I beg to move, in page 1, line 6, to leave out "persons of either sex," and to insert "males."

I move this Amendment for the purpose of deleting the reference to the conscription of women from this Bill and so that those of us who oppose this innovation may be able to raise our voices in protest against conscripting women, either for the Forces or for industry. So far as I know, this is the first time in the long history of this country that any conscription of women has ever been suggested, and I am not so sure that I am not right when I say that we are the first civilised country in the whole world to propose that women should be conscripted. These two factors must weigh with every Member of the House of Commons. We are actually taking the initiative in doing this thing. I understand that the Nazis themselves, who do not claim, as we do, that they are fighting for freedom, have attempted to conscript women in Germany and that the attempt failed. I hope the Minister of Labour will not mind my telling him that where the Nazis have failed to compel women, I cannot see how we can hope to succeed.

It may appear strange that a man should move an Amendment of this kind when there are several women Members of the House. But the reason for that is obvious. Men have always held women in very much higher esteem than women seem to hold one another. I think that has been true throughout the ages. Let me, however, make one slight protest in passing before I come to the real issue. I have been in this House of Commons for many years, and I very much regret to see one thing happening during this war. I think I am right in saying that when this Government wants a policy adopted by the House of Commons, it first of all secures the help of the daily Press in conducting a campaign in its favour, and then, when it proposes that policy in the House, it assumes that there is a popular clamour for it. I think that is very dangerous in a democratic country like ours. Let me say something else on that subject. One could imagine, from the speeches delivered on this issue in this House, that there is a great demand for the compulsion of women and for this Bill, that there is so much enthusiasm that the people are clamouring to be conscripted on all sides. The simple fact, however, is that, if there was this tremendous enthusiasm for these proposals, the proposals themselves would not be necessary at all.

Let me give the right hon. Gentleman one reason why he does not get married women to go into the factories and workshops. I know a professional man earning £520 per annum. His wife, who is childless, is a very patriotic woman; she goes out to work and earns £3 10s. a week. Out of that sum she pays about 35s. in Income Tax. Then, she and her husband have to pay for meals outside because the wife is not at home to do the cooking; the laundry is sent out, and in the end they find that the balance is so small that it is not worth her going out to work at all. That is one of the reasons why the right hon. Gentleman is not getting married women to work for him to the extent that he desires. I am very doubtful as to whether this proposal to conscript everybody has been brought in merely for the war effort. I have been a trade union official probably longer than anybody here, and I have an idea that there has been for a long time a demand among some industrialists in this country, even in peace-time, to tie down the working folk in the factories where they want them, to fasten them to a certain industry, and the right hon. Gentleman knows that as well as I do. I am not willing that he should become the means whereby the industrialists and the financiers of this country should tie men and women to certain industries, and I therefore want to make a protest on that score.