Answer:
"Handicrafts plan" refer to cottage industries.
Most expensive part of production Skilled labour.
Explanation:
In respect of this passage, the “handicraft plan” refers to cottage industries. According to the author, the most costly part of production under the “handicraft plan” is the cost of Skilled labour.
On the handicraft plan, skilled labour or less skilled labour was usually the most costly element of production.
The above passage was written by Andrew Ure,who was a professor at the University of Glasgow in Scotland,and lived between the year 1778 to 1857 in the book titled The Philosophy of Manufactures.
In his book, Ure foresees the era when workers will become "mere overlookers of machines," doing jobs that do not need much skill. He sees a reward or benefits in eliminating the need for highly skilled workers, because they are always or most times difficult to work with and do make request or demand more money.
