§ 3. Sir J. Edenasked the Minister of Power whether he has now finished his consideration of the Report of the Wilson Committee, Command Paper No. 3960; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MasonNo, Sir. So far as the future is concerned, the principal conclusions relate to the avoidance of excessive fluctuations in the C.E.G.B.'s plant programme and the rôles of the C.E.G.B. and the nuclear consortia. These matters require considerable study and consultations and some time must elapse before long-term solutions can be concerted.
§ Sir J. EdenIs the right hon. Gentleman able to give an indication of when 232 he is likely to take steps to meet some of the points that were raised, particularly those relating to uneconomic manning arrangements by the C.E.G.B.?
§ Mr. MasonIf the hon. Gentleman has read the Report, as I am sure he has, he will know that the Wilson Committee suggested that a number of short-term measures were needed and that remedial steps were being taken by the C.E.G.B. and others. As soon as I have anything to announce from the point of view of longer-term solution, I will inform the House.
§ Mr. LubbockWould the right hon. Gentleman consider what effect the delay in plant ordering may have on the finances of the contracting industry? May not this result in higher tendering costs later? Could not these higher costs be avoided by ordering a power station in the next year?
§ Mr. MasonI assure the hon. Gentleman that this matter is very much in our minds. The part of the hon. Gentleman's supplementary question concerning the possible effects of this on plant manufacturers is really a matter for my right hon. Friend the Minister of Technology rather than for me. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman is aware how all this came about. We have a margin of generating capacity of at least 17 per cent. because in the early '60s hon. Gentlemen opposite when in power, did some bad planning and bad forecasting which caused the bunching of orders, and we therefore have this excess.