§ Mr. R. RICHARDSONasked the Prime Minister whether his attention has been drawn to the steadily increasing suffering, poverty, and unemployment in the mining areas, to the growing discontent among the mining popu-
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NUMBER OF MINES abandoned in Scotland during the four years ended September, 1924, 1925, 1926 and 1927, together with the number of persons ordinarily employed thereat. County. 1923–4. 1924–5. 1921–6 1926–7. Total. Number of Mines abandoned. Number of Persons employed. Number of Mines abandoned. Number of Persons employed. Number of Mines abandoned. Number of Persons employed. Number of Mines abandoned. Number of Persons employed. Number of Mines abandoned. Number of Persons employed. Ayr 3 82 7 543 7 124 7 328 24 1,077 Clackmannan 2 3 — — — — — — 2 3 Edinburgh 1 63 2 202 2 173 4 657 9 1,095 Fife 1 3 7 1,442 2 631 3 319 13 2,395 Haddington — — 1 163 — — — — 1 163 Kinross — — 1 252 — — — — 1 252 Lanark 20 1,115 18 1,436 20 831 47 1,941 105 5,323 Linlithgow 4 266 1 48 — — 1 69 6 383 Stirling 2 131 4 296 3 211 8 299 17 937 Total 33 1,663 41 4,382 34 1,970 70 3,613 178 11,628 The above figures do not include mines temporary closed. Details of such mines could only be given with reference to a particular date. lation owing to the failure to take vigorous action to effect a remedy, and to the probability of a new and grave crisis arising in the near future; whether the Cabinet has considered the situation; and what steps he proposes to take to meet the emergency?
§ The PRIME MINISTERI am aware generally of the circumstances of the coal-mining industry. The difficulty is mainly an economic one dependent on world supply and demand and which Government intervention can do nothing to remove except by fostering such measures as it thinks will tend to restore trade at home and between this and other countries.
The Mining Industry Act, 1926, included everything which the Government considered could be done directly by legislation for the industry, but we are watching the situation continuously and will take any other action which appears useful and practicable.