HC Deb 26 February 1973 vol 851 cc1044-8
9. Mr. Elysian Morgan

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he is satisfied with the number of new jobs likely to be created in Cardiganshire in 1973.

Mr. Peter Thomas

Current developments are encouraging but I am anxious to see more jobs.

Mr. Morgan

Would it not be more correct to say that the Government have no policy which is relevant to attracting light industry to Cardiganshire and that the economy of the whole of Mid-Wales is stagnating? Will the Secretary of State confirm whether he has the slightest intention of designating advance factories for any part of rural Wales?

Mr. Thomas

The advance factory in Aberystwyth was allocated in December 1972. Extensions have been approved recently to Government-owned factories in Lampeter and Cardigan. Two nursery units were allocated to Lampeter in 1972 and a further two this month. As for the economy stagnating, the most recent figures show an encouraging fall in unemployment in the county.

12. Mr. Coleman

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he can give of the loss of male jobs in Wales by the end of 1974.

Mr. Peter Thomas

I can make no such estimate nor do I necessarily accept the assumption in the Question. As the latest figures show, unemployment in Wales is falling and vacancies are rising.

Mr. Coleman

The House will be delighted to hear that the unemployment figures are going down. But will not the right hon. and learned Gentleman acknowledge that the decrease is a decrease in the unemployment that has occurred since his Government came to office? Can he give a categorical assurance that not one steelworker will be declared redundant until satisfactory alternative employment is available in Wales?

Mr. Thomas

The hon. Gentleman knows perfectly well that I could not give such an assurance. I am glad that he is delighted at the figures showing the recent dramatic drop in unemployment in Wales. The only way to prevent redundancies and create new jobs is to have an expanding economy and sound regional policies. That is what we are now achieving, as the recent unemploy- ment figures show. The seasonally-adjusted rate for Wales is the lowest for over two years. A decline in unemployment of 5,700 between January and February is remarkable. In fact, it is the highest achieved at this time of the year since the war, and so is the 20 per cent. increase in the number of unfilled vacancies.

Mr. Gower

Hon. Members on both sides who have expressed anxiety about unemployment must have been very impressed that the figures have dropped so dramatically at a time of year when they normally tend to increase. No less impressive has been the increase in notified vacancies in the United Kingdom as a whole and in Wales in particular.

Mr. Thomas

Yes, Sir. My hon. Friend will have seen the review of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, which has just been published, which says that if everyone cooperates in combating inflation there is every indication that the trend my hon. Friend mentioned will continue and there will be more investment, more employment and an increase in real incomes.

Mr. Fred Evans

Does not the right hon. and learned Gentleman accept that when a Government drive unemployment up to peak figures in order to reduce it in two years, it is an Alice in Wonderland argument for them then to argue that they have achieved a phenomenal success?

Mr. Thomas

I am surprised that the hon. Gentleman has not noted that the seasonally-adjusted figures for unemployment in Wales have dropped each month since last September. I hope that he greatly welcomes the trend, which shows signs of continuing if there is cooperation in combating inflation.

13. Mr. Ellis

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will request one of the task forces to examine the employment needs of Wrexham.

Mr. Peter Thomas

The employment needs of Wrexham, as of the rest of Wales, are already the subject of regular review as part of our policies for industrial expansion and regional development.

Mr. Ellis

Is the Secretary of State aware that the unemployment position at Wrexham is likely considerably to worsen if the negotiations between the British Steel Corporation and Guest Keen and Nettlefold break down? Is he aware that BSC has said that it does not intend to make a substantial investment in the works there? Can he therefore ask his right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to ensure that the BSC conducts the negotiations in good faith on a basis of willing buyer and willing seller?

Mr. Thomas

The answer to the first part of the hon. Gentleman's question is certainly "Yes". I am happy that discussions on the future of the Brymbo Steelworks are continuing between BSC and GKN. The hon. Gentleman will no doubt have noted the words of my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry in the recent steel debate, which were encouraging.

16. Mr. Gower

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of new jobs to be created during 1973 in Glamorgan, and within the area between Newport and Llantwit Major, which is excluded from the Welsh Development Area.

Mr. Peter Thomas

The last available estimate six months ago, covering a four-year period, was that 9,600 jobs are likely to arise in manufacturing industry in Glamorgan, and 770 in the area from Newport to Llantwit Major.

Mr. Gower

Will my right hon. and learned Friend note that the problems of the coastal area, which is excluded from the development area, are different from the problems of the valleys and the hinterland? As the manufacturing industry in the coastal area cannot compete easily with the manufacturing industry in the hinterland, will my right hon. and learned Friend consider giving particular incentives to some of the service industries in the coastal area?

Mr. Thomas

Yes, I am aware of the difference which my hon. Friend has mentioned. The whole question of assistance to the area is being looked at.

Mr. Roy Hughes

Does the right hon. and learned Gentleman agree that the best way to answer this Question would be to reveal details of the £900 million that is to be invested in the steel industry in Wales? Or is that investment, as some of us feel, merely a mirage to soften the blows of the closures and redundancies that will take place in Wales in the near future?

Mr. Thomas

I do not think that is right. It was stated by my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry the other day that of the £3,000 million that it is proposed to invest in steel in the United Kingdom over the next 10 years, it is anticipated that Wales will receive approximately one-third.