BY EIGHT VOTES

Taranaki Daily News, 21 December 1929, Page 9

BY EIGHT VOTES

LABOUR’S CLOSE CALL EXCITEMENT IN COMMONS DIVISION ON COAL BILL A UNITED OPPOSITION By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. Rec. 9.15 p.m. London, Dec. 19. The Coal Mines Bill was read a second time in the House of Commons by 281 votes to 273. When the debate was resumed Mr. Lloyd George, the Liberal Leader, made his eagerly awaited speech. He declared that the Bill contained the worst features of Socialism and individualism without the redeeming features of either. Two provisions of the Bill which he approved were those relating to reduction of hours and 'he establishment of the National W 4 ages Board. The Bill was an owners’ measure pure and simple with the object of raising prices and limiting output. He estimated that the Bill would increase the cost of coal by 3s 6d a ton, which would disastrously affect all the exporting industries. Even an advance of 2s 6d would add £600,000 to the costs of the cotton trade, which was already in a bad way. The Bill, Mr. Lloyd George declared, was trying to vitalise the coal mining industry by transfusion of blood from other industries that ' were already anaemic, while for the people it was equivalent to a hearth tax. Germany’s experience showed that grouping of mines could be effected without increasing coal prices and reducing miners’ wages. Mr. Winston Churchill said the measure was most aptly described as the dear coal Bill. It was a deliberate attempt to levy a new 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 the conditions the Government imposed, but instead it was handing over to the mine owners power to extract £30,000,000 to £40,000,000 a year from the people. It was a Bill for compulsory profiteering. PRIME MINISTER’S REPLY. The Prime Minister, Mr. Ramsay MacDonald, rising, amid cheers to conclude the debate, observed that Mr. Churchill had not lost his romantic imagination, but he personally was convinced that the situation which the Opposition tried to create was more political than related to the merits of the coal mining problem. The Prime Minister recalled that there had been failure after failure to extricate the coal industry from its difficulties. The House had to remember that before the trade could be re-organised there must be some new resources at its command. The late Secretary for Mines took the position that as long as the miner got 48s 6d a week he had no business to increase wages if that were likely to increase the price of coal to the consumer by a penny. That was absurd. Until the House faced the question &f the price of coal there would be no solution of the problem. It was essential, he continued, that a properly safeguarded body should be allowed to strike a real' economic price for coal. If the scheme of rationalisation were pushed ahead without delay the problem of distribution to the individual consumer would be soluble. The effect of the Bill would be to hasten that day. Any amendments the House in committee designed to strengthen the Bill would be considered by the Government, the Prime Minister added. Great excitement prevailed as the division was being taken, because Mr. Lloyd George’s attack had shown that accommodation between the Government and the Liberals was impossible and the majority therefore must be narrow. The Government’s vote included 275 Labourites, two Liberals (Mr. Manner and Sir William Edge), and four Independents (Messrs. Neil Mac Lean, Devlin, Harbison and Scrymgeour. The Labourites’ party strength is 289 and the remaining 14 were accounted for as follows: —Absent, paired in favour of the Bill, 10; tellers, two; occupying official positions disentitling them to vote, two. The minority of 273 consisted of about 230 Conservatives, more than 40 Liberals and one Independent (Mr. Graham Little). This is the highest vote the Conservatives have given in the present Parliament, the previous best being 222. Only 14 Conservatives were absent and unaccounted for. Ten paired against the Bill. Five Liberals abstained from voting— Mr. W. Runciman, Sir Donald Mac Lean, Mr. Leif Jones, Mr, Percy Harris and Mr. Duncan MillarThe announcement of the result was greeted with low Conservative shouts of “Resign.” The Daily Telegraph’s political contributor says that although the Government scraped through the division, it was the opinion in the lobby that theGovernment’s proposals suffered a 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 eoa] problem,