§ Mr. BOWERMANasked the President of the Board of Trade, if he is aware that the Sugar Beet Company, through the Norwich labour exchange, recently advertised for 400 agricultural labourers in Norfolk, one-fourth being required in the Fakenham district, and that over 100 filled in forms issued by the labour exchange for that district; that the applicants met the manager of the company at Fakenham last month, paying their own railway expenses, but that only 10 have been engaged, whereas 150 Dutch labourers have been imported into that district; and whether he will cause inquiries to be made into the reasons that induced the Norwich labour exchange to advertise for so many labourers?
Mr. ROBERTSONI am informed that 400 vacancies for skilled labour, in connection with the growing of beet, were recently notified to the Norwich exchange, and that details of the qualifications of 54 applicants, to whom the conditions of the work had been fully explained, were forwarded to the employer's agent. Most of these applicants are understood to have been interviewed by the agent, and 36 of them have been reported to the exchange-as engaged or approved for engagement. The Board of Trade have no information to show whether they were put to the expense of railway fares in attending for interview. The Board understand that about 100 Dutch labourers, experienced in the growing of beet, have been engaged temporarily (not through the labour exchange) and distributed in the beet-growing area, with a view to their instructing the local labourers. I have no reason to doubt that the action of the Norwich 1637W exchange in this matter has been quite regular and proper.