asked the Minister of Labour whether he is satisfied that he has an adequate number of factory inspectors to perform the new duties recently laid upon them under the Construction (General Provisions) Regulations, 1961; how many factory inspectors there are; how many persons are employed in the section of his department which controls them; and if he will make a statement.

The increase of 34 factory inspector posts which I authorised just over a year ago was principally to strengthen inspection of the construction industries. In the past year we recruited 43 new entrants and achieved a net increase of 20 in the branch. As these new entrants become effective, inspection of the construction industries will be further improved. A total of 450 inspectors are at present in post. Control of the Inspectorate is exercised by the Chief Inspector, who is assisted by four deputies. Each of the specialist branches is in charge of a senior specialist inspector. Outside headquarters control is exercised by the superintending inspectors of the 14 divisions and the district inspectors of the 97 districts.

Is the Minister really of the opinion that the addition of about 30—or, possibly, 40 at the most—will provide enough inspectors to deal with the whole of the 1961 Regulations, including the inspection of canals, roads, bridges, pipelines, viaducts, aqueducts and a great many others? Is not there a great deal to be inspected? Is the right hon. Gentleman satisfied that the number of people who are in the head office, inspecting the inspectors and controlling them, is not excessive, because my information is that it is?

I disagree with the last part of the right hon. Member's question. It is essential that we have a corps of inspectors at the centre who are able to coordinate the activities of those outside and are available, of course, to be called in to assist the work of those who are working in the districts.

Would the right hon. Gentleman not agree that when the Offices and Shops Bill becomes law there will be need for a further increase in the number of inspectors in relation to that legislation, which will lay a great deal of extra duty on them? Is the Minister aware that most of my hon. Friends think that the Inspectorate is too small at present, and is not a drastic revision in all parts of the Inspectorate required immediately?

We have had a number of discussions on this matter. I think it is fair for me to say that I have considerably increased the number of inspectors, and, quite clearly, when the Offices and Shops Bill becomes law, we shall have to look at the additional calls which will be put on the Inspectorate.

asked the Minister of Labour what is the percentage of unemployment in each of the towns of Kilwinning, Dalry, Kilbirnie and Beith, in the constituency of Central Ayrshire.

Percentages of unemployment are available only for travel-to-work groups of employment exchanges. At 14th January, 1963, the percentage for the Kilwinning, Ardrossan, Irvine and Stevenston group of employment exchanges was 9·6, and for the Dairy and Kilbirnie group, 7·4. Beith is in the area of the Kilbirnie Employment Exchange.

Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that this is a direct reflection on the unemployment and short-term working in the steel industry in my constituency? Is he aware of the lack of recruitment at the I.C.I. factory in the area and the run-down at the Hunterston atomic power plant? Would he not agree with these facts and differ from the view expressed by the Board of Trade and say that there is a crying need for the development of the Kilwinning Industrial Estate, which has remained undeveloped since 1948 and, although belonging to the Government, still has only one factory upon it?

I appreciate the serious figures I have announced and I share the hon. Member's concern. I do not think that he should invite me to disagree with the Board of Trade; nevertheless, I note what he has said. Of very mild and limited satisfaction is the fact that there has been a decrease of 232 in the number of unemployed at Dairy and Kilbirnie compared with January last year. As I said, this gives a limited measure of satisfaction.

asked the Minister of Labour what advice he has sought on the problems of teaching technique involved in the retraining of mature adults.

My Department has been engaged in the retraining of adults since 1919 and itself provides courses in training techniques for instructors in industry. Studies have been made of training methods used in Continental countries and my Department keeps in touch with the International Vocational Training Information and Research Centre in Geneva. My Department is also represented on the Training Sub-Committee of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research.

Would my right hon. Friend bear in mind that in dealing with mature adult men and women in their forties the teaching techniques employed must necessarily be very different from those employed in teaching younger people or retraining younger people? Will he have consultations with the Ministry of Education to avail himself of the wealth of experience in that Department?

I can assure my hon. Friend that I keep in very close touch with the Minister of Education on this matter. I do not think she should minimise the wealth of experience we have had in my Department on this subject since 1919. I would also point out that many people from foreign countries come to us to ask for our advice on how this problem can best be dealt with.

asked the Minister of Labour what consideration he is giving to the problems involved in retraining skilled adult industrial workers; and what progress has been made.

My Department has long experience in the provision of industrial training for adults including retraining of skilled workers. The courses provided at Government Training Centres can be adapted where necessary to meet the special requirements of men with particular previous skills.

asked the Minister of Labour to what extent Her Majesty's Government's proposals for industrial training include granting a statutory right to juveniles under 18 years of age to attend training classes arranged in the industry in which they are employed.

Such a right is not included among my proposals for the Bill. It will be for the industrial training boards to consider the form and content of training most appropriate to the needs of their particular industry and to see that the training given is adequate.

Is the right hon. Gentleman giving consideration to this matter? Surely if university education is free, as it is under the 1962 Act, and everybody could reach a standard, everything ought to be done to see that youngsters of 15 to 18 who have nothing like the advantages enjoyed by university students get full right to any training that is going? Will the right hon. Gentleman look at this?

Not only will I look at it, but as he knows, the whole question of the day release of young people is being studied by the Committee on the Development of Day Release appointed by my right hon. Friend the Minister of Education. On that we have the chairman of the British Employers' Confederation's Industrial Education and Training Committee in the chair discussing these matters with members of the T.U.C. and others who are genuinely interested in the subject.

asked the Minister of Labour if, consequent upon the issue of Command Paper No. 1892, he proposes to establish a National Planning Board for Industrial Training in order to coordinate the work of individual training boards.

This is one among a number of suggestions which I am discussing with representatives of industrial organisations.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say how he will plan the priorities in industrial training if he has not an overall goal? Is he going to do it through his own Department, as it were behind the scenes, or will it not be done?

This is an important matter. It is precisely one of the major questions which I am going to discuss with both sides of industry. I must say that at this stage I do not want an organisation which is too top-heavy to consult and too complex in structure. I must keep that absolutely in the forefront of my mind when I am discussing these matters with industry.

Does the right hon. Gentleman not think that in this field it is important to have at least some full-time executive staff who have experience of training in industry? Are there any people in his Department who have this kind of experience?

The hon. Member knows perfectly well that I have many people in my Department who have a great deal of knowledge of industrial training.

I said "have experience".

The hon. Gentleman knows perfectly well that that is so. As I have made clear in the White Paper, I am going to discuss these matters with industry, and I do not want my mind made up by suggestions from hon. Members opposite. [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh."] I withdraw. I should have said "from the hon. Gentleman opposite".

asked the the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been drawn to the rise in unemployment and short-time working in the Coventry area; and what action he is taking to remedy this position.

Yes, I am aware of the increase, but most of the workers registered are temporarily stopped. My local officers are doing all they can to help those who are seeking alternative employment.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that unemployment has gone up substantially, from 1,622 in 1962 to 2,276 at the last count, not to mention the number of men on short time, which really is another form of concealed unemployment? As Coventry depends on three major industries each of which is suffering from the danger of unemployment, and the aircraft industry in particular is threatened with 3,000 redundancies, may I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he would urge the Government particularly to try at this stage to send more aircraft work into Coventry?

I will certainly ask my right hon. Friend to take note of the latter part of what the hon. Member has said, but we must get this matter clear. The hon. Member asked about the Coventry area. It is true that there has been an increase of about 5,000 in unemployment figures this year against January last year, but the increase in the temporarily stopped amounts to 4,158 more than in January last year. That is why I think it is true to say that the major part of the increase in the figures is because of the temporarily stopped. I think that the motor car industry, as a result of the action taken by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, should have greater demands on it during the rest of this year.

asked the Minister of Labour how many adults were registered as unemployed on 31st December, 1962, at Clydebank Employment Exchange.

Information is only available in respect of 14th January, the date of the count of the unemployed. At this date 1,756 adults were registered as unemployed at the Clydebank Employment Exchange.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that this is a tragic situation in the burgh of Clydebank, especially with the possibility of a further considerable addition to that unemployment as a result of the developments which are taking place in the Singer Sewing Machine factory? Will the hon. Gentleman consult the President of the Board of Trade and see whether a piece of industrial land held by the Ingersoll Rand Company undeveloped can be released so that a British factory can be built there to absorb heavy unemployment in that part of Clydebank?

The hon. Member will appreciate that for many personal reasons I certainly share his concern about these figures. I also note what he has said about land. The hon. Member, as he knows, had an opportunity of mentioning this to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade in a deputation last week, and I can assure him that the point will be very carefully studied.

asked the Minister of Labour how many youths and girls under the age of 21 were registered as unemployed on 31st December at Clydebank Employment Exchange.

On 14th January, 189 youths and 83 girls under the age of 20 were registered. Figures are not available for 31st December and separate statistics are not collected for those aged between 20 and 21.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that it is frightening when we have unemployment figures for young people in urban areas like this? There is nothing worse than to take young people out of school or half-way through apprenticeships, which is happening in many cases, and then get them unemployed. Will the hon. Gentleman see that something is done to secure employment for young people leaving school and to keep them in employment? There is a serious effect on their lives when they are unemployed.

I absolutely agree with the hon. Member, but it is worth pointing out that only 25 out of a total of 253 Christmas school leavers are still without jobs. Therefore, a number of Christmas school leavers have got their first jobs. This is satisfactory.

asked the Minister of Labour what was the number of persons signing on at employment exchanges in Northumberland in the last three months of 1962; how many had their unemployment pay suspended for six weeks or a lesser period; and what percentage this represented of the total.

During the period 1st October to 5th January, there were 20,809 claims for unemployment benefit. Figures for calendar months are not available. The number of disqualifications under Section 13 (2) of the National Insurance Act, 1946, during the three calendar months October to December were 1,767, but some of these would relate to claims made earlier than October. The figures are not, therefore, directly comparable, and it would be misleading to express one as a percentage of the other. The number of disqualifications in relation to claimants is, however, about average.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the figure of over 1,000, whilst not capable of being reflected in terms of percentages, is nevertheless a little too high and that in many cases young people and others signing on for the first time are somewhat inhibited in their claims by virtue of the fact that if they make criticisms of their previous employer they are often notified at the labour exchange that this may lead to a court case and in many cases they then withdraw their statement? There are a number in my constituency who have been refused payment as a result of this. Would he agree that this aspect of the matter requires looking into?

I will certainly note what the hon. Member says. He knows as well as I do the various methods of appeal that are available. I think that in general they are satisfactory, but what the hon. Member says represents a rather new aspect.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will state the approximate number of people unemployed at present, including both the registered unemployed, and those who do not register, such as married women, people prematurely retired, and young people staying in school but seeking to start work.

On 14th January, 814,632 people were registered as unemployed. No figures are available of the numbers of unemployed who do not register for employment.

As we are to debate unemployment later today, is it not important that we should have realistic figures in front of the House? Does the Minister not appreciate that there are two things wrong with the figure he has quoted? One is that it is three weeks old. Will he say what has been happening in those three weeks? Are we right in assuming that unemployment has gone up, and can he give an estimate of how much? Secondly, is he not aware that the figure of registered unemployed conceals a figure of other people who are unemployed? Does he not agree that a more comprehensive way of arriving at the statistics might show that the total on that account would be 200,000 or 300,000 more than the figures indicate?

The hon. Gentleman knows that this and previous Governments, including the Labour Government, have always used monthly figures. This has been the tradition of the House and of the Ministry. I cannot indulge in speculation as to what the figure is today. The unemployment figures in February will be issued in due course. I think the hon. Gentleman has in mind a question that he has asked me before, when he suggested that we should adopt the methods used in the United States. I do not think he is right on that. I think that our system, on the whole, although it may not be perfect, gives as good figures as that of any other country. It is interesting to bear in mind, and he should note, that in the United States, in a recent report of a Presidential Committee, it was stated that in that country there was considerable room for improvement in the way the definition of unemployment was applied in the United States. We should not move towards a system which has been regarded not only as costly but extremely chancy, namely, that based on a sample. We should not move towards a system of that sort.

May I press the Minister on a matter of more general interest? Since 14th January, three weeks ago, has the trend of unemployment been up, and, if so, roughly by how much? Can he give some indication?

Obviously, I cannot do this until I get the February figures. The hon. Gentleman knows that I cannot do this and that I can only speculate. In dealing with unemployment figures one must rely on accurate counts and not on speculation.

asked the Minister of Labour (1) if he is aware that since 1951 the registered number of unemployed has risen by 83 per cent.; to what extent this percentage would have to be adjusted to take into account the increased number of registered unemployed on 24th January; and whether he will give the numbers on short-time on 24th January, 1963, compared with 24th January, 1951; and

It is true that in 1962 the average number of registered unemployed in Great Britain was 83 per cent. higher than in 1951, but it is also true that in December, 1962, there were 1,887,000, or 9·2 per cent., more people in employment than in December, 1951. On 14th January, 1963, there were 814,600 unemployed, of whom 186,100 were temporarily stopped. In the area covered by Canning Town and Stratford Employment Exchanges and West Ham Youth Employment Office, the corresponding figures were 2,942 and 401. Compared with January, 1951, they represent increases of 144 per cent. and 179 per cent. respectively. The information asked for about short-time working is not available. I must point out that the figure of unemployment for the Greater London Area is 1·9 per cent. compared with the national average of 3·6 per cent.

In view of the figures and information given, is the Minister aware that the unemployed take a very dim view of and resent the fact that when the Minister for Science was appointed, within almost 24 hours of taking the job, he flew to America to make a speech there and thought it more important to go to America than to stay and do his job here? If Ministers are appointed to do a job here, will the Government ensure that they do it here and not go to America to make lecture tours?

The hon. Gentleman's intervention is irrelevant. He should know that the Minister for Science is in the North-East at this moment. He is spending the whole of this week touring there in order to acquaint himself in detail with the problems and to find solutions which will benefit the people who live there.

Will my right hon. Friend convey to the hon. Member for West Ham, North (Mr. A. Lewis) that we on the North-East Coast prefer to look after ourselves and that we are thoroughly satisfied with the appointment of the Minister for Science?

There is no Ministerial responsibility for conveying messages to members of the Opposition.

asked the Minister of Labour what steps he is taking to increase the establishment of the Youth Employment Service in areas of high unemployment among young people.

The staffing complement of the Youth Employment Service in all areas is kept under regular review by the Central Youth Employment Executive to ensure that staff levels are adequate for the work load. Requests from local education authorities for approval of extra posts to meet particular needs are considered sympathetically.

Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that there is a special problem in some areas as revealed by the statistics of his own Department, showing the percentage of unemployment among young people in certain places as a large percentage of the total? I am thinking of a place like Doncaster, where there is a relatively small total number of unemployed but a relatively large number among young people. Does he not think that some special steps are needed here, and would not an extra strengthening of the Youth Employment Service suggest methods of dealing with this problem?

I think the hon. Gentleman knows that for the past seven years we have increased the service by over 50 per cent., and that this has been done specially to meet the heavy demands imposed on it by the bulge. There have been four examples recently where local authorities have asked for increases in staff, and we have, in fact, authorised them.

Does not my right hon. Friend agree that the officers in the Youth Employment Service are to be congratulated on the work that they have done in dealing with the bulge, and also in finding jobs for school leavers since the summer term?

I am glad that my hon. Friend said that. I think they deserve great credit. The situation has been extremely difficult this year and the Youth Employment Service has done a splendid job.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will give the number of unemployed mineworkers registered at employment exchanges in the county of Durham in the months of October, November and December, respectively, and the amount paid to them in benefit in the same period.

The figures are: 1,158, 1,541 and 1,555, respectively. The information asked for in the second part of the Question is not readily available and could not be obtained without undue expenditure of public funds.

Do these figures not indicate that the closing of pits merely transfers the burden to the Insurance Fund and that the scheme initiated by the National Coal Board for the transfer of unemployed miners from Durham to other parts of the country has not proved completely successful?

Obviously, from the figures, it has not proved completely successful, but I think the right hon. Gentleman will agree that the Coal Board has gone out of its way to find jobs for miners who are displaced because of the pit closures. I think it has done as good a job as possible.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will state the number of boys and girls, 18 and under, registered as unemployed in the Buckhaven and Kirkcaldy areas at the latest convenient date, and the number of school leavers in those areas not presently in gainful employment and not registered; and what percentage the combined figures represent of the insured population of the age group up to 18.

On 14th January, 1963, 239 boys and 175 girls under 18 years of age were registered as unemployed. Separate figures are not collected for those aged 18. I regret that the informa- tion requested in the remainder of the Question is not available.

Is the Minister aware that the Youth Employment Service has the figures of those unemployed school leavers who have not yet registered and the fact that they are not disclosed by the Ministry conceals a considerable number of unemployed young people? Does he not realise that those figures are unprecedentedly high in this area and that this indicates another failure of the Government's policy to maintain full employment? What are the Ministry's proposals far securing early employment for these young people in that area?

The hon. Gentleman should appreciate that of those who left school at the end of the summer only six boys and seven girls are now still out of work. I do not put this very highly, but I think there is a limited satisfaction in it. As to future proposals, the hon. Gentleman knows that this area is in a development district. He is aware of the special measures which have been designed to help such districts. He also knows the proposal of the Board of Trade to build an advance factory on the Donibristle Industrial Estate, and I should have thought that this would increase employment opportunities for young people.

I know that this is a development district, but I also know that so far there is no additional employment coming into this area.

Order. What the hon. Gentleman ought to know is that this is Question Time.

Does not the hon. Gentleman's answer indicate a degree of complacency in the Government, because so far nothing has come to the area? Will he press the President of the Board of Trade to hasten employment in this district?

If anything that I said indicated any degree of complacency, it would be very far from my personal feelings in the matter. I would have thought that that was very plain to the House. I certainly do not have any feelings of complacency at all about the situation. I certainly note what the hon. Gentleman has said.

asked the Minister of Labour how many disabled people are registered in the north-east Lancashire area comprising the employment exchanges of Padiham, Burnley, Nelson and Colne; how many are unemployed; what percentage of the insured population in north-east Lancashire this represents; and how this compares with the national figure.

At the last counts, 3,809 persons were registered as disabled, and 367 such persons were unemployed. This represents 0·6 per cent. of the insured population compared with a national figure of 0·2 per cent.

Will the Parliamentary Secretary not agree that those figures reveal a tremendous need for a rehabilitation unit, in, say, Burnley to cover the whole of that area? Since this is the second time that I have posed this question to the Minister, may I ask him if he will be kind enough to give me a statement on what the Ministry is prepared to do?

I note what the hon. Gentleman has said. We consider that the two existing industrial rehabilitation units at Aintree and Denton adequately meet the needs of Lancashire. I have myself visited our industrial rehabilitation unit at Aintree. It does a first-class job, as I think the hon. Gentleman will agree.

asked the Minister of Labour what are the latest figures of unemployment for the area served by the Buckhurst Hill Employment Exchange; to what extent they have been influenced by weather and seasonal factors; what special difficulties now confront school leavers in the area; what special steps have been taken by his Department; and what advice has been given.

On 14th January, 1963, there were 508 people unemployed of whom 155 were temporarily stopped. The increase of 244 since December was very largely in the construction industry and was mainly due to the weather. Of 166 boys and girls who left school at the end of the Christmas term, nine were still registered for work on 29th January; no special difficulty is expected in finding employment for them.

Is my hon. Friend aware that the efforts of his right hon. Friend's local officers are much appreciated by my constituents?

I thank my hon. Friend very much.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware that the Imperial Westfalite Factory at Denaby Main, in the Dearne Valley area, is to be closed down by the end of September, 1963, with the result that 290 employees will be declared redundant; and what action he is taking to ensure that suitable work will be found for these redundant persons.

I am aware of this prospective closure. Our local officers will be registering redundant workers in advance of their discharge and will do their best to find them alternative employment.

Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that this business has been transferred to Scotland, and, even though people in the Dearne Valley area want more jobs to be transferred to Scotland, does he not realise that we are short of light engineering and other light industries in the Dearne Valley area? Therefore, will he not do more than he has said the Government are going to do to make sure that there are some jobs for these people?

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his generous attitude towards the transfer of work to Scotland. As the hon. Member for Central Ayrshire (Mr. Manuel) will know, this work is being transferred to I.C.I. at Ardeer. I am sure he will get satisfaction from that fact. Having said that, of course I understand what the hon. Gentleman has said. The labour force here is largely female, and I note what he says about light industries. I do not think I can go further today than say that I appreciate entirely the points that he has put forward.

asked the Minister of Labour what steps he is taking to transform the administration of employment exchanges so that in times and areas of high unemployment they become primarily job-seeking rather than job-filling organisations.

It is normal practice for employment exchanges to seek openings for men and women registered for work if there are no suitable notified vacancies.

Is the Minister aware that if an employer goes into an employment exchange and asks for a man with particular skills and his requirement cannot be matched by the unemployment register at that exchange the vacancy is notified throughout the whole area, the region, and, if necessary, the country, whereas if Jack Smith with a particular skill cannot be fixed up with a job nobody hears about him at all outside the immediate area of the employment exchange? Does not this show the need for a revision of administrative procedures in the Ministry of Labour?

Vacancies which cannot be filled locally are circulated to areas where labour is available. The hon. Gentleman probably realises also that exchanges do not rely entirely on notified vacancies. They do achieve a great number of their placings through special approaches to likely employers on behalf of individual registrants. In fact, they go and seek vacancies for people who come to discuss their problems in the exchanges.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware of the impending closure of the Rankin and Blackmore foundry and engine works in Greenock; and what steps the Government intend taking before July to deal with unemployment in Greenock and district.

I am aware of this closure. The Government are endeavouring to do all they can to encourage industrial expansion in the Greenock area.

Does the right hon. Gentleman realise that the situation in Greenock has never been worse than it has been during his time as Minister of Labour? Will he urge the President of the Board of Trade to build an advance factory? If he will not do that, what is he prepared to urge on the President of the Board of Trade?

I realise the difficulties in the area. In fact, of the 37 workers involved in this instance who have so far registered from this firm, 17, I am glad to say, have been placed or have found work. On the more general point, my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade is doing all he can to encourage industry to go to the development districts, including the hon. Gentleman's constituency. I think that the Chancellor's recent measures generally to boost the economy also will have a beneficial effect.

The right hon. Gentleman has been misinformed. Does not he know that there are in fact over 100 men involved and that what has been happening here is an old dodge, namely, transferring men out of one firm into another within one large group and then sacking them, it being claimed that they are being sacked from that firm as distinct from the particular firm which is closing down?

I certainly was not trying to mislead the hon. Gentleman. What I said was that we know that of the 37 who were registered for employment, 17 have so far been placed or have found work.

asked the Minister of Labour if he is aware of the impending closure of the SimonsLobnitz shipyard in Renfrew; and what steps Her Majesty's Government are taking to offer alternative employment for the workers concerned.

Yes. My local officers are already helping workers who are seeking alternative employment and will continue in their efforts.

Is it Government policy not to interfere or intercede in any way in the rationalisation which is going on in the shipbuilding industry? Is it the right hon. Gentleman's intention to try to institute some additional retraining facilities for men such as these since, in this particular area covered by the Hillington Training Centre, the provision for retraining is wholly inadequate for the situation which is developing?

The hon. Gentleman will remember that I did announce in September that I was increasing the retraining facilities at Hillington. I hope that this will help in the way he has in mind.

But will the Minister recognise that the facilities at Hillington fall far below what is necessary for the area? Does he know that older workers attending the centre are being told, in effect, when they apply to be trained in certain skills that it is no use their taking the work up and they are too old at their present age, and that what is really happening is that they are passing the time and leaving with no hope whatever of getting employment?

I repeat that we are increasing the training facilities in the Hillington area. I shall be dealing with the subject of retraining later in the debate we are to have today. I should tell the House that, even in this limited advance which I have made, I have not received the co-operation from the trade unions for which I had hoped. I trust that I shall have more assistance as we push forward in this direction, in which hon. Members on both sides are interested.

In Hillington?

Does the Minister realise that, although we are grateful for any employment which can be found for people who are displaced, the closure of these industries means further contraction of employment in Scotland, and that this represents a substantial loss particularly at this time? Will he direct his attention to that side of the question and, perhaps, not so much to placing people in employment?

I agree with what the hon. Gentleman says. Our problem is that the new jobs which have gone to Scotland have not been sufficiently numerous to counteract the steady decline in the older contracting industries. There is no short-cut and no other answer but to get more industry and more diversification into Scotland.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will state the latest available figure for unemployed in Scotland; and how many of these are young people.

At 14th January, 128,025, including 10,440 boys and girls.

Is not the first figure serious and is not the second tragic? Will the right hon. Gentleman tell me how many vacancies there are for these 10,000 young people and how many of the 10,000 have been unemployed for more than two months?

I cannot give the hon. Gentleman an exact answer about the numbers of vacancies. What I can tell him is that the figure of 10,440, about which I share his concern, was swollen by 2,800 of about 20,000 Christmas term school leavers. I hope that, when they come out, the February figures will show that there has been considerable absorption of those. The hon. Gentleman should know, also, that of the 33,904 summer school leavers only 259, I am glad to say, are still without employment.

But does not the Minister realise that many of these will reappear very shortly as young people unemployed and that we are seeing the growth of blind alley jobs for school leavers? The right hon. Gentleman should know that very well. Will he look at the figures again and, if he has not got it, find out the number of these young people who have now been unemployed for more than two months?

If the bon. Gentleman will put down a Question, I will give him an answer. In any event, I shall write to him and give him the figure for which he has asked. I do not think that he should denigrate the efforts of the Youth Employment Service in finding employment for these young people leaving school.

asked the Minister of Labour by how many the latest figure for unemployed in Scotland exceeds the figure for January, 1962; and by how many the number of temporarily unemployed exceeds that at the same time last year.

The total at 14th January was higher by 42,727 and the numbers temporarily stopped by 10,068.

Since the figures show that, weather apart, the situation is not only serious but is worsening, what is the right hon. Gentleman doing, in collaboration with the others in the new Scottish Development Committee, to bring into effect specific measures and specific plans related to Scotland to deal with the situation? Is he aware that we are tired of predictions of progress and prophecies of prosperity which are never realised?

I hope to deal with this question later in the debate today. The hon. Gentleman knows that Scotland, during the past two to three years, has received about £42 million under the Local Employment Act to assist in new projects. These, as he knows, are estimated to provide about 32,000 jobs. If he does not like that figure, he must recognise, also, that about 51,000 new jobs have been provided in Scotland since the war.

Does the right hon. Gentleman agree with the estimate of the Scottish Council that the present effort in getting new jobs needs to be stepped up by three times if Scottish unemployment by 1970 is to be reduced to the national average? Has he any hope whatever of achieving this?

The hon. Gentleman and I will be debating this subject very shortly, and I intend to deal with the special problems in that debate.

Has the Minister no hope at all of achieving those figures? That is susceptible of answer by "Yes" or "No"?

I should prefer to deal with that in debate rather than try to answer catch questions at Question Time.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he will make a statement about the improvement of arrangements for dealing with the problems of redundancy.

I discussed this subject with my National Joint Advisory Council on 23rd January. A survey prepared for the Council showed that there has been an increase of more than 50 per cent. in the number of firms with redundancy policies and in the number of workers covered by these policies since the last review three years ago. Existing arrangements, however, are still far short of what is needed.

The Council agreed that the employers, trade unions, nationalised industries and my Ministry should study methods of improving arrangements and discuss their conclusions at the next meeting in April.

While thanking my right hon. Friend for that reply, may I ask him, first, whether it is proposed to publish the information collected for the National Joint Advisory Council? Secondly, while the results are encouraging, this shows that there is still a need for the Contracts of Employment Bill in order to increase the number of firms with redundancy policies.

I agree, naturally, with what my hon. Friend says. Certainly I will arrange to publish any information which I think is of general interest. This subject concerns both sides of the House and the country as a whole, and I certainly would be glad to see as much publicity as possible given to our efforts.

In view of the fact that the National Joint Advisory Council—at least the trade union side of it—has expressed its growing concern that this country was lagging far behind on this question, will the Minister give the widest publicity to the feeling of the trades unions at that National Joint Advisory Council meeting on the question of redundancy? Secondly, in view of the contempt which has been revealed about his approach in the Contracts of Employment Bill, which is related to this matter, not only by the trade unions but by the British Employers' Confederation, will the right hon. Gentleman have second thoughts on that Bill and really give it some meaning?

Most certainly not. I would guess that, if the trades unions and the employers dislike it, then it is about right.

Is it not a scandal that a man, after 30 years' employment, can be sacked with one week's wages? Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the Government have been in power for eleven years now and is it not time that even this Government moved faster in bringing in a national redundancy scheme?

If the hon. Gentleman takes the trouble to read the Bill, which is about to be discussed in Parliament, he will see that this is precisely the state of affairs which I wish to alter.

asked the Minister of Labour what was the percentage rate of unemployment, and the total numbers wholly unemployed, in each of the development districts, in April, 1960, 1961, 1962, and January, 1963.

As the reply consists of a Table of figures, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Meanwhile, can the right hon. Gentleman tell us whether any

Again, this is a matter which we shall be debating this afternoon. This is a very long list of figures, as the hon. Gentleman will see, but the increase is lower in the development districts compared with Great Britain as a whole. To that degree there is some comfort.

asked the Minister of Labour what was the number of boys and girls unemployed in the Port Talbot and Glyncorrwg area in the week ended 2nd February.

103 boys and 149 girls were registered as unemployed on 31st January.

Does the Parliamentary Secretary realise that the inability of a young person to find employment at the beginning of his working life is a grave personal tragedy which is deeply felt? Is he aware that, since my constituency is an area of heavy industry, there is a lack of balance and of provision of suitable employment for young boys and girls? Will he consult the President of the Board of Trade about what effective measures might be taken? Since the number of school leavers will rise to 1,000 a year in this area in the next few years, can the Government say, as they said in 1961, that there are reasonable prospects for young people in this area.

I note what the hon. Gentleman says. I share his concern about this matter, and therefore I am sure that he will share my limited satisfaction to learn that of 379 summer school leavers only 13 have still not found a job.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will make a statement on the measures taken to improve relations in the motor industry.

I had a further meeting on 28th January with representatives of employers and trade unions to discuss relations in the industry. Since the last meeting progress has been made with practical measures to promote better relations, including improved training of supervisors and shop stewards and strengthening of personnel departments. The employers and unions have decided to set up a joint working group on industrial relations to continue the study of measures already initiated, and to discuss ideas for further improvements.

Will my right hon. Friend say whether he will be represented on this group in any way and whether its findings will be reported to him?

I shall not be represented on this group. This is a small informal group which will consist of representatives of employers and trade unions. On the other hand, both sides of the industry have told me that they will keep me in the closest touch. This is a very desirable development and it will do much to help to improve relations in the motor oar industry.

While welcoming the Minister's initiative, will he, in the in- terests of good relations inside the motor industry, confirm two points: first, that the vast majority of shop stewards are doing a good job in the motor industry; and, secondly, that all that is necessary in order to establish a new climate of opinion in the industry and to obtain stability is to make organic changes, such as changes in the wage structure and also in redundancy payments?

Those are the sort of questions which would be discussed by this small informal group, which has no power as such but which can give useful advise.

I am grateful for what the hon. Gentleman said in the first part of his supplementary question to the effect that these efforts had achieved some results. I think that shop stewards can easily be maligned because of the activities of a few dissidents who have no responsibility and who cause much trouble. I agree with the hon. Gentleman that it is wrong to blame shop stewards as a whole, but that it is perfectly right to blame those who are, in fact, causing immense trouble, thereby damaging not only their fellow workers but the whole structure of trades unions.

asked the Minister of Labour if he will make a statement on his discussions with both sides of the construction industry about labour difficulties on large sites.

At these discussions we have examined the special difficulties which can arise when there are large numbers of employers engaged in operations on these sites and relations with their employees are governed by different agreements and procedures.

We have agreed that employers and trade unions in each of the four main groups of the construction industry should now meet to discuss what steps can be taken for improved co-ordination. They will also discuss other arrangements which might be made to see that disputes are dealt with at an early stage, procedures for settling them work more effectively, and communications between employers and workers on the site are improved.

Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the industry generally has a good record with regard to labour relations, and will he also confirm that the number of strikes that have taken place in the last few years have occurred mainly at large sites? Does not this indicate a lack of co-ordination at some of these sites? Is my right hon. Friend having any consultations with his right hon. Friend the Minister of Public Building and Works?

In reply to the latter part of my hon. Friend's question, I am keeping in close touch with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Public Building and Works. My hon. Friend is right in saying that on the whole, relations in the industry are good. We have, however, had these troubles consistently over quite a period of time. We have had what happened not only on Merseyside but, as the House will remember, at Fylingdales, West Thurrock and Hinckley Point and a series of troubles which arose because of the complexity in the number of contractors. I hope, therefore, that the talks will produce solutions which will avoid die present trouble.

Has my right hon. Friend noticed some strictures made by Archbishop Heenan, of Liverpool, about shop stewards? If so, has he any proposals for dealing with that minority?

I dealt with that in what I said to the hon. Member for Coventry, North (Mr. Edelman). There is no doubt that all of us in the House agree that there are some shop stewards who let the whole side down and damage the whole trade union movement. This is a matter which the trade unions must take extremely seriously, because it is essential to ensure that official agreements, entered into freely between the two sides of industry, are not dishonoured by people who are working against official trade union advice.

Would not the Minister agree also that shop stewards can be maligned because of the provocation and attitude of certain bad areas of management which still exist in industry?

There are obviously occasions when that happens, but it does not mean that my hon. Friend's Question is not perfectly relevant.

asked the Minister of Labour how many unemployed are registered at the Brixton employment exchange; what the insured population is in the area covered by this exchange; and what percentage the unemployed is of this insured population.

4,241 at 14th January. Figures of insured population are not available for employment exchange areas within Greater London; the percentage rate of unemployment in the Greater London Area at 14th January was 1·9.

Does not the hon. Gentleman agree that the figure of 4,200 for the Brixton employment exchange is much worse than in many places already scheduled as development districts by the Government under the Local Employment Act? Does he also agree that to try to gloss over this horrifying state of affairs by saying that over the whole of the Greater London area there are only 1·9 per cent. unemployed is playing with the situation? When will he get down to the business of creating a situation in which the so-called prosperous South is not worse than many development districts?

I have not sought to gloss over any figures. As to the remainder of what the hon. Member says, I should not think that to schedule Brixton as a development district would give much satisfaction to many of his hon. Friends.

It would give a lot of satisfaction to the 4,200 unemployed.

asked the Minister of Labour whether he is aware of the increasing redundancy at the Unbrako Socket Screw Company, Burnaby Road, Coventry, arising from the fact that work is being transferred from this factory to firms controlled by the Unbrako group in Ireland and Germany; and what action he is taking to discourage the export of employment in this manner.