§ Q3. Mr. Websterasked the Prime Minister how many trade unions have sent him resolutions on the subject of Vietnam; and what has been his response.
§ The Prime MinisterI have received about 170 resolutions on Vietnam from trade unions, and in reply I have referred to my statements in this House.
§ Mr. WebsterDoes the Prime Minister recollect among that large number of resolutions one highly critical of Government policy from the Transport and General Workers' Union? Is it not time that the Minister of Technology decided whether his loyalty is with the Government or with the trade union?
§ The Prime MinisterThe Minister of Technology has a full-time job doing a lot of the things which ought to have been done years ago. The hon. Member who is getting anxious about trade union resolu- 262 tions, many of them from trade union branches, should recognise that this is a democratic country and that people are entitled to make their pronouncements. They do so under democratic control. The difference is that we now have a Government which receives representations in public from democratically controlled organisations while our predecessors were given secret instructions from the people who provided their funds.
§ Mr. MaudlingCan the Prime Minister tell the House how many trade unions have indicated their satisfaction with his reply?
§ The Prime MinisterMost of these resolutions were expressing dissatisfaction with the action of the bombing in North Vietnam. I do not have a statistical tabulation, but the vast majority were extremely concerned about what is going on in North Vietnam. I hope that so is the right hon. Gentleman. I did hope that the right hon. Gentleman would answer the point which I had just made about the secret instructions to the Conservative Party when in office.
§ Mr. ShinwellCan my right hon. Friend say how many resolutions from trade unions in the last 10 years have been sent to previous Tory Governments expressing dissatisfaction with their policy?
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir.
§ Mr. SpeakerWe are governed by the subject matter of the resolutions mentioned in the Question.
§ Mr. MaudlingWill the Prime Minister now answer my question? Will he tell the House how many of the trade unions which approached him indicated satisfaction with his reply? Is the answer none?
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir. I do not have a statistical tabulation, as I said, but I will certainly make one if the right hon. Gentleman will put down a Question. Most of them wrote a letter and got a reply referring to the statement which I made in the House and saying that I had no further comment. If the right hon. Gentleman wants to know on how many occasions they replied welcoming or not welcoming my reply, I shall be glad to make inquiries, if he thinks that to do so would be worth the time of the House.