LANCASHIRE COTTON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20627, 28 July 1930, Page 9

LANCASHIRE COTTON.

POSITION IN INDUSTRY.

PROBLEM OF ORGANISATION

(Received .Tidy 27, 0 5 p.m.) British Wireless. IU.'OUY. July 20. In tho course of a debate in flic House of Commons the President of the Board of Trade, Mr. AY Graham, referred to the position in the Lancashire cotton irade. The Minister said the boycott of cotton goods in India had brought a part of that trade to a standstill and the conditions in the Far East had aggravated the position. He referred to the more recent, report of the Cotton Committee, which recommended that amalgamations and co-operative organisations should be set on a good basis. One of the greatest tragedies of the cotton trade had been (lie segregation of the different parts of the industry and the necessity of those parts which were relatively strong financially coming to llie assistance of other parts which greatly needed help. The quest ion was whether (lie necessary organisation for these different sections could l>e made on the basis which the report bad suggested without bringing about an element of compulsion. At piesonf the Government was most anxious that, tho j"i'it committee, representative fit' (he employers and the trades unions in the industry, should proceed as rapidly as possible with its analysis of (he report and with tho consideration of every step which could be taken to give effect to its recoinrnend.itions.

The Government preferred that the Lancashire cotton industry should do this voluntarily without legislative interference. Legislation of that kind, however, would be necessary in the event of tho 10grettable failure of the effort to promote fusion on the lines of what had been done in other industries in Britain. The Manchester Guardian advises the cotton trade to take note of this speech. It savs: "We share Mr. Graham's hope that it will not be necessary to invoke any legislation to deal with problems which are generally best, solved by those actively engaged in the industry concerned, but it rests entirely with the industry to prove that it. can manage iis own affairs without outside assistance."

Various sections of the cotton trade ore now discussing tlip committee » report.