§ 48. Mr. Marplesasked the Prime Minister if he will consider the appointment of a Royal Commission to investigate the unofficial strikes, with a view to discovering the causes of the strikes and with powers to make recommendations to eliminate such causes.
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir.
§ Mr. MarplesDoes not the right hon. Gentleman realise that, to the long-suffering public, a strike is a strike, whether official or not, and will he take some other steps to get the negotiating machinery established before the strike starts?
§ The Prime MinisterI am quite aware of the nature of a strike, and I am sure the hon. Member realises that it is just the by-passing of the machinery which exists that causes people to strike. As a matter of fact, the number of unofficial strikes, having regard to the number of strikes altogether, has been extraordinarily small, and less than one-tenth of the number of working days has been lost in the last year compared with the number lost in the year immediately succeeding the first world war. While we all deplore unofficial strikes, I do not see that this is a matter on which we should become greatly excited.
§ Mr. MarplesWould the Prime Minister consider establishing some sort of machinery to eliminate these strikes when they do exist?
§ The Prime MinisterI shall welcome any suggestions from the hon. Member provided they do not infringe the freedom of the subject.