Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: We in Northern Ireland have no coal and no steel, but we are still deeply interested in this matter because we are consumers and it is our raw material. It affects us deeply when we hear speeches in which reference is made to an increase of is. per ton on coal or 3s. per ton on steel. That affects our industry and our workers in Northern Ireland. Up to date we have had cooperation, and some...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I know members of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, and I have a great respect for them, because I was an engineer myself. But I believe they are wrong. Let them not forget that there is competition in the steel industry also. Remember the new blast furnaces which were blown at the beginning of the war in India. They have increased their production three times during the war. I saw myself in...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I came to this Debate to learn and to listen—and I have done both—but the speech which has been made by the hon. Member for Doncaster (Mr. Walkden) prompts me to say a few words. I see that he has gone, like a St. Leger winner, before I can ask him any questions. I heard him sneer at employers who, he said, do not support technical education. Perhaps unfortunately, I received a classical...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: No, the hon. Member for Doncaster did not give way to me, and I cannot give way now. To learn for learning's sake is all right, but the first thing one should do is to learn not to be a burden on the community. There are many employers nowadays who allow their apprentices time off on full pay—and I can give the hon. Member for Doncaster their names—and encourage them to go to the...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: It gives me particular pleasure to speak now and to congratulate the hon. Gentleman the Member for Warrington (Mr. E. Porter), who, I am happy to say, is an old friend of mine whom I have often heard speak on previous occasions in the Blackburn Town Council and at social functions. The speech he has just delivered was extremely interesting and I, for one, have profited from it because until...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: Is it not a fact that the trade unions in Lancashire strongly opposed the introduction of the Northrupp automatic 100m? I saw this loom in America, but it has not been introduced on the same scale in Lancashire.
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, as many countries in Latin-America have built up large reserves of sterling and dollars during the war and are now in a position to meet the full service on their bonds, he will now take steps to bring pressure to bear on defaulting debtors during the present sellers' market for manufactured exports.
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: Would the Chancellor consider transferring some of this debt to the United States, as they have always been much more successful than we have in collecting debts from Latin-America?
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: Could the Minister tell the House what is the actual cost of production of rubber today and what was the cost in 1938 and 1939?
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies (1) whether the Constitutional Assembly of Sarawak agreed to the transfer of that territory to the British Empire; and whether a vote was taken on this decision; (2) how many persons compose the Constitutional Assembly of Sarawak; whether there was a full attendance when the decision was taken to transfer Sarawak to the British Empire; and for...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: If the Constitutional Assembly eventually vote against this proposal will the deal be allowed to lapse?
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I want to raise one matter, and in doing so I shall try to avoid being called to Order by you, Mr. Speaker. I had intended to raise the matter yesterday, but unfortunately the 'plane from Ireland came down in a fog near Chester instead of at Croydon, and I did not have an opportunity of raising the matter during the Report stage. I wish to refer to the Purchase Tax as it affects churches. A...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I would like to call the attention of the right hon. Gentleman to the fact that in many previous missions the North-East corner of India—Assam and Bengal—was not visited. I hope this delegation will visit that part of India, and especially that it will get into touch with the Moslem leaders of Bengal and Assam.
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: It seems to be a very unpopular thing today to defend those people with small incomes who have to work very hard for what they get. I was brought up in a Liberal household. I have not heard the Liberals support this Amendment. I remember that a great many books on the subject of thrift, hard work and character were extremely popular 50 or 60 years ago. Young men were told that they must not...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I support this Amendment. I think it is a very moderate Amendment indeed, and I think my hon. Friend would have been wiser to put down "49" instead of "48" and then, perhaps, the Chancellor might have met him halfway and agreed to 48 and split the difference. The only business about which I am going to speak this evening is that of textiles. In Northern Ireland, when I was with the Ministry...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I think we all enjoyed listening to the previous speech, for it was masterly, eloquent, and expressed very forcibly sentiments with which I think everybody in the Committee agreed. I am sure all of us here are looking forward to hearing the hon. Member for Rye (Mr. Cuthbert) speak on many other subjects. I would like to pursue the remarks made by the hon. and learned Member for Brighton...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: Not at all. I said I thought it would be an excellent thing if they transferred some of the civil servants from the Departments where there is not much work to do, now the war is over, to the Treasury, where, I believe, they are very overworked.
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: There are two questions which I should like to ask. The first is whether there is a Scrutiny Committee sitting on this, either in Northern Ireland or here? When these Orders lie on the Table in Northern Ireland, will it be at exactly the same time as the Orders are laid here?
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: This is such a large subject that I must be content to speak about only a very small portion of the territory involved. I want to concentrate entirely upon Africa, and I should like to narrow it down still further. The Secretary of State has spoken of the encouragement of private enterprise. So long as Tanganyika is a mandated territory the people there who have money to invest, and those...
Lieut-Colonel Sir Walter Smiles: I can only speak on this matter as an average Britisher, but at the same time I should like later to speak as I think the average Pole is thinking. I have no particular knowledge of Poland, having been there only two or three times, and all my sympathies are on the side of Russia, because of the many kindnesses which I have received from Russian people. At the end of the last war, when I was...
