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UNIONS .ACCEPT CL
SYDNEY, Wednesday.-The amended Coal Bill, i
pioperly administered, would put the coal industry in New
South Wales? on its feet and help provide sufficient and reg
ular coal production, the Miners' President (Mr. Wells);
said to-night.
The bill in its new form was quite satisfactory to all
mining unions, he added.
Mr. Wells, who was speaking
on behalf of the combined
mining unions, said the suc
cess of the Government's plan
and the unions' campaign in
preventing the Opposition from
defeating the purposes of tlhe
bill should encourage miners
when they voted on all New
South Wales coalfields to
morrow on a recommendation
to work on back Saturdays
until Christmas.
The Opposition in the Upper House
had been wise not to insist on
amendments that would havel made
the bill unacceptable to the Glovern
ment and unions, he said.
Mr. Wells said the amendments
made by the Legislative Council did
not detract from the main Drdvisions
of the Coal Bill. The amentlmeni:s
might not improve the bill, bilt, on
the other hand, made existing provw
SloUs more secure.
Referrmng to the amendment giving
persons excluded from the tndustry
the right to appeal, Mr. Wells said:
"We don't care to whom the appeal
is made, because we shall detelmnune
as a union whether any man whol
may h, removed froml theI industry
has been justifiably removed or not.
"If in our opinion he has been
unjustifiably removed. we shall take
appropriate action to meet that posi
tion-and it will not be through
aplpeals."
The amendment excluding most
derivatives of coal from the control
of the joint Coal Board was not .of
immediate importance, because there
were np factories or plants handling
coal by-products.
"We hope by-product undertakings
will be established soon, especially in
oil from coal and plastics," he said.
"WVe shall meet that position when
jt arises.
Improve Conditions
S"The bill is not all that we asked"
for ard is not wholly satisfactory to
us but, if well administered, it should
improve working conditions'in the
mines and amenities in the mines and
coalfield tovwns. It shouldl also help
provide for sufficient and regular
supplies of coal, and put the in
dustry on its feet.
"We hope the Government will
not lose any time in appointing the
joint Coal Board, and that the board
will tacklle first things first; that is,
providling conditions in the mines
ensure that the miners can work
every day."
"Justified Coalowners'
The Secretary of the Northern
Colliery Proprietors' Association (lMr.
D)avie) said to-night that thle fact
that the Coal Bill amendments were
accepted by the Government justi
fled the coalowners' criticism of the
hurriedly prepared legislation, framned
in disregard of Mr. Justice David
son's recommendations.
"It does no credit to the Federal
Government, that it refused to listen
to the aamendm ts when the legis
lation was steaenrolled through the
Federal Parliainent," Mr. Davie
added. "The present amendments
do not go far enough."
MIr. R.l Tlhopson, M.L.C., who
piloted the original amencdments
throngh the Legislative Council and,
with Sir cHenry Masnning, negotiated
thle compromise proposals with tihe
Government yesterday, said to-day:
"The bill providled an excellent ex
ample of the Legislative Council ful
filling its constitutional obligations
to review proposed legislation ant
make suggestions for its improve
nlent.
'*"T'he Government was wise to
depart from its original attltude,
that the bill w4s not to be amend
ed in an- way. No House of Par
liament has a monopoly of brains
or of the ability to formulate wise
legislation.
"The fact that the Coal Bill
passed through both Houses of tile
Conommonwealth Parliament and the
Legislative Assembly was not ow
ing to its excellence but to the
weight of numbers of the Govern
ment. The joint wisdom of the
Opposition parties in these thrre
Houses was disregarded, and it
as a good thing for thle people
of New South Wales to know tha't
the Legislative Council has stood
its ground."
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