§ Mr. GRANVILLE GIBSONasked the Minister of Labour the respective numbers of partially and totally unemployed, respectively, in the woollen and textile industry of the West Riding of Yorkshire for the months of December in 1914, 1928, 1929, and 1930?
§ Mr. LAWSONThe following table gives the numbers of insured persons classified as belonging to the wool textile industry recorded as unemployed at Employment Exchanges in the West Riding of Yorkshire at the dates stated below; corresponding statistics for December, 1914, are not available.
Agricultural Land (Utilisation) Bill, my hon. Friend will realise that in addition to the unemployed persons who will be provided with holdings, labour will be required in connection with the work of equipping the new holdings, including the erection of houses and agricultural buildings, the provision of water supply, drainage, etc. The manufacture and provision of the materials for such work will also employ labour. As regards Part I of the Bill, labour will also be required as a result of the operation of the provisions which deal with the reclamation and reconditioning of land. I fear, however, that it is quite impossible to state any estimate of the number of unemployed persons who will be found work, but when the Bill is in full opera- 1165W tion the number will clearly be large, and even in the first year it will, it is hoped, be considerable.