COALMINERS' HOURS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20623, 23 July 1930, Page 13

COALMINERS' HOURS.

BRITISH LEGISLATION.

LORDS' AMENDMENTS.

PROVISIONAL ACCEPTANCE.

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyriellt (Received July '22, .'>.25 p.m.).

LONDON, July 22,

The House of Commons last evening agreed without division to a motion moved by the president of the Hoard of Trade, Mr. W. Graham, accepting the amendments made to the Coalmines' Bill hv the House of Lords, subject to the condition that the district "spread-over" arrangements must have, the approval of tlio Mining Association of Britain and the "Miners' Federation.

Sir Philip Cunliffe Lister, Conservative member for lfendon, on behalf of the Opposition, accepted tlie condition.

Sir Herbert Samuel, Liberal member for Darwen, Lancashire, said he hoped the arrangement was a good augury for the future settlement of coalmining controversies. The House of Lords on July 15, by 163 votes to 36, carried (ho Marquess of Salisbury's "spread-over" amendment lo the Coal Mines Bill which the Government had refused to accept. Also, the Lords defeated without division a motion for a conference of both Houses. Lord Sun key, tlio Lord Chancellor, said, the Government could not accept the amendment and declared that insistence upon it would cause widespread provocation and resentment.

Lord Salisbury said the amendment mainly concerned the preference by the Lords for a spread-over of 90 hours a fortnight instead of a rigid seven and alialf hours' day. The spread-over would he optional and the miners were by no means unanimously opposed to it. The Lord Chancellor replied thai the proposal in any case could operate only for eight months, and, therefore, it was not, worth the trouble it would cause. The decision placed the Government in the posit ion of having to choose between acceptance of the Lords' proposal or abandonment of the bill. Next day it was announced that the general secretary of the Miners' Federation. Mr. A. •]. Cook, had conferred with the Secretary ol Hie Board ol 'lrade, Mr. W. Graham, and that in order to avert a crisis ami keep the Coal Mines Hill alive the federation had accepted the Government's proposal that, no spreadover scheme, as embodied in the Hou.se of Lords' amendment, should become operative in any district without a decision by the Mining Association and Miners' Federal ion on a national basis.