Parliament - 4u Correspondent writes : A measure introduced on Tuesday afternoon
by Mr. Dingle Foot under the ten minutes rule and bearing the unpromising title of " Unemployment Insurance (Amendment) Bill to amend section 44 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1935," produced in fact the liveliest scene in an unusually dull week. The object of the Bill appeared unexceptionable. It was to give to non-trades unionists the same rights as trades unionists in stating their case to the Appeal Court set up under the Unemployment Insurance Act. But it stung Mr. Shinwell into making a foolish and ill-tempered speech, in which he contended that the Bill was an unfair attack on the Trades Unions, and all that a non-trades unionist had to do if he felt that he was suffering from a grievance was to join a Trades Union. This was too much for Lord Winterton, who insisted that such an argument led straight to Dictator- ship. There were angry exchanges between the Labour and Conservative back-benchers, and when the division was taken Mr. Foot found that he had the whole available Conservative strength behind him and his proposal, which had been rejected in the previous Parliament, was carried by 146 votes to 102.
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