COAL MINES BILL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20906, 21 December 1929, Page 13

COAL MINES BILL.

SECOND READING CARRIED,

CLOSE CALL FOR GOVERNMENT.

MAJORITY OF EIGHT VOTES.

(Halted Press Association.)

(Bj Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) LONDON, December 19. The Coal Mines Bill was read a second time by 281 votes to 273.

MR LLOYD GEORGE’S SPEECH,

GROUPING OF PITS FAVOURED,

(British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, December 10. (Received Dec. 20, at 6,5 p.m.) When the debate was continued on the Coal Mjnes Bill to-day Mr Lloyd George, the Liberal Leader, made his eagerlyawaited speech. He declared that, the ®HI Contained ihe worst features of socialism and individualism, without the redeeming features of either, . Two provisions of the Bill of which be approved were those relating to a redaction, of hours and the establishment of a National Wages Board. Nine-tenths of the Bill concerned fixation-of prices and limits tion of output. He contended-that there were' ways -of meeting the deficit on the working of the coal mines. One was the crude method of putting up the prides, and the other was the method of reorgauis ing the industry ‘so as to save in production and distribution. The latter was the method that would benefit the miners and the mine-owners, *>d the country On the whole the Government had chosen the crude, burdensome method, easy but pernicious, of -merely patting up “ho prices, The alternative to putting up the prices was the grouping of the mines in such a way as to save the costs of production and distribution. He now asked the president of the Board of Trade whether the Government would undertake to, introduce into the Bill in committee complete provisions to compel the group ing of th. mines. The answer by Mr Ben Turner (Parliamentary Secretary of Mines) to- Sir Herbert Samuel's question on this point on Tuesday had been that the Government had power in the Bill to appoint commissioners to draw up amalgamation schemes.

Mr Lloyd George insisted! that provisions for compulsory grouping must be in the Bill itself. . This matter was vital, and the Liberals must reserve to them■elves complete freedom to deal with, the matter in committee/

EFFECT OF TEE BILL

BLEEDING OTHER INDUSTRIES,

LONDON, December 19. (Received Dec. ?0, at 10 p.m.) Mr Lloyd George estimated that the Bill would increase the cost of coal; by 8s 6d a ton, which would disastrously affect ’ail exporting industries. Even an advance of 2a 6d Weuld add £600,000 to. the costs of the cotton trade, which was already In a bad way. It was trying to vitalise coalmining by the transfusion of blood from other Industries which, were already anaemic, While for the people it was equivalent; to a hearth tax. Germany’s experience showed that the'grouping ofdolnes druid be effected without-in-creasing coal prices or. reducing the nanolra’"wages. ‘ '• Mr Winston OhurchUl' said that the measure was-most aptly described as the ** Dear Coal Bill.” It was a deliberate attempt to levy a hew indirect tax on the public for the benefit of sectional interests. It would have been fairer and more honest if Mr Snowden had imposed this in the Budget. The money could then have been distributed in accordance with conditions the Government imposed, but instead it was banding over the power to extract £30,000,000 to £40,000,000 a year from the people to the mine 'owners. It was a Bill for compulsory r profiteering. Mr Ramsay MacDonald, rising amid cheers to conclude! the debate, observed that; Mr Churchill had not lost his romantic Imkgination, but he was personally convinced that the situation which the Opposition tried to, create was political rather than related to the merits of the coal mining problem. The Prime Minister recalled that there had been fallure’after' failure to extricate the coal industry from its difficulties. The House had to remember that before

the trade could be reorganised there moat be some new resources at Sts command. ■ The ■ late Secretary of Mines took up: the. position that so long as the miners got 48s 6d a week they had no business to increase wages if that was likely to increase the price of coal to the consumer by one penny. That was absurd,' and until the House faced the question of the price of coal there would be ho solution of the problem. It was essential that a properly safeguarded body should be allowed to strike the ' real economic ,price of coal, and if the scheme,, of rationalisation was pushed ahead without delay the problem of distribution to individual consumers would be soluble. The effect of the Bill would be to hasten that day. Any amendments -the committee designed to strengthen the Bill would be considered by the Government. Great excitement prevailed as the division was being taken, because Mf Lloyd George’s attack had shown that accommodation between the Government and the Liberals was impossible. ■ The majority, therefore, must be narrow. The Government’s vote included 275 Labourites, two Liberals (Mr G. C. M. 1 Mander and Sir William Edge), four ■ .Independents (Messrs Neil Maclean, J. Devlin, T. J, S. Harbiaon, and E, Scrymgeour). ' ri/. The Labour Party’s strength is 289, remaining 14 being accounted for as i, follows:—-Absent and paired in favour ,v °» the Bill. 10, tellers 2, officials not entitled to vote 2 » The minority (273) consisted of about * 230 Conservatives, more than 40 Liberals, •and one Independent (Dr £. Graham Little). This is the highest vote the ' S° n f. crvatives have £l ven in the present . Parliament, the previous best being 222, .■ Pnlji 14 Conservatives were absent and t .jehaceomrted for. Ten paired against ’ ‘the Bill., Fire Liberals abstained (Mr Walter Runbiman, Sir Donald Maclean, Messrs Leif Jones, Percy Harris, and Duncan Millar). . The announcement of the result visas'greeted with loud Conservative JKuts of “Resign! ”

COMMENT BY DAILY TELEGRAPH.

“A BEGGARLY MAJORITY.”

- LONDON. December 20. (Received Dec. 20, at 11.50 p.m ) The Daily Telegraph’s political contributor says; “Although the Governscraped through on the coal divir sion it was the opinion in the lobby that its proposals suffered moral defeat. The beggarly majority of eight In support of the principal measure of the session demonstrated clearly that Parliament distrusts the Government’s handling of the coal problem.