BRITISH INDUSTRY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17228, 7 April 1930, Page 7

BRITISH INDUSTRY

REMEDIAL MEASURES DISCUSSION IN COMMONS UNEMPLOYMENT PROBLEM (British Official Wireless.) Ree. 10 a. ill. RUGBY, April 6. In the course of the debate on unemployment in the House of Commons. Sir Arthur Steel-Maitland, Minister of Labor in the late Conservative Governinonr, suggested as a remedial measure that the selling of British goods on the instalment system might he developed in simic .European countries. Ji,‘ pointed out I hat where the instalment system was developed there was an enormous extension of sales, and in some European markets the system was onlv in its infancy.

Sir Arthur also pointed out that while the price of British goods was sometimes 'higher than those of their competitors, .British credit was cheaper in this cnunlTy than abroad. Could not this cheapness of credit be used to set off the dearness in price.’ Air. .). 11. Thomas, Minister in charge of unemployment, said undoubtedly there were distinct advantages in cheap money, ami he assured Sir Arthur Steel-. Mail land that that side of the question was not being ignored.

Referring {o a statement, made in the press that a company- with a capital of 16,000,000 was being formed under the auspices of the Bank of England to help industry, Air. Thomas said this was premature. He could, however, inform the House that he was taking steps to implement the. speech which he recently made at Manchester in which he announced that financial authorities were co-operating to find the necessary money to assist industries. He would take the earliest opportunity of taking the country and Parliament into Ids confidence in what he believed would be a real development in the relationship of business and finance.

Air. Thomas added that he had been urged to cease the publication ot figures of the unemployed, which gave a distorted retiec.tion of affairs and did this country incalculable harm. He mentioned that under the recent extension of unemployment, insurance many people had claimed the benefit who were not entitled to it. I’hev included hundreds of thousands of married women who had not been employed for eight or 10 years, and who temporarily swelled the unemployment figures.