HC Deb 22 January 1970 vol 794 cc683-4
28. Mr. Edward M. Taylor

asked the Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity what was the total number of hours lost in strikes in 1969; and what were the comparable figures for each of the past five years.

The Under-Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity (Mr. Harold Walker)

The provisional estimate of working days lost during 1969 through stoppages of work due to industrial disputes in the United Kingdom, at the establishments where the disputes occurred is 6,772,000. The corresponding figures for 1968, 1967, 1966, 1965 and 1964 are 4,690,000, 2,787,000, 2,398,000, 2,925,000 and 2,277,000 respectively.

Mr. Taylor

Are not these figures very disturbing indeed, showing, as they do, a substantial increase over the previous five years? What, in the Under-Secretary's opinion, is the main reason for the serious state of industrial relations today?

Mr. Walker

Certainly the figures are disturbing. I am not sure that, in the scope of a reply to a supplementary question, I should try to analyse the various reasons for what is a complex situation.

Mr. Eddie Griffiths

Whilst not taking pride in these figures, may I ask my hon. Friend to indicate how these figures compare with other industrial countries? Is he also aware that some responsible trade unions, such as the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation, are taking prac- tical steps to deal with these unfortunate occurrences?

Mr. Walker

A number of unions, along with the T.U.C., are taking vigorous steps to implement the undertaking that they gave to the Prime Minister and the First Secretary of State in June, 1969. The figures for the United Kingdom, whilst disturbing, none the less compare favourably with those of many other major industrial countries.

Mr. R. Carr

Is not the disturbing point about the figures the escalation that they show? Even if the hon. Gentleman cannot today give his analysis of the causes, should be not tell the House and the country what the Government are going to do about it?

Mr. Walker

I thought that we had spent a large part of 1969 debating just this subject—[Interruption.] I think that I am entitled to point out to the right hon. Gentleman that the Tories had 13 years in which to produce a policy and they had to leave it until 1968.

Mr. Shinwell

Will my hon. Friend explain how it is so remarkable that, although 1969 was the worst year for strikes, it was the best year for exports?

Mr. Walker

It is certainly true that we have a very fine export record. But 1969 was not the worst year for strikes. One has only to go back as far as 1962, 1959 and recall the first nine months of 1957, when we lost 8 million working days as a result of strikes.