PRIME MINISTER (GUILDHALL SPEECH) (Hansard, 28 November 1972)

§ Q4. Mr. Arthur Davidson
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech of 13th November on economic affairs made at the Guildhall.

§ Q7. Mr. Ewing
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech at Guildhall on Monday, 13th November on Government policies.

§ Q8. Mr. Dalyell
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech at Guildhall on Monday, 13th November on the economy.

§ Q12. Mr. Ashton
asked the Prime Minister whether he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech on the economy at Guildhall on 13th November.

§ Q13. Sir Gilbert Longden
asked the Prime Minister if he will place a copy of his public speech on the economy at Guildhall on 13th November in the Library.

§ Q14. Mr. Duffy
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library of the House of Commons a copy of his public speech on the economy he delivered at the Lord Mayor's banquet at Guildhall, London, on 13th November, 1972.

§ Q15. Mr. Clinton Davis
asked the Prime Minister if he will arrange for his public speech at Guildhall on 13tth November, 1972, on the subject of economic policy, to be placed in the Library.

§ Q16. Mr. Leslie Huckfield
asked the Prime Minister whether he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech on inflation at Guildhall on 13th November.

§ Q20. Mr. Skinner
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech on the economy, at the Lord Mayor's Banquet at Guildhall on 13th November, 1972.

§ Q21. Mr. Meacher
asked the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of his public speech at the Lord Mayor's Banquet at Guildhall on 13th November on economic affairs.

§ The Prime Minister
I did so on 14th November, Sir.

§ Mr. Davidson
In view of what he said in that speech, will the Prime Minister consider flexing his muscles as he used 236 to do at the trade unions but this time in the direction of those public companies that are endeavouring to raise their dividends in defiance of the freeze so as to get a bonanza after the freeze? What plans has the right hon. Gentleman to introduce dividend restraint in what he termed the second phase of the freeze? Will there be a third and fourth phase as well?

§ The Prime Minister
The Government are taking complete powers under the Bill to deal with dividends, and they will take action. Plans for the second phase will be announced in due course.

§ Mr. Ewing
The Prime Minister referred in that speech to the European policy for peace. Does he consider that the French Government's decision to go ahead with nuclear tests is in harmony with this policy for peace? In view of the well-known attitude of the newly-elected Labour Government in New Zealand, what action does the Prime Minister propose to take to stop these tests? Is he aware that a great many people in Britain expect him to sail into the test area and attempt to stop the tests?

§ The Prime Minister
The Conservative Government in 1963, together with the United States and the Soviet Union, were responsible for negotiating the partial test ban treaty. I was in Moscow when the Foreign Secretary put his signature to it. It has been well-known to every French Government, including the present one, that our desire is that they should accede to that treaty, as indeed should other countries which at present test in the air.

§ Mr. Dalyell
Does the Prime Minister realise that I and other hon. Members on both sides of the House voted as we did on 28th October last year in the hope that a British Prime Minister would have influence with European Governments? On this subject, is it that the Prime Minister cannot or that he will not influence President Pompidou?

§ The Prime Minister
Our influence was clearly shown at the summit. The desire of, to be fair, both British Governments in the last seven years since the treaty was signed has been that all countries should accede to it, including France, and the French Government are well aware of it.

§ Sir Gilbert Longden
When my right hon. Friend next visits the City will he spell out in words of not more than two syllables for the benefit of hon. Gentlemen opposite the tremendous benefits which the City of London confers on our economy?

§ The Prime Minister
Yes, that is entirely true. It is well recognised. The Leader of the Opposition, when he was Prime Minister, also paid a tribute in his Guildhall speeches to the work done by the City in achieving invisibles which contribute to the balance of payments.

§ Mr. Ashton
In that speech the Prime Minister said that entry into Europe did not mean that we should lost old friends. What happened to his old friends last Wednesday when seven were in our Lobby and 45 remained on the Government benches during the Division?

§ The Prime Minister
Perhaps they did not realise that we would not lose our old friends under these new arrangemements. The ties between us are just as strong as ever they were.

§ Mr. Duffy
The Prime Minister will recall that on the occasion of that speech he claimed that the test of leadership was to help people to adjust expectations to reality. Does he not think that this also applies to himself? Is he sure that in the glowing assessment he made of Britain's economic prospects he took sufficient account of sluggish investment at home and accelerating inflation within the EEC?

§ The Prime Minister
If the hon. Gentleman is referring to my speech, of course I was aware of those two facts, but there had just been a meeting of Finance Ministers to deal with the widespread problem of inflation. On the question of investment, inflation is one of those things which undoubtedly militate against investment. The more we can show that we can overcome inflation, the greater the investment will be.

§ Mr. Davis
Why was the right hon. Gentleman so silent in that speech about the offensive practices of property speculation which have held the community to 238 ransom? Was the reason for the silence on that topic the fact that the Government had absolutely no policy to deal with it or that the right hon. Gentleman thought it somewhat impolitic to raise the subject amidst the sumptuous grandeur of that banquet?

§ The Prime Minister
If I want to raise a subject, I certainly do so. The fact is that under the present Government the tax on property speculation is very heavy. It is not just a question of capital gains tax. If there is property speculation, it can be taxed at up to 90 per cent.

§ Mr. Kenneth Lewis
Is my right hon. Friend aware that many of his hon. Friends think that an announcement very soon about what will happen after the freeze would be of great advantage to the country and might mean that it will not be necessary to add another 60 days to the present freeze of 90 days?

§ The Prime Minister
Yes, I fully realise those two points, and the Government have them very much in mind.

§ Mr. Meacher
How can the Prime Minister seriously expect to achieve success with the freeze when 5½ million council tenants face rent rises averaging 75p per week, while over the same period the average executive earning over £5,000 a year will make an untaxed capital gain of nearly £3,000? Does he think that working people are too stupid to realise these things, or does he no longer believe what he himself says?

§ The Prime Minister
The hon. Gentleman has got his dates wrong.

§ Mr. Harold Wilson
In view of the right hon. Gentleman's reference in that speech to his old friends—[HON. MEMBERS: "Where are the right hon. Gentleman's friends?"]—will he accept the heartiest congratulation of the House on his unremitting efforts in helping to win the New Zealand elections for Labour?

§ The Prime Minister
The Government will have perfectly good relations with the new Government in New Zealand as they have with any other Government.