§ Mr. RAPERasked the Secretary for Mines if he will circulate at the earliest possible moment to the Members of both Houses statistics showing what is the average wage per week which has been paid during the last six months to each class of worker in the coal-mining industry in each district in the United Kingdom, and state on how many days' work per week these figures are calculated, giving in each case the corresponding figure proposed in the owners' latest offer?
§ Mr. BRIDGEMANI would refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave to a similar question put to me by the hon. and gallant Member for Dulwich (Sir F. Hall) this afternoon.
§ Mr. HURDasked the Prime Minister whether, seeing the important part played in the mining controversy by a misapprehension of the Board of Trade index figure of the cost of living, he will explain the extent of its applicability to miners, in view of the general practice of the industry to supply coal to miners either free or at nominal prices, thus exempting the miners from the ordinary working-class household expenditure on coal which the index figure includes at the pre-War rate of 1s. 6d. to 2s. a week?
§ Sir M. BARLOWI have been asked to reply. Where coal is supplied to miners free, the cost of coal does not enter into their family expenditure, and the percentage increase in such cases would be the percentage increase in the cost of other items. The average increase in the cost of the items included in the statistics, excluding only coal, is only slightly less than the average increase in the cost of all the items, including coal; and the difference in the average percentage756W increase being less than one-half of a point.
§ Major GLYNasked the Secretary for Scotland whether he is aware that the foreign element existing amongst Scottish miners is mainly responsible for a great deal of the present disorder in certain parts of Scotland; whether he can take steps to prevent Poles, Lithuanians, and others from assuming Scottish names; and whether he has power to order the deportation of any foreign-born agitator who is found guilty of spreading, disaffection?
§ Mr. MUNROThe information at present before me does not lead me to think that the foreign element among Scottish miners can be regarded as mainly responsible for a large proportion of the present, disorder. As regards the second and third parts of the question, the position is that under Section 7 of the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act, 1919, an alien is prohibited from changing his name unless he obtains from the Home Secretary an exemption from this prohibition. Exemptions are granted only on special grounds, and when the Home Secretary is satisfied that the new name is in the circumstances of the case a suitable name. Under Article 12 of the Aliens Order, 1920, the Home Secretary has power to deport aliens who are recommended for deportation by any Court before which they are convicted, and also in other cases where he deems it to be conducive to the public good to make a Deportation Order.