§ 13. Mr. Boydasked the Minister of Labour whether, in view of the present employment position, he will now introduce legislation to establish a 40-hour week as the normal working week in this country.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodNo, Sir.
§ Mr. BoydWould the Minister concede that such legislation would not necessarily need to be framed so rigidly as to prevent expansion to use the full opportunities of production when they come while at the same time helping to reduce unemployment in the present situation?
§ Mr. MacleodNo. I think everybody takes the view that this is and must remain a matter for industry, and indeed for discussion industry by industry.
Mr. LeeWhile understanding very well the point which the right hon. Gentleman makes about legislation, could he say whether he is aware that much of the apprehension in industry now, and one of the reasons for asking for a 40-hour week, is due to the fear of the consequences of the coming of automation and that kind of thing? Could he say whether any work is being done in his Department 369 to try to ascertain the industrial and social implications arising from new methods and modernisation?
§ Mr. MacleodI am quite certain that we should all unite in saying that there is nothing to fear, in this country or indeed in any other, from the coming of automation or the introduction of new forms of technological change. Change there must be, and in the end I think we are bound to benefit from it. On the question of automation, a good deal of work has been done, and it is a matter which has been brought under close study, particularly by the N.J.A.C.