On the Report stage of the Unemployed Workers' Dependents Bill;
in the House of Commons on Tuesday, anumber of Unionist and Labour members tried to induce the-Government to increase the weekly allowances. Dr. Macnamara agreed that grants of Is. a week should be given to the children of an unemployed man, irrespective of the size of the family, and up to the age of sixteen if they were at school. He declined to double the weekly grant, because the State could not find the money. The Chancellor of the- Exchequer reminded the House that this Bill was only one of several schemes which would' cost £12,000,000, apart from subsidies to local authorities and the credits for the export trade. He-could-not add £1,750,000 to this large total for the children's grants. The prospect for next year's Budget was- appalling. There was-no surplus, the taxes were grievous, and if the Government borrowed, they would depreciate the currency and raise the price of the foodstuffs and raw materials that we had to buy abroad. The proposal to double the children's allowance was rejected by 145 votes to 112, and the Bill was read a third time.
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