asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will take action to prevent redundancies at sheltered workshops.

Decisions about redundancies in sheltered workshops are a matter for those who are responsible for their management. My Department has relaxed its rules about financial support, to avoid redundancy where possible but, regrettably, in a few cases local management has been unable to prevent it occurring.

Is the Minister aware of the deep concern felt about the failure of his Department to prevent the redundancies of nine workers at the Exeter sheltered workshop, despite the offers of other workers to share work and reduce their hours to prevent this type of unemployment? Does this not run contrary to the declaration in his recent statement about unemployment among disabled people?

I am sure the hon. Gentleman knows that responsibility for the Exeter workshop and its management rests with the Devon County Council. I share his great regret that the lack of work has caused this situation. I hope that by raising this matter he will have drawn the attention of those responsible for the flow of work to the need to increase it.

Is there any figure for redundancies in sheltered workshops?

I cannot give an overall figure, though I know that it is very small. There are difficulties in places other than Exeter. One or two other workshops have experienced some problems. If the hon. Member wishes, I shall write to him with the information he seeks.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what proposals he has for the relief of unemployment in Wales.

Of course, I recognise that the unemployment situation is extremely serious, but Wales has already benefited and will continue to benefit from the series of selective manpower measures announced since the autumn, which are designed to mitigate the worst effects of unemployment. One hundred and sixty projects have been approved under the Job Creation Programme, providing a total of 1,539 jobs, the temporary employment subsidy has saved 1,718 jobs, and applications in respect of 1,751 school leavers have been approved under the Recruitment Subsidy Scheme for school leavers. In addition, the whole of Wales has assisted area status.

I appreciate the Government's efforts, but is the Secretary of State aware that the 25 per cent. rate of VAT on domestic electrical appliances is causing redundancies and unemployment? Is he aware of the situation at the Hotpoint factory in my constituency, and the Hoover factory in Merthyr, where there have been delays in the creation of about 3,000 jobs because of this VAT rate?

I am fully aware of the situation at the Hotpoint factory and even more so of that at the Hoover factory in Merthyr. My hon. Friends the Member for Merthyr Tydfil (Mr. Rowlands) and hon. Friends from other parts of Wales have made representations to the Chancellor of the Exchequer which I am sure he will take into account. I hope that the hon. Member for Conway (Mr. Roberts) will consider some of the other factors at Hotpoint as well.

Bearing in mind the news we have heard today, can the Secretary of State say what prospects there are for employment in Wales or elsewhere for people aged 60 or over, with rather limited experience?

This is a very sensitive subject. Opportunities are always opening at the most extraordinary moments, but I do not think the hon. Member should count his chickens before they are finally dead.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the total number of additional redundancies in North Wales at 1st March 1976.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that, as at 1st March, redundancies affecting about 780 people had been recorded as due to occur in North Wales at a subsequent date.

Is the Minister aware that with the recently announced redundancies at Courtaulds and at ITT in Rhyl a catastrophic situation is rapidly sliding out of control? Is he further aware that the Government's job creation programme is like trying to stop a tank with a pea-shooter? Will the Minister do something about unemployment and see that the whole area is given development area status?

I recognise the problem of the redundancies at Courtaulds, which were announced on 27th February, whereby about 600 employees will be made redundant. All the services of my Department and of the Manpower Services Commission will be made available. Under the job creation programme and other employment measures about 1,400 jobs have so far been saved or created in North Wales. That is a useful contribution to what I agree is a difficult problem. The question of development area status is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Industry.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many jobs have been saved by the granting of the temporary employment subsidy.

As at 5th March, 23,133 jobs have been saved.

Given the success of this relatively modest scheme and bearing in mind the findings of some economists that it costs less to subsidise jobs than to pay unemployment and redundancy benefits, will my hon. Friend extend the scheme substantially, for example, by raising the amount of the subsidy?

The proposition that it is cheaper to keep people at work than to pay them unemployment benefit has been in the forefront of our minds. The review of the temporary employment subsidy is a continuing one. We have already made changes in the scheme on three occasions in the light of experience and I do not rule out more changes in future.

In so far as the subsidy encourages employers to retain employees in excess of their production requirement, could it not lead to industrial inefficiency?

It do not believe that to be so. It is defensible to try to keep people in employment rather than put them in the dole queue. One of the criteria for granting the subsidy is that the firm should have long-term viability. It may have to re-recruit skilled workers when it returns to full production. The scheme is fully justified.

Is my hon. Friend aware that here is still a lack of knowledge about this scheme among industrial employers? Is he aware that, as I go round my constituency, I find employers who are still in ignorance of the scheme? Will he therefore do his utmost to broadcast its merits to all employers?

We shall see that the scheme is as widely known as possible. Hon. Members can always draw it to the attention of local employers, as I have done in my constituency.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what suggestions have been made to him by the TUC for a flat rate or percentage rate for the next phase of the incomes policy; and if he will make a statement on current discussions with the TUC on the next phase of that policy.

We have continuous discussions with representatives of the TUC about various aspects of pay policy, but no specific suggestions as described by the hon. Member have been put forward, and I do not think that any question of a detailed statement to the House about the next phase yet arises.

Is not the main concern of the TUC the creation of more jobs quickly, rather than higher pay? If the Government can bring themselves to concentrate—which may be difficult at present—will they publish suggested guidelines for phase 2, which should be a mix of percentage and flat rate but with an overall figure less than the present £6 a week?

It is true that the representatives of the TUC, like the rest of the country, are deeply concerned about the level of unemployment. That is one of the main considerations in their minds. I do not believe that the best way to get a new pay policy for the period starting on 1st August this year is for the Government to lay down the guidelines. It is much better for the Government to have discussions with the TUC and reach agreement with the TUC, as we did last time. The reason why the present policy works is that we went about it the right way.

Would the Secretary of State care to comment on the initiative taken by the leaders of the three major trade unions in asking for consultations to be held with the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party and the Parliamentary Labour Party?

I entirely agree with my hon. Friend that those consultations should go ahead. I am sure that all hon. Members will agree that the statement made by Mr. Jones, Mr. David Basnett and Mr. Hugh Scanlon is of major importance in the history of the Government and the country—constructive, intelligent, and highly topical.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he is satisfied that the salary paid to the new part-time Chairman of British Leyland is in accordance with the current pay policy.

Yes, Sir.

Does my hon. Friend take the view that trade unionists who have been subject to the £6 pay policy—and who knows what will happen next?—are appalled by the decision to set on the 62-year-old Sir Richard Dobson at a salary of £22,500 for a three-day week? Will they suggest, incidentally, that he will do even less work once he gets to know the way to the building? Does it not make matters worse to know that Sir Richard Dobson was handed about £80,000 by the firm for which he previously worked?

I should certainly be surprised if there were many part-time workers in Bolsover or Barrow-in-Furness who would be offered a salary as high as this. It is within the pay policy because it is exactly the same salary as was paid to Sir Richard Dobson's predecessor. As to the salary he received from the British-American Tobacco Company, I understand that that salary was fixed before the current pay policy.

As jobs in the public sector are usually a bed of nails, how can we expect good men to take them unless they are paid the market rate for the job?

I do not defend the salary or advocate it on the ground that it is the market rate for the job. I merely say that it is consistent with the pay policy because it was established in terms which complied with the pay policy.

Why is the right hon. Gentleman so coy about someone who is 62 years of age? Is not 62 rather a good age at which to take on new responsibilities?

I am not coy about the age of 62; I am worried about the unemployment of people whether they are over or under 60 years of age.

My hon. Friend is aware that Sir Richard was at a loss to know what to do with the £80,000 he received from his previous employer. Would my hon. Friend suggest that he should donate it to the Social Services Department in my constituency?

It is not for me to suggest how people should spend their present or previous salaries. Being involved in questions of pay policy, I have enough difficulty in determining what those salaries are to be.

Is it not dangerous to snipe at higher salaries, bearing in mind that the failure of an American company to find a chief executive in this country has led to the removal of the company's headquarters to the Continent?

No. Decisions on the location of company headquarters do not depend solely or mainly on salary considerations. They raise factors which are of great importance to the economy of this country and its manufacturing industry.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what were the numbers both directly and indirectly employed in the fishing industry in each of the past five years, both nationally and in the port of Kingston upon Hull.

My Department can provide separate information for the fishing industry but not for employment indirectly associated with it.

The Minister will be aware that these figures, taken over the fishing ports of the country as a whole, show a considerable degree of unemployment. Will he consult his right hon. Friend and suggest that the operating subsidies should be reintroduced on a short-term basis at least until the common fisheries policy and new limit lines have been settled?

That is largely a question for my right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The industry's employment prospects are closely linked with the question of fishing opportunity, the reappraisal of the EEC common fisheries policy and the outcome of international negotiations. My Department is very concerned with the employment aspects of these negotiations, and in our discussions with my right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture we shall take heed of what the hon. Gentleman said.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish as a Green Paper the views and proposals of Her Majesty's Government which will be presented to the forthcoming ILO World Conference on Employment.

No, Sir.

That is a straightforward but rather disappointing answer. Is my hon. Friend aware that there is a great deal of interest in this conference outside the formal ranks of the trade union movement? Will he consider inviting interested individuals and bodies for discussion before the Government representatives take part in the international conference?

I expected that my hon. Friend would find the answer disappointing, but he must have regard to the tripartite character of the ILO conference and to the fact that it also concerns matters other than unemployment. In correspondence I have already reassured my hon. Friend that I shall seek to make the ILO policy document as widely available as possible to those interested and shall welcome comments on it.

Will the hon. Gentleman consider the possibility of facilitating the inclusion amongst workers' delegations of members delegated by non-TUC unions who represent a significant and important element in the work force?

The hon. Gentleman knows the traditional methods by which people are selected to attend ILO conferences, and I see no reason to deviate from that practice.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on employment prospects in the West Midlands.

Over the last year or so employment prospects in the West Midlands have deteriorated seriously—principally as a result of the general economic recession. However, the area benefits from the measures that the Government have introduced to alleviate the worst effects of unemployment and from the considerable assistance which has been given to the motor vehicle, machine tool and ferrous foundry industries. Employment prospects in the West Midlands will improve substantially as the national economy begins to expand.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that the people in the West Midlands are outraged at the loss of manufacturing jobs and are sick and tired of being told that the aid to Chrysler and British Leyland is the Government's contribution to the tragic economic circumstances of the West Midlands? Will he ensure that there is a Minister from his Department at next Monday's meeting called by the Secretary of State for Industry on this very problem?

I dare say that we shall have a representative at the discussions that are to take place. I went to the West Midlands a few weeks ago and on my return I discussed the matter with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Industry. It is partly as a result of those discussions that the meeting next Monday is to take place.

Is the Secretary of State aware that the prospects for those leaving school in the West Midlands in the forth- coming year are worse than they were last year, and will he tell the House what special measures he proposes to introduce to help them?

We introduced measures to help school leavers last year and will at the appropriate time announce our measures for assisting them in the future. The Job Creation Scheme has been of some assistance in this respect, and many of the projects that have come forward from the West Midlands have been accepted by the Manpower Services Commission.

Does my right hon. Friend really believe that the statement made today refusing assisted area status to the West Midlands is likely to give any further encouragement to the people of the West Midlands in pulling themselves up by their bootstraps? Is he aware that industries are still leaving the West Midlands because of the regional policy—for example, Polypak, at Halesowen?

I recognise, as my hon. Friend says, that there is strong pressure in the West Midlands for the alteration of the boundaries for special development status. That is primarily a matter for the Department of Industry, but I recognise how strong those representations are. However, that would affect many other parts of the country as well. In the meantime, I hope that my hon. Friend will acknowledge what the Government have been doing in that respect. Certainly it was acknowledged by trade unionists when I was in the West Midlands. They recognised that the Government have been extremely flexible in the acceptance of certificates.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that many people, both in this House and in the West Midlands, feel that the problems are much deeper this time and will not be solved just by the upturn in the economy? Would the right hon. Gentleman consider a relaxation of IDC policy, which might do more to increase morale and effort in the West Midlands, which many people now believe to be an area which has been starved of new development for a period of years and badly needs fresh development?

As the right hon. Gentleman knows, the question of IDCs and their acceptance is a matter for the Department of Industry. As I have said, the Government have been extremely willing to grant these certificates, and the figures show that there have been very few refusals. When I was in the West Midlands the people there wanted to make better known the fact that the Government have been extremely eager to grant certificates when there has been pressure for them.

Notwithstanding my right hon. Friend's honeyed words about what will happen in the future in respect of help for school leavers, and so on, is he aware that in the West Midlands at the present time we have an unemployment figure that is higher than the national average? Bearing in mind the criteria given in answer to an earlier question, why did he not help Norton-Villiers in its attempt to keep its factory working?

The reply concerning Norton-Villiers has been given many times in this House. As to general assistance to the West Midlands, the Government are certainly considering all the time how further help can be given.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current level of unemployment among those who graduated with first degrees during 1975.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that this information is not available, as the unemployment figures do not separately identify persons in this category.

Leaving aside the unsatisfactory nature of that answer, does the Minister not agree that there is evidence here of an appalling problem of a total waste of trained human resources? Does he not further agree that this is itself an indictment of the Government, particularly in relation to the disincentive to industry generally, which is unable to mop up this pool of talent?

If the hon. Gentleman is suggesting that it would be a good idea to have more graduates in industry, he is right—and the answer lies as much with industry as with the Government. There are certainly areas in which there is a shortage of graduates to go into industry. A report from our Manpower Services Commission shows that there is an unsatisfied demand for accountants, computer scientists, and electronic and electrical engineers.

Will the Minister say, as a matter of great topical importance, whether the Government are making any special provision for graduates of University College, Oxford?

No, Sir.

Will my hon. Friend repudiate the proposition that there is something inherently more serious about graduate unemployment than there is about unemployment generally? Does he agree that the Government's job is to reduce unemployment across the board rather than to concentrate on special areas of this kind?

I wholly agree with my hon. Friend that the fact that a person is a graduate does not confer upon him a special privilege in the employment market. We must have proper regard to everybody's need for employment, and not just those with a qualification. Equally, we must try to make sure that those trained in a particular area are able to go into employment and do not lose the skills they have gained during a period of training or a period at university.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current level of unemployment in the United Kingdom in Scotland and in the West Midlands, respectively; and what steps he is taking to reduce these levels.

At 12th February, the rates of unemployment were 5·6 per cent. in the United Kingdom, 6·8 per cent. in Scotland and 5·7 per cent in the West Midlands.

Is it not a fact that unemployment has been growing at a faster rate in the West Midlands than in almost any other part of the United Kingdom? Does this not make a lunacy of the policy of stealing jobs from the West Midlands in order to take them elsewhere? Will the Minister press, within his Department and elsewhere, for the bureaucratic system of the IDCs to be scrapped?

If my right hon. Friend had listened to the replies given earlier by my right hon. Friend, he would know that the IDC policy in the West Midlands is operated flexibly. When I have been to meetings there many people have told me that to blame it all on the IDC policy is a mistake, and I think they are right in that respect. It is true that there are no development area aids to the West Midlands, but we have to consider development area aids in terms of long-term structural problems and other problems which we hope will be of a temporary nature.

Will the Minister confirm that the rate of unemployment in Scotland has been consistently higher than in any other part of the United Kingdom, and that we find ourselves—[Interruption.] Indeed, if we can make this comment to the peanut gallery on the Tribune side here—[Interruption]—it has been disgraceful compared to every other progressive small European country. Will the Minister accept that the whining coming from Midlands Members sounds very strange in Scottish ears, as they have never raised their voices about Scottish unemployment in the past?

I repudiate that the rate of unemployment in Scotland has risen dramatically. The unemployment situation in Scotland has improved relative to the position in the rest of the United Kingdom—not least because of the development aid and the assistance which has gone to Scotland from the Government of the United Kingdom.

Does my hon. Friend realise that there is over 9 per cent. unemployment in the Mexborough and district employment exchange area? Does he also realise that the Swinton Hotpoint factory has already announced that some redundancies will take place in the near future? Will my hon. Friend do something special for this area, where unemployment will rise to 12 per cent. unless something is done?

My hon. Friend has tabled a Written Question, which I shall answer later, about special provisions for this area. I understand that the Hotpoint factory to which he has referred is on short-time working at present. No doubt my hon. Friend will also want to make representations to my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in connection with VAT.

Is the Minister aware that industry in the West Midlands—as represented by both employers and employees—want the Government to get off its back, reduce taxation and allow it is make profits?

I think that the people of the West Midlands are also glad of the public expenditure, which comes from taxation, that has gone to save the jobs at Alfred Herbert, British Leyland and Chrysler, and which I am sure the hon. Gentleman, in his heart of hearts, actually opposes.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the employment prospect this year of those currently unemployed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will make a statement on the current level of unemployment.

The next monthly figures will be published next week, on 23rd March. Of course they will still show an appalling high level of unemployment. However, even under present harsh conditions there is a considerable volume of turnover on the register and many of the unemployed do have a good chance of re-entering employment. I expect the number of vacancies to increase gradually this year.

Welcome though the Government's measures have been there are still far too many people unemployed for far too long. Does my right hon. Friend accept that this is especially severe in regions like Merseyside, where the people have had a dismal past and face a dismal future? Will he not take action now and press my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer to put into effect some reflationary measures?

I fully accept that Merseyside is one of the areas most hardest hit. Certainly my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer will be taking into account all the representations that have been made to him for further measures which can be of real assistance in dealing with the present unemployment level.

Will the Secretary of State have a look at the ridiculous system whereby assisted area boundaries run along the boundaries of employment office areas? Witnesses from his own Department told the Expenditure Committee that the boundaries of employment areas depend on journeys by bicycle to and from employment offices, because that was the basis on which we proceeded more than a quarter of a century ago. Can we get away from this nonsense to something more real?

I think that the hon. Gentleman has been misinformed. The travel-to-work areas to which he referred were, I think, overhauled most recently in 1968. I do not believe that they can be changed considerably from time to time, but a time will come when there should be a general review of the special development areas.

Does my right hon. Friend realise that he has been particularly successful in getting the co-operation of the trade union movement to reduce the number of industrial disputes and the rate of inflation? Will he now meet the TUC leaders, with a view to producing some positive plans to bring down the rate of unemployment?

All the plans that we introduced in the three packages in September and December of last year and in February of this year, had been discussed with the trade unions. It was partly on their recommendations and advice that we improved those schemes and we shall certainly continue to do so. However, it is also the fact that at all the meetings I have had with the trade union leaders they have emphasised their strong feelings about the present level of unemployment. Certainly that is one of the factors the Government must take into account when securing another round of the pay policy.

Does the Secretary of State recall that page 1 of the February 1974 Labour Manifesto told people that the economic crisis took the form of fear for their jobs and that the Labour Party would change all that? Does he not think that his Government's performance since then has been squalid and disgraceful, and will he follow the example of his right hon. Friend?

The two manifestos on which the Labour Party fought and won the two elections said that this country faced a major crisis of inflation, unemployment and of our general system. We are gradually carrying out some parts of what the manifestos said. Some of us would like to carry out some parts even faster, and the more encouragement we receive from the Opposition the faster, I hope, we shall go.

Will my right hon. Friend ask the Manpower Services Commission to look at the despairing situation of people who have been subject to accidents in industry or on the roads, who have been retrained and who have extremely grave difficulty in finding jobs after retraining? Will he look at this matter again?

We are doing our best to aid the disabled workers in this difficult situation. The Manpower Services Commission and my Department are doing what they can in that respect.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will pay an official visit to the port of Shoreham.

My right hon. Friend at present has no plans to do so.

Will the Minister send a message to the Secretary of State informing him that I would generally warmly welcome the chance to show him the port of Shoreham, as over the past 10 years the port had attracted a growing amount of trade from Scheme ports due to increased viability and efficiency? As the Dock Labour Scheme will damage the efficiency of the port and will insult the dockers who do not want privileged nannying, will he either withdraw the pernicious Bill or follow the Prime Minister's excellent example and resign?

If the hon. Gentleman cares to make an objective examination of the position of both Scheme and non-Scheme ports over the past 10 years, he will discover that the port to which he refers is one of a number of both Scheme and non-Scheme ports which have improved their trading position. I do not think that any industrial relations difficulties in the ports stem from the operation of the Scheme. The new proposals which we shall be making are intended to take account of the rapid run-down of labour in ports throughout the country—a rundown which can, in itself, give rise to grave industrial difficulties.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what action he is taking, in conjunction with employers and trade unions in the construction industry, to prevent apprentices currently in training having to be discharged because of shortage of work; and whether he will make a statement.

The volume of work in the construction industry is a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Environment. The Training Services Agency, however, in co-operation with the Construction Industry Training Board, has enabled a range of assistance to be available to continue the training of redundant apprentices.

Is it not appalling that at least 1,000 apprentices have been discharged over the past five months because there is no work for them to do? Has the Minister nothing constructive to say about that?

The figure is rather lower than the hon. Gentleman mentioned, but I share his concern and disquiet, whatever the figure may be. The National Federation of Building Trades Employers and the Construction Industry Training Board, with the help of the TSA, are currently developing proposals that will provide more opportunities for redundant apprentices to be given training and experience in genuine work situations. Of course, there is also available from the Training Services Agency, which helps in this respect, an adoption grant of £750, which is fully funded by the Agency. I ask the hon. Gentleman to look at the problem created by the London borough of Barnet, which has just required the Brick Development Association to terminate its own training school at Colindale.

Is my hon. Friend aware that with a few exceptions the private building firms are taking on no apprentices and it is the council direct labour departments which are training the younger workers? Therefore, will he permit local authorities to take on building work for neighbouring authorities where the request is made?

My hon. Friend knows that the question of the range of activities which local authority direct works departments are permitted to carry out is a matter for the Secretary of State for the Environment. I shall confirm what he has said about the useful work that the direct works departments are doing in training apprentices. In particular the City of Manchester, whose direct works departments I shall visit very soon, has a splendid record. I understand that it is the biggest single employer of apprentices in the building industry in Manchester——

Order. There is a limit to the length of answers, as well as questions.

Is the Minister aware that this is a very serious problem and that it does not make sense for the Government to be spending extra money on training if at the same time the sand is dropping out of the bottom? Does he accept that it is important that these boys should be kept on to finish their training or they will become unskilled? Will the hon. Gentleman and his Department use some imagination on this?

I was about to say in reply to the previous question that it is crucially important to maintain numbers in training and to increase them.—[Interruption.]

Order. I do not know what is wrong with the House this afternoon.

It is crucial—[Interruption.]

Order. The Minister must have a chance to reply to the question.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was trying to say that it is crucially important to maintain numbers undergoing training.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment by how much unemployment has risen in the past two years.

Between February 1974 and February 1976, the numbers unemployed in Great Britain increased by 654,234.

Will the right hon. Gentleman tell the House what will be the contribution of pay restraint in the next two years towards reducing unemployment, and what was the contribution of the pay explosion in 1974 to increasing it?

I do not think it is possible to make any precise calculations of the effect of pay policy on levels of unemployment. The ability of the Government to finance a number of steps to mitigate the worst effects of unemployment has been realised as a result of co-operation between the trade unions and the Government on pay policy and a number of other matters.

Will my right hon. Friend say by how much unemployment would have arisen if the Government had implemented the public expenditure cuts demanded by the Opposition?

There is no doubt that if the Government had followed the policies recommended by the Opposition—policies involving massive cuts in public expenditure—we would by now have had a very high level of unemployment. That is why it is of the maximum importance to insist upon a policy that will result in no immediate cuts in public expenditure.

How does the right hon. Gentleman reconcile the figure of 654,000 additional people out of work in the last two years with the statement in the Labour Party's manifesto about Labour getting people back to work?

I reconcile that by reference to the fact that the policies pursued by the Government have held the level of unemployment in this country below that of many other countries in a similar trading position.

Does my right hon. Friend not agree that increasing unemployment is due to a crisis of capitalism? Does he accept that we should be introducing more, not less planning? Should not that planning include selective import controls and a prohibition on individual companies to take abroad work which is often the result of design and development carried out by British workpeople? For example, should we not stop firms moving factories to Japan?

The greatest lay-offs, redundancies and rises in unemployment stem from developments in the private sector. There is a clear indication to support the contention of my hon. Friend that there must be more effective economic planning to deal with this situation. Both of us are pledged to an election manifesto which makes precisely that proposal.