SUBSIDY REFUSED

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 140, 11 December 1930, Page 10

SUBSIDY REFUSED

WORK AT THAMES

MAYOR INDIGNANT

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.) THAMES, This Day. Strong comment was made by the Mayor at last night's meeting of the Borough Council when a letter was read from the Unemployment Board refusing a subsidy towards work that would help the unemployed of the town, which now number 150 married men and also a number of single men. The Mayor said that there was no more deserving case than that of Thames. All the borough could spare was £.100 towards tho cost of a sea wall which was badly eroded by tho waves, threatening the main highway. Tho estimated cost of the work was £900. The Highways Board had made a grant of £200 towards this, so the borough had asked the Unemployment Board for a two for one subsidy on £300, but this had been refused. Oui: oil a working population of possibly 1500 at Thames there were 150 married men on tho vorgo of starving, yet they could not obtain relief. It looked as if '.only those local bodies which, .had credit

balances could obtain relief. Most of the small towns wero left out in the cold. Last week ho had wired Mr. Ransom, who had promised that 30 unemployed would be put on to road work, but no authority had yet arrived. The Mayor said he was besieged with men wanting work.

The council resolved to again telegraph to Mr. Ransom, and also the Unemployment Board, asking if there were any special conditions regarding subsidies, pointing out that the proposed work was nearly all labour, and also that it was worth nearly &1 a week for each man more than road work in the backblocks.