Mr John Jones: It falls to my lot to congratulate the hon. Member for Rutland and Stamford (Mr. K. Lewis) on making a speech which we on this side of the House could quite easily pull to pieces if we so desired. When we come to the more controversial Bills, most of us will hope that we shall hear from the hon. Gentleman again, so that we can take up some of the points he mentioned and remind him of some of...
Mr John Jones: Of course, the worker will be the better bet because the requirements of the farmer to get the last pennyworth out of his stock and foodstuffs on his land are not the same as the requirements of the labourer who is called upon to do the work. I say quite seriously that it is pleasant now to think that the farm labourer can, if he wishes, go confidently into the bank. He can even drive up in...
Mr John Jones: Surely the hon. Member is assuming that those who opted to be paid by cheque would go to the trouble to go to the pay office to collect the cheque and then pay it into a bank. I and I think most of my hon. Friends, have quite a different system in mind The worker would opt to have the amount of money due to him paid direct into his account at the bank and on the day he received his pay card...
Mr John Jones: I can assure the hon. Member that modern industrialists go to the length even of allowing one, two, three or four men to have their housing mortgages paid direct from their firms, to save them trouble, and from the possibility of not having the necessary money at the end of the month. Modern industrialists are prepared to do this. I can give chapter and verse.
Mr John Jones: It is because of the oil there.
Mr John Jones: I have listened carefully to what has been said by hon. Members opposite. During all the fifteen or sixteen years in which I have been a Member of the House of Commons I have never been so convinced as I have today of the blatant hypocrisy of the whole of the argument put forward. The kidder of the Ministers, the hon. Member for Kidder-minister (Mr. Nabarro), does not kid us on this side that...
Mr John Jones: The hon. and gallant Gentleman can say "Oh", but it is true. He should look at the accident statistics and think of those who were killed in the industry. He says "Oh", but I stand in awe of the figures as they used to be. People stood in awe then at the blood which was on the coal when you folk owned and controlled it. I say what I mean.
Mr John Jones: I am sorry, Mr. Williams. I was carried away.
Mr John Jones: I referred to hon. Members opposite. The occupant of the Chair would be the last person in the world whom I should accuse of anything like blooding. Today, the mining industry, through its Control Board, is talking about a loan of money, not from the Tory Party, not from any private owners of money or controllers of money, but from the State, which owns the coal and has a right to use it for...
Mr John Jones: What I said was the then Minister.
Mr John Jones: I withdraw that statement. What I said was this, and I repeat it. If it was not the house of the present Minister of Labour, it was some other Minister. The hon. Gentleman does not do so badly out of the provision of articles for power stations, and so on. I shall not withdraw that.
Mr John Jones: I withdraw every word and go back—if it suits the hon. Member—to where I said that he was efficient in his knowledge of supplying goods to power stations.
Mr John Jones: I thank the hon. Gentleman very much. advocating that for a long time. Many of us have been advocating doing away with Saturday morning work in the coalfields, despite the fact, as will be remembered, that I got into serious trouble for a long time with my mining colleagues when I advocated Saturday morning work to get sufficient coal to meet the then needs of full employment. 7.30 p.m....
Mr John Jones: We cannot expect courtesy from the hon. Member.
Mr John Jones: It is the hon. Gentleman's basis.
Mr John Jones: "Comic Cuts"?
Mr John Jones: No wonder.
Mr John Jones: I said "No wonder".
Mr John Jones: On a point of order. Have the proceedings of the Committee on the Bill been exempted from the provisions of Standing Order No. 1 (Sittings of the House)? Was that Motion moved, Sir Charles?
Mr John Jones: May we be absolutely certain that the Motion was moved from the Government Front Bench?
