THE HOUSE OF COMMONS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20330, 11 February 1928, Page 11

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS

ADDRESS-IN-REPLY DEBATE. A LABOUR AMENDMENT. (Fiesi Association—By Telegraph—Copyright j LONDON, February 9. Mr Henderson moved a Labour amendment to the Address-in-Reply, and declared that 250,000 miners would never again be required in the. coalfields. The position in South Wales was unprecedentedly bad. The Eight Hours Act was the direct means of adding 100,000 to the unemployed, and without its repeal there would never be good relations between tne miners and owners. Personally, he believed that the nation, as a whole, was in a worse position than it was in 1914.—A. and N.Z. Cable, MINISTER OF HEALTH REPLIES, UNEMPLOYMENT NOT GENERAL. LONDON, February 10. (Received Feb. 11, at 0.45 a.m.) Mr Neville Chamberlain (Minister of Health), replying, said it was fallacio is to blame ’ the Eight Hours Act for the increase in unemployment. The Act educed the price of coal by 2s 8d per on, and resulted in more being mined and marketed. Unemployment was not general but was concentrated in the basic industries—coal, iron, and steel—in which there was a permanent surplus of labour. The Ministry of Labour was operating several training schemes with a view to the transference of men from the black spots ..if unemployment to other districts and other employment. Ninety-two per cent, of those trained in woodwork, plastering, and painting had/ obtained work, and nearly 2000 miner trainees had gone to the dominions. Mr R. C. Wallhead (Labour) said: ft Was a rather cruel joke to throw them into the competitive market after a few weeds’ training in new occupations.—A. and N.Z. Cable.