Sir Herbert Samuel, immediately after his return from abroad, began
to work on a new basis of negotiations for ending the coal dispute. The correspondence with the T.U.C., which has been published, makes it quite clear that Sir Herbert Samuel did not act in any way for the Government or by their request. He made his proposals to the General Council on' May 12th, and the General Council replied that they shared his opinion that the proposals offered a basis on which the coal negotiations could be renewed. The suggestions in Sir Herbert's memorandum were, briefly, that the subsidy should be continuefor such a reasonable period as might be necessary for the renewed negotiations ; that a National Wages Board should be set up with a neutral element and an independent chairman ; that there should be no revision of the miners' wage rates -without sufficient assurance that the reorganization of the mines proposed by the Royal Commission would be made effective ; that no new workers over the age of eighteen should be engaged in the coal industry while other miners were available ; and that provision should be made for workers displaced by the closing of uneconomic pits.
Previous page
