THE UNEMPLOYED

Hokitika Guardian, 24 November 1932, Page 5

THE UNEMPLOYED

2,000,000 AT HOME

GOVERNMENT TACKLES QUESTION

(United Press A-eociation —By Electric 1 lelegrapn —Copyright.; LONDON, Novembo r 23. It is understood from the King’s speech and Mi* -viacDoaa.d’s stateniein. tuat the Government is tackling the unemployment from a new angie. Hitlierto —e question has been associated with the tailing world trade, the so-called blizzard,” and the temporary collapse of basic industries, and it lias been assumed that the unemployed would' be absorbed when better times cable.

The Government .appears to have now realised that a uarge amount of the. unemployment is destined to be permanent, owing to the vast daily displacements which are due to the increasing extensions of machinery; the cessation of British migration, the over-manning in many of the industries, as for example coal; the displacements due to the reductions in armaments and in warship, construction,; add j not the least, to the postwar invasion by women of the Labour market, thus practioally doubling the total supply of labour. Mr MacDonald states'that, even when trado is as busy as anyone can expect it to become, there will be a residum of the country’s population which, if they were not human beings, might be described as “scrap.” The Government, he said, were determined' not to allow this residum—which Mr MacDonald says will perhaps amount to two million men and women—to become “superfluous scrap.” Therefore, he says, the Government regards the problem of unemployment as not being a matter of temporary relief., 1 'Mr Neville Chamberlain (Chancellor of the Exchequer) had previously mentioned the figure of one million who possibly would he permanently unemployed. The Archbishop of Canterbury said that it was a shock fo him to learn this from the Chancellor, and’ added : “It surely is impossible that we shall •acquiesce in such a- permanent burden on the social'.life of the nation.” 'Thie newspapers foreshadow vast Government plans to help the unemployed. It has been decided to divide the country into areas, each with an organiser to provide work in centres and on allotments, also physicial training, and educational facilities to settle youths on the land.

RECENT RIOTS IN ENGLAND X ——. .. MISREPORTED IN AMERICA.

RUGBY, ‘November 22. Lord Hailsham, speaking at the Anglo-American Pilgrims’",. Club, at '§f London, called attenion to news and pictures which had appeared in certain American newspapers, purporting to show the unemployed creating riots outside of Buckingham palace. He said: “These pictures were not taken in 1932, but in 1928. Instead of re- ,• presenting a riotous, starving mob .attempting to enter Buckingham Palace in an effort to make protests to the Sovereign, they represent, in fact,

the anxiety of many thousands of Brit-

ish citizens who gathered at Buckingham Palace, when the health of the King was in danger.” Llord Hailsham protested against this as a flagrant attempt, to misrepresent the conditions in Britain. , He paid a warm tribute to American C'onsuk-General in London -for, giving a faithful account cf British events land sentiments. He said: “There never has been a' time, when it has been more important that Britain and America should understand one another. As the two nations during the war protected civilisation from a violent death, they have now to protect the economic world from equally certain disaster.” '

CANADIAN INSURANCE SCHEME.

OTTAWA, November 22. The Prime Minister of Canada, Mr Bennett, announced in the House of Commons on Tuesday that a scheme of contributory unemployment' insurance would he considered 1 iat"a conference of the Dominion and Provincial Governments during the approaching Parliamentary recess.