Thomas Tackles Britain’s Most Pressing Problem

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 7059, 6 November 1929, Page 5

Thomas Tackles Britain’s Most Pressing Problem

£42,000,000 FIRST INSTALMENT

Protecting Pensions of Overseas Migrants

British Official Wireless.

jloyment, because it conveyed to the Dominions that we wanted to dump our unemployed there. They resented this.

RUGBY, Nov. s.

la the House of Commons to-day, Jlr. J. H. Thomas, Minister in charge of the unemployment problem, made a statement on tho subject. He recalled that when he first addressed tho House on this question, he indicated that he had no magic cure for the problem. He had made it perfectly clear thou, as he did now, that it was not a temporary problem. If it were, he should be able to deal with it by temporary means.

Many men were not prepared to migrate because their dependents lost their pension rights if the breadwinner died overseas. Many parents were prevented from joining their children overseas, because it meant the loss o their pensions. The Government's Bib removed these anomalies, as well as hardship to widows losing pensions by migrating. He had asked the Canadian wheat pool to face the economic facts. At present, every elevator m Montreal was filled with last year s wheat and 36 ships were lying in harbour, full of unmoved wheat. Ihey could not expect us to send goods to Canada if the ships had to return in ballast. „ ~ Sir L. Worthington Evans said all the schemes Mr. Thomas had outlined ‘would only employ 36,000 men. Ihe Government had disorganised the motor trado by its unwillingness to promise to continue the McKenna duties and owing to losses by New York speculators, there was a danger of the dumping here of motor cars, artificial silk, wireless apparatus and gramophones. . Liberal Castigation.

• Capital had been made of the fact that since this Government came into office unemployment figures had increased by nearly 100,000. He pointed out that when, 12 months ago, the late Government was in once, me figures increased in precisely the same period by 200,000. That merely indicated seasonal changes which were inevitable and not a real test of the unemployment problem.

Broad View of Policy

The first question was how by the expenditure of public money they could find employment in work that in itself would increase the efficiency of the nation and not add to the general burden of industry by dead capital. The second point was how could the' Government increase the import and export trade and stimulate the productive capacity of industry generally? Thirdly, how could the great potentialities of the Empire be developed and encouraged to contribute to both these objects? Mr. Thomas recalled that he had set up a committee composed of representative men of all classes to examine the questions submitted under the first category. In three months the committee had passed various schemes totalling an expenditure of £7,000,000. This 'Was divided between the Great Western Kailway, the London, Midland and SvortisTi Railway, and the Metropolitan Railway. He hoped that legislation would enable the work of Charing Cross station to be begun before May or Juno next, and he trusted that work might be started on the reconditioning of Waterloo bridge before Christmas. Every endeavour was being made to Teach a settlement between the parties concerned whereby a tunnel under the river Thames between Dartford and Purfleet would be constructed. This scheme would involve £3,000,000.

Mr. Lloyd George described Mr. Thomas’s schemes as timid, pusillanimous, unintelligent and only likely to employ one-third of the men who had been added to tho unemployed registiar since Labour came into office. Mr. Jas. Maxton said someone ha.d said Labour was in for 20 years. It would need every hour at its present rate of progress. Mr. Thomas had indicated he had not attempted to advance a solution of the problem on Socialistic lines. One of Mr. Thomas s greatest qualities was that he kne how to change front at the appropriate moment. There never was a more appropriate moment than now to turn from capitalistic philosophy. Ho was granting £40,000,000 to the capitalists land a similar amount would not be ton I much to put directly into the poexets of the unemployed, which was the only way to solve the problem. Sir O. Mosley replied to the debate. Ho detailed a number of arrangements with municipalities for works such as water supply, which were intermediate between revenue producing and nonrevenue producing schemes. In these cases, the Government was grants to 41 per cent of interest, com pared with the previous 26 per cent granted to municipalities. The House agreed to the vote.

Overseas Development

In the attempt to speed up the development of the Colonial Empire £3,000,000 was to be spent on the Zambesi, and it was estimated that this would provide employment in this country for 50,000 men. The total expenditure of all the schemes mentioned would be £42,000,000 with other schemes _ under review, continued Mr. Thomas, involving many millions of pounds. With regard to his visit to Canada, the Minister said he told the Canadians that we were their best customers for their/natural products, and that for every £1 they spent with us they spent £5 with the United States. He concentrated on coal. Canada imported 16,000,000 tons of American coal last year. We knew wo could not hope to compete with the wholo 16,000,000 tons. Separate Problems. It was a profound mistake to mix the questions of migration and unem-

Achievement Far Short of Promise

"BETTER MAN NEEDED."

Received Tuesday 8.30 p.rn. LONDON, Nov. 5.

Mr G. H.-Thomas’s speech is generally regarded in the House of Commons and by the Press as disappointing. It contained no surprise, while tho actual or promised achievement is far short of what many of the Government supporters had hoped. The Daily News suggests that Mr Ramsay MacDonald should give Mr Thomas another job and appoint a better man in his place. The Daily Herald, in an editorial, is not enthusiastic, but says tho statement shows the hard, gruelling job is being tackled with a thoroughness that is bound to bring success.