§ Mr. DAYasked the Minister of Labour whether he can give the figures showing the total number of days for which unemployment benefit under the Unemployment Insurance Acts was paid for the 12 months ended to the last convenient date?
§ Mr. BETTERTONThe total number of days of unemployment for which Unemployment Benefit under the Unemployment Insurance Acts was paid during 1928 was approximately 266,000,000.
1500W
§ Mr. BETTERTONComparable statistics of unemployment are not available in respect of the period before 1921. The following table shows the number of persons on the registers of Employment Exchanges in Great Britain on the first Monday in March in the years 1921 to 1929 inclusive.
and the corresponding figures for Plymouth?
§ Mr. BETTERTONThe following table shows the number of persons on the registers of the Employment Exchanges at Plymouth and Devonport, respectively, on each Monday of February, 1929:
§ Mr. CLARKEasked the Minister of Labour if, when a workman has been in receipt of full compensation and is certified by the company's doctor to be fit for light work, and this is confirmed later by the medical referee, the workman will be entitled to the benefit of the provision made in Form U.I. 221, so as to enable him to have his claim for unemployment insurance benefit accepted as from the date he was first certified or, alternatively, whether he will be allowed to register from that date pending the decision of the medical referee?
1501W
§ Mr. BETTERTONForm U.I. 221 would not be appropriate in the circumstances. The workman should register, as the hon. Member suggests, and make a provisional claim to benefit as soon as the company's doctor has declared him fit for light work.