THE COAL MINES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 246, 11 July 1919, Page 8

THE COAL MINES

NATIONALISATION SCHEMES DEFENCE OF BOARD OF TRADE PROPOSALS The acting-chairman of 'ho Board of .Trade, Mr. W. S. M.'Dontld, made some comment yesterday on the attitude of kho Federation of Labour towards the recommendations of the board regarding a measure of nationalisation in the coalmining industry. The resolutions of the conference of the federation was as follow:—

"That this conference declares that the only' solution of the coa) problem is in the public ownership and control of the mining, transportation, and distribution of coal, with adequate representation of the workers on the board cr hoards of control, and therefore condemns the proposals for the private control of the mining industry with State guarantee of dividends to pYivate shareholders, as embodied in the Board «f Trade report."

Mr. M'Donald slates Hint apparently the Labour Conference misunderstood the board's proposal. The Labour Conference pronounced in favour of public ownership, whilst the board's report states that after fully considering all relevant arguments iho board' is ot opinion that some form of nationalisation is urgently./ needed as an essential step towards removing shortcoming* of long standing, elfecting needed improvements of a positive kind, and avoiding evils that threaten to linn the industry out of the course : of healthy and sane development.

The' Labour Conference, says Mr. M'Donald, condemns (he propositi of State guarantee of interest to 'private shareholders. If tiie Labour Conference's proposal for public ownership is adopted, it involves confiscation, or purchase, by the State, of the propprty of the present shareholders. Mr. M'Donakl said that he did not believe that the Labour Conference seriously proposed that the present shareholders' i ropcrty should be confiscated, and that therefore their proposal'amounted to State purchase. To effect this, the State would necessarily have to borrow the money, and in borrowing the money', it would have to guarantee, payment of interest. The essential difference between the Labour Conference's proposal and the Board of Trade's scheme is that the interest in the one case is paid to bondholder for merely providing the capital, whilst the board's scheme • would provide shareholders having a direct incentive to see ■ that tho enterprise of coal. production and distribution was efficiently conducted.