mr. G. Jegerasked the Minister of Labour how many coal miners from the closed pit at Thorne are still unemployed; 26 and what steps are being taken to find suitable employment for them.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodThere are 128 workers from Thorne colliery registered as unemployed. One hundred and fifteen of these are over 60 and 12 of the remaining 13 are registered disabled persons. My local officers will do what they can to help to find suitable employment, but there is a scarcity of light work in the area.
§ Mr. JegerIn view of the fact that this is a class of person, displaced from a job at a colliery which has been closed for two years, for whom it is most difficult to find employment, will the Minister take special steps to deal with these few men who have given a lifetime's service to a very dangerous industry, or are they now apparently to be thrown on the scrapheap?
§ Mr. MacleodIt is not true to say that they are being thrown on the scrap-heap. The Answer covered 127 out of 128 and a great number are over 65 and will probably retire when redundancy pay expires. I agree that this is a special problem and I will call for a report on it.