§ Captain BULLOCKasked the Minister of Labour if she will reconsider her decision not to take the necessary steps to ascertain the number of aliens in receipt of unemployment benefit, seeing that, if such information is not available at the Employment Exchanges, it is impossible to prove that preference in the provision of employment is assured to British as opposed to alien workers?
§ Miss BONDFIELDThe Unemployment Insurance Acts do not apply any special conditions to aliens in respect either of the payment of contributions or the receipt of benefit. For the purpose of the administration of the Unemployment Insurance scheme, therefore, it is not necessary to inquire into the question of nationality. As regards offers of employment, it would obviously be impracticable to ascertain the nationality of applicants in all cases; the Exchanges are, however, instructed to do so if there is reason to believe that the applicant is not of British nationality, and where in such cases the applicant is found to be an alien who has resided in the United Kingdom for less than six months he is not to be submitted for any vacancy if suitable British subjects are on the register. The number of such persons on the register could be ascertained with some expenditure of labour, but the figures thus obtained would be incomplete and I do not see that any sufficient advantage would be secured by obtaining them.