“NO MAGIC CURE”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20867, 6 November 1929, Page 9

“NO MAGIC CURE”

UNEMPLOYMENT PROBLEM,

THE POSITION IN BRITAIN,

STATEMENT BY MR THOMAS,

(British Official Wireless.) (United Press Association.) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) RUGBY, November 4. Inthe House of Commons to-day, Mr J. H. Thomas (Minister in Charge of the Unemployment Problem) made a statement bh the subject. He recalled that when he first ; addressed the House on this question he indicated- that he had no magic cure for the problem. He had made it perfectly clear then, as he did now, that it was not a temporary pro blem. ' If it were, ‘he would be able to deal with it by-temporary means. Capital had.been made.of the fact that since the Labour Government came into office the unemployment figures had increased by nearly 100,000. He pointed out that when - 12 months ago the late Government was in office the figures had 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. •

The. Minister, indicated . again to-day the broad view on which he had based bis policy. The first 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 rely on the import and export trade and stimulate the productive capacity of industry generally; and third, how ccnjld the great potentialities of the Empire bo developed and encouraged to contribute to both these objects? Mr Thomas recalled that he had set tip a committee composed of representative men of all classes to examine 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 Railway, the London, Midland, and Scottish Railway, and the Metropolitan Railway He said he hoped that legislation would enable the work of the Charing Cross station to he begun before May or June next, and he trusted that work might be started on the reconditioning of Waterloo Bridge, even before Christmas. endeavour. was being made to reach a settlement between the parties concerned by which a tunnel under the River Thames, between Hartford and Purfleet; would, be constructed. This scheme involved an expenditure .of £3,000,000. In an - attempt to speed up 1 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 60,000 men. The total expendi ture of all the schemes mentioned- would be £42,000,000. Otherschemes were under review, continued Mr Thomas, involving many millions of pounds. With regard to his visit to Canada he said he had told the Canadians that we were the best customers for their natural products. For every £1 they spent with us' they spent £5 with the United States. He had concentrated on coal. Canada imported 16,000,000 tons of American coal hist year. He knew we could not hope to obtain orders for the whole 16, 000,000 tons. In the St. Law rence area 12,250,000 tons of American coal were used, and on that he bad conj-. centrated. Even years ago this-country, for a time sent hard coal to' Canada; It was a profound mistake to mix the questions of migration and unemployment 1 because it conveyed to the dominions the idea-that-we wanted to dump our unemployed there, and they resented this. Many men were not prepared to migrate because their dependents lost their pension rights if the breadwinner died overseas, and many parents-were prevented from joining their children overseas because it meant the loss of the pensions. The Government’s Bill removed these anomalies as well as the hardship to widows in losing their pensions by migrating. He had asked the Canadian wheat pool to face economic, facts. At present every elevator in Montreal was filled with last year’s wheat and 36 ships were lying in harbour full of unmoved wheat. They could not eSpect ns. to send goods to Canada if the ships had to return in ballast. Sir L. Worthington Evans (Con.) said that all the schemes Mr, Thomas had outlined would only employ 36,000 men. The Government had disorganised the motor trade by its unwillingness to ■ .P ro . miße to continue the M*Kenna duties. Owing to losses by New York speculators thera was a danger of the dumping here of motor- ears, artificial silk, wireless apparatus and gramophones. Mr Lloyd George (Lib.) described Mr Thomas s schemes as timid, pusillanimous, unintelligent, and only likely to employ one-third of-the men who had been added to the unemployed register j since Labour came into office. Mr J. Maxton (Lab.) said that someone had said that Labour was in for 20 years. They would need every hour at the rate of progress that Mr Thomas 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 knew how to change front at an appropriate moment. There was never a more appropriate moment than now to turn from capitalistic philosophy. He was granting £40,000,000 to the capitalists, and a similar amount would not be too much to put directly into the pockets of the unemployed men, which was the only way ,to solve the problem. Sir Oswald Mosley (Lab.) replied to the debate. He detailed a number of arrangements with municipalities for works, such as water supply, which were intermediate between the revenue producing and the non-revenue producing schemes. In these cases the Government was increasing the grants to 41 per cent, of the interest, compared with the I*. rev ?.°V s P er cent, granted to municipalities. The House agreed to the vote.

OPINION IN THE HOUSE. THE SPEECH DISAPPOINTING. LONDON, November 5. (Recurved Nov. 5, at 10 p.m.) Mr Thomas’s speech is generally rein the House of Commons and by the press as disappointing. It contained no surprise, while actual or promised achievement is far short of what many of the Government’s supporters hoped. The Daily News suggests that Mr 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 it says that thu statement shows that the hard, gruelling job is being tackled with a thoroughness that is bound to bring success.