IN THE COMMONS

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XIX, Issue 83, 26 March 1929, Page 5

IN THE COMMONS

AMENDMENT TO CIVIL ESTIMATES

PROTEST AGAINST UNEMPLOYMENT POLICY,

SEVEN-HOUR DAY BLAMED.

[United Preu Auoclutlon-JBy CablaCopyriglii.J [Australian Preu Awn.—United Service.) (Received 27, 2.5 p.m. ( London, March 26. In the House of Commons, Mr. D. R. Grenfell (Lab., Gower) moved ail amendment to the Civil Estimates as a protest against the Government’s unemployment policy. He asserted that the seven-hour day was the chief cause of unemployment iu the mining industry and that those out of work were being driven to vagabondage, degradation and demoralisation. They had failed to receive a welcome in Canada, where those departing outnumbered the immigrants. Canada and Australia, before settlement by the whites, maintained few peoplp because they were hard countries to live in. The Hon. Sir A. I). Steel Maitland, replying, criticised the absence of'Mr. Lloyd George in view of the latter’s grandiose pledge to cure unemployment. Since the Government had been in office unemployment had been reduced from 10.9 per cent, to 10.3. Mr. George's schemes were absolutely impossible. Neither of t>io opposition parties’ projects went to the root of unemployment, which was chiefly due to the failing off in emigration, which threw an extra 300,000 or 400,000 on the labour market, and tho decline in foreign trade, which was responsible for 1 00.000 to 800,000 being workless. Thq amendment was defeated. ASSISTED MIGRANTS to N.Z.

British capital invested

[Australian Press Assn.-United Service.] [United Press Association—By Cable— Copyright. 1

(Received 26, 12.15 p.m.) London, March 25 In the House of Commons, replying to Mr H. Day (Lab., South wink), the Hon. L. M. Amery said that he had not heard that some of the assisted migrants to New Zealand .'ere anxious to return to England, hnr. ing found that they had been mislead regarding their prospects there. Replying to Mr E. T. Campbell (Cons., Camberwell), who urged that the Empire Marketing Bou.d should encourage the preference investment of capital in the Empire. M- Amery said that statistics showed that after the war tne times as much British capital had been invested in the Empire as iu foreign countries. Replying to Col C. Malone (Lab., Nqrthants), the Fostmascer-Geneial said that negotiations were weR a 1vanced as to the terms, license and other details of the Wireless and Cables Communications Company. Terms as to the rental of the beam services had not yet been agreed upon. There would be provision that the Post Office, if it desired that, be at liberty to use the beams for telephony The Rt. Hon. L. M. Amery said, in regard to Irish Free State criticsm of the composition of the Council of State appointed during the King’s illness, that it had been agreed that the matter would be best discussed at the next Imperial Conference.