This discussion gives me an opportunity of fulfilling a promise I made to very many Dublin unemployed workers. The position at the North Wall at the moment is very serious. There are about a dozen men for every job that becomes vacant and some hundreds of men are idle at the North and South Walls. There does not appear to be any chance of early employment for them and they have to meet the heavily increased cost of living brought about recently by the Budget, a Budget which raised the price of the loaf of bread from 6d. to 9d. or 9½d. That appears to be causing a good deal of worry in the City of Dublin and I promised these unemployed men that I would raise their case here, and see if the Government could suggest any schemes of work that would absorb their energies.
There are a few public boards here in Dublin which could give good paying employment if they speeded up matters. We have been promised two or three new bridges to ease the traffic situation for the past few years and if this work were undertaken early it would give reasonably good employment to a very large number. That, however, will not absorb the unemployed dockers. There do not appear to be very many goods going out from the North or South Walls, nor does there appear to be very much coming in, and these men are waiting outside the offices for a call to some temporary or, if possible, permanent work. They want to know from the Government before they adjourn for nearly three months what they are going to do for them. This House is to go on holidays for three months with Dublin in its present condition and the plight of the Dublin unemployed so serious and I suggest that the Government ought to make arrangements for the appointment of an emergency committee to deal with unemployment problems during the absence of Dáil members for the next three months.
The building of these bridges I referred to would give employment to a certain number. That means the release of money and the Government could probably encourage other local authorities to go ahead with relief schemes. Unfortunately, we are back to where we were 15 or 20 years ago when it was necessary to have relief schemes frequently in the City of Dublin. If the Government would encourage local authorities to go ahead with relief schemes and promised substantial grants, it would ease the situation to a certain degree.
Within the last month or two, we have had many questions asking for the Emigration Commission report and asking also if the Government proposed to give us any satisfaction regarding the continued emigration from this country of young men and women who are leaving our shores, where their energies might be absorbed in building up their own country at decent wages, not only in dozens but hundreds every week. Some of these are married men who are going away to take up employment—they do not have to go to America now—in Great Britain.
This means keeping two homes, and keeping two homes on the wages these men earn, with the 6d. loaf gone up to 9d. and every other commodity they buy so far as foodstuffs are concerned, from the smallest to the largest article, increased in price by at least 20 per cent. in the past couple of years. These are the facts as I know them in the city, and we ask the Government to tell us what proposals they have for that type of person who is left without work, and without sufficient money to provide the necessary food for his large family.
Deputy Norton had a question down with regard to the much boasted about increased national health benefits for the sick and those unable to earn their living for the time being. They got a slight increase. We have a scheme of benefits for tuberculosis sufferers which enables them to stay in sanatoria and hospitals for much longer periods, with the result that they improve in health. We are all glad to know that tuberculosis in this country is rapidly declining, according to reports from all our public health authorities. These national health benefits are increased, and these people get 7/- or 8/- and the authorities —the Government pays 50 per cent.— reduce the tuberculosis allowance by 9/- or 10/-. As a result of the so-called increase under the Social Services Act, they are left with a couple of shillings less at the end of the week, although their bread has gone up from 6d. to 9d. and their butter from 3/- to 3/10. We know that, in the case of a tubercular family, butter is a most essential food.
All these things are happening just as this House is about to adjourn and we will have no opportunity of raising matters by way of question. I am a great believer in questions. I have very little influence in the House in the way of getting anything remedied, but for a Private Deputy the parliamentary question is the best method. It gives them an opportunity of exposing grievances and making those at the head of affairs remedy them when they are sufficiently exposed. For the next three months we will be deprived of that opportunity.
The Minister for Defence has been asked questions by his own colleagues who took an active interest in an increased pension for the Old I.R.A. There are not many of the old hands left and now that they are getting old something additional should be given to them to meet the cost of living. Any time that the question was raised from any side of the House, however, we were told that he could not give a decision on whether legislation would be introduced or not. We are now adjourning without knowing whether he will introduce legislation or give increased pensions.
The question has been asked from three different parts of the House whether school teachers who retired prior to January, 1951, would get the benefit of the lump sum which was promised. Every time we raised that question we were told that the matter was being considered and that no decision had been reached. That means that there will be no decision for three months because we will not be here to question the Minister. These retired teachers, the unfortunate Civic Guards, the Dublin Metropolitan Policemen, the ex-National Army men who retired on a small pension some years ago, have no way of adding to their pension to meet the increase in the cost of living imposed by the Budget some months ago.
I wish to refer to a very unfortunate type of person, with a little benefit— if you can call it "benefit"—a few miserable shillings. Take an old man of 65—I hope that he is not old at 65. Nobody wants to give him employment. Take an elderly woman of 65 who is given a few miserable shillings from the poor law board. She may have a widow's contributory or non-contributory pension and is getting a few shillings for the payment of her rent, but the board of assistance has availed of the opportunity of the means test to reduce her allowance. The Minister in a reply, however, very kindly stated that he did not issue a circular to any local authorities urging them to reduce the tuberculosis allowance. I was glad to hear him say that because I am informed that he did issue a circular and that they were acting on that circular. Some confusion arises.
