§ Q3. Mr. David Steelasked the Prime Minister what consultations he has had with representatives of the trade union movement and the CBI on the question of works council legislation.
§ The Prime MinisterThe TUC has put forward its views on works councils in its document "Industrial Democracy" and these are being studied. The CBI's views will also receive careful consideration. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment intends to have the widest consultations with both sides of industry when the Government's Green Paper is published in the autumn.
§ Mr. SteelIs the Prime Minister able to say any more about the precise timing of the publication of the Green Paper? Will he assure us that in the consultations carried out with the TUC and CBI. he will not allow their obviously entrenched interests to stand in the way of creating a genuine industrial democracy?
§ The Prime MinisterI cannot give a more specific date at this point for publication of the Green Paper, but the objective of publication is to allow public discussion of specific proposals. I do not think one needs necessarily to translate a system used in another country in that exact form to this country. The views of the CBI and TUC must receive full weight, but we shall take others into account.
§ Sir D. Walker-SmithWill my right hon. Friend say whether the consultation has extended also to the question of employee or worker participation in supervisory boards in accordance with the proposals of the fifth directive and of the European company statute and, if so, with what effect?
§ The Prime MinisterThe consultations certainly have covered this point. The TUC document deals with it very fully. I cannot give my right hon. and learned Friend the summary of all the views because they are still coming in.
§ Mr. EwingIn view of the bitter experience which the Prime Minister and his Government have had with the trade union movement by seeking to impose on it the Industrial Relations Act, will he explain to the Liberal Party that nothing that is imposed can possibly be democratic and, therefore, that this suggestion will be rejected?
§ The Prime MinisterIt is a very strange view that, if a democratically-elected Parliament passes legislation, that is not democratic. What is becoming clear is that by far the greater number of countries in Europe with free trade union movements have legislative arrangements for various forms of consultation; some have supervisory boards and a very large number have works councils.