§ Mr. MARDY JONESasked the Secretary for Mines whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that, whilst during the first quarter of 1923, 1,138,000 miners, in 1924, 1,186,000 miners, in 1925, 1,134,000 miners, were employed in British coal mines, the number of unemployed miners for the same period in 1923 was 43,000, in 1924 was 26,000, in 1925 was 147,000; whether his attention has been called to the fact that the increase of about 100,000 of unemployed miners in 1925 has occurred in the older areas of our coalfields, whilst a corresponding number of skilled men have been employed in the newer and developing mining areas, drawn largely from the adjoining agricultural districts; and will he state what steps the Government are taking to arrange that mine labour in the developing mining areas can be recruited from the skilled miners now unemployed in the older areas of our coalfields?
§ Mr. BETTERTONI have been asked to reply. Although the figures mentioned in the first part of the question are not strictly comparable, substantially the position is as represented by the hon. Member, but the increase in unemployment is not confined to the older and less favourably situated areas. I have no power to limit the sources from which any employer may recruit labour, but my Department is continuously trying, in co-operation with the various miners' associations, to transfer coalmining labour from areas where unemployment has been continuously heavy to expanding areas requiring additional workpeople. Considerable success has been achieved, but there are substantial difficulties in the way of housing accommodation and otherwise to be faced in transferring men, particularly older married men.