Which debate increased as factory owners became powerful in industrial society?

Correct answer: Debate over private profit and workers' rights

The correct answer is A because industrialisation created a sharp relationship between factory owners, who controlled capital and production, and workers, who depended on wages. As factories expanded, questions arose about long working hours, low wages, unsafe workplaces, child labour, unemployment and the distribution of profits. The debate was therefore not simply about individual poverty; it concerned whether private ownership and profit-making produced exploitation and whether workers deserved collective rights and protection. Option B concerns royal ceremony, while C and D have no direct connection with industrial labour relations. This discussion helped socialist thinkers propose reforms, cooperatives, trade unions and, in some cases, collective ownership.