§ Mr. Grovesasked the Minister of Labour whether he is informed of the rejection by the Unemployment Assistance Board of the transfer to them of numbers of men in West Ham, now in receipt of outdoor relief, who have lost their employment during recent years through general trade depression; whether he is aware that such rejection imposes a heavy financial burden on the local authority; and whether he will consider introducing legislation instructing the Unemployment Assistance Board to accept responsibility for all able-bodied persons under 65 years of age who, but for industrial depression in the district in which they reside, might reasonably have expected to have been in employment?
§ Mr. E. BrownThe qualifications bringing persons within the scope of the Unemployment Assistance Board are statutorily defined in Section 36 (1) of the Unemployment Assistance Act, 1934. A decision on each application is given in the first instance by the Board's Officer and there is a right of appeal against this decision by the applicant, or by the Public Assistance authority, to the Chairman of the Appeal Tribunal who is appointed by the Minister and not by the Board. I know of no ground for suggesting that582W the qualifications laid down in the Act require amendment or that the provisions for their application, particularly if the provision for appeal is fully exercised, are not such as fully to safeguard the position of Local Authorities.