Unemployment Assistance Act, 1934.

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at on 21 July 1936.

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Photo of Sir William Boulton Sir William Boulton , Sheffield Central

After the speeches that we have heard from the Opposition, and particularly the speech of the right hon. Member for Wakefield (Mr. Greenwood), it seems to me necessary that in approaching this subject we should realise that it is one of the most complicated and delicate problems with which any Government Department could have to deal. This is a great human problem that affects not only one section of the community, but three: the unemployed, those that are in work and the community as a whole—if you like, the taxpayer. I would remind hon. Members opposite that the solution of this problem calls for justice combined with courage, sympathetic imagination and a clear understanding, in arriving at that happy medium of giving as adequate provision as possible to those in need, tempered with justice and fairness to those more fortunate who are in work and those who have to find the wherewithal.

The speeches of hon. Members opposite seemed to me to ignore these conditions. It is easy to wax eloquent on such a subject as this and to raise cheers and the feelings of those directly concerned, but we have to face realities, and disagreeable though it is, I feel it to be the responsibility and the duty of every hon. Member that we should explain to the unemployed the practical facts of what is and what is not possible. To raise false hopes that cannot be carried out without bringing greater despair and misery in the end to the unemployed, and undermining the whole financial structure, to my mind is both irresponsible and cruel. I am sure that there are hon. Members even on the benches opposite who if they were prepared to give us their true opinion would not deny that these Regulations are an honest attempt to remedy the difficulties which have shown themselves, and that they fulfil the undertaking given in the Government's manifesto at the General Election.

I, for one, wish to congratulate the right hon. Gentleman on having been able to produce a set of Regulations which when, thoroughly understood and administered with sympathetic discretion, which, I think, is the essence of the whole scheme, will be welcomed by the general body of the unemployed. I believe they will remove to a great extent some of the chief grievances and criticisms with which we have been faced. After the existing Regulations were put into operation and we had had a little experience of them I ventured to hand to the late Minister of Labour, a memorandum which, I believe the right hon. Gentleman has also seen, pointing out the defects which I thought were showing themselves, how the Regulations were working too harshly, particularly in connection with the household; the want of greater local co-operation and knowledge, and the necessity for a wider discretion in applying the Regulation to local areas. I also pointed out that greater simplification was wanted. Of course it is impossible for the Minister or anyone else to say with any certainty before they are put into operation that Regulations covering such a vast field will work exactly as intended, but as far as I am able to judge, speaking for my own area and from inquiries I have made, I believe that these improved Regulations—and they undoubtedly have been improved—will go far to meet the criticisms which I made in my memorandum, and in other directions will go still further to meet the criticisms which, I think, have been common in all areas.

I have always held that no scheme will work successfully unless it is divided into definite areas. The conditions vary so much, and wide discretion in applying the Regulations to local circumstances and conditions I believe we have now got. One of the most important things, if we are to make a success of these Regulations, is the personnel of the administration and the advisory committee. I can only speak for the Sheffield area, but if the past administration is any criterion then we have nothing to fear, for the officers there have carried out their most difficult duties with efficiency, sympathy and courage, and I honestly believe have won the confidence of the unemployed themselves.

Much has been said about family life. I am a great believer in family life, but you cannot maintain family life unless families are prepared to pull together. How can it be said that parents and children should not assist one another when it is necessary? If I am out of work and my sons are in work, why should they not be called upon to assist me rather than call upon someone else's sons? The arguments which have been put forward by hon. Members opposite on this matter will really not bear examination. Anyone who has any self-respect—and I am glad to think that the overwhelming majority of the unemployed have self-respect—know and feel just as acutely as any hon. Member in this House on this question. The household under the Regulations has been narrowed down, with few exceptions, to parents and unmarried children. That is as it should be. A more generous allowance for personal needs, particularly in connection with an unemployed parent, removes a real hardship with which I have always had great sympathy. When we come to compare the present Regulations with the draft Regulations, speaking for my own area, we see in almost all cases a marked effect of the change in favour of the unemployed in a way which I cannot help thinking the party opposite never anticipated. When the existing Regulations came into force in 1934 the "Daily Herald" said: A distinct advance in the standard of life on the average of the 1,000,000 unemployed who will receive relief from the Unemployed Insurance Board is promised by the new scales issued last night. That is something to be thankful for. It is more than we hoped and better than we feared. I wonder how long we are to wait before we get another announcement from the "Daily Herald" on the present Regulations. I am not suggesting that they are perfect—[Interruption.] I am a practical man and I am not suggesting that these Regulations do more than provide for the bare necessities of life. We should all like to be more generous if circumstances and conditions would permit. It is true that reductions will unfortunately occur in certain cases if anomalies are to be avoided, but the powers of discretion and the time limit to a great extent mitigate these cases. I have always thought it was a vicious and dangerous principle when parties or local authorities of whatever colour begin to vie with each other in the distribution of public money. I, for one, deplore the fact that this question has been drawn into the arena of party politics, but I am glad to think that we on this side of the House are not guilty of having done so.