Things That Happen When State Takes Control

Chronicle (Levin), 18 May 1949, Page 3

Things That Happen When State Takes Control

LONDON, May 17. Declaring tliat tlie situation is serious and requires prompt action, a research group of the Fabian Society has published a booklet strongly eritielsing the operation of nationklisation in British eoal mines. The booklet says that while the miners ; faith in the Labour Grovernment is unsliaken, there is an enormous amount of prejudiee and hostility against the Coal Board. "We cannot feeJ that it is desirable or necessary that nationalisation should involve so much friction aiid frustration in the iirst 2i years of its operation," says the report. The conxmittee found that all but two of *88 miners and National Coal Boara ofiicials who were questioned agreed that too many new jobs had been created since the St^ate took control." The most serious eriticLsms related to the failure of eonsultative niaehmery and to a i'eeiing among the workers that they are not given a suffieient share in the running of the industry. The report suggests that the National Coal Board should pay more attention to the ueeessity for informijig the men about the reasons beliind its deeisions and urges that statting and personnel arrangeinents should be thoroughlv overhauled. It also criticises the qualifications of many of the men appointed to executive positions and stresses the need for sucli men lo liave iirst hand knowledge of miners and mining.