HC Deb 14 January 1975 vol 884 cc171-2
11. Mr. Woodall

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will take regional factors fully into account in determining the details of the defence review and, in particular, ensure that jobs are not affected in areas of high and persistent unemployment.

23. Mr. Dan Jones

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will take regional factors into account in determining the outcome of the defence review and, in particular, ensure that jobs are not affected in areas of high and persistent unemployment.

Mr. William Rodgers

Yes, of course, but if we are to implement fully the savings in defence spending we have in mind it will not be easy to give regional factors overriding consideration.

Mr. Woodall

I thank my hon. Friend for that reply. Will he have regard, however, to the present high rate of unemployment in the Yorkshire and Humberside Region compared with the rest of the United Kingdom if it comes to the possibility of cancelling defence contracts?

Mr. Rodgers

We shall certainly bear in mind and try as far as possible to ensure that areas of high and persistent unemployment are least affected by the necessary loss of job opportunities which will follow the defence review.

Dr. Hampson

As at the time of the defence review the Secretary of State could not name which airfields he would close, but could say only that there would be 12, will the Minister now name them? Are Yorkshire airfields involved? Will the Minister also make good the other deplorable lack in the defence review—a statement on North Sea defence?

Mr. Rodgers

That goes rather wider than the Question. We are anxious to give the House the maximum information as soon as possible. The undertaking given by my right hon. Friend in the defence debate stands, of course.

Mrs. Winifred Ewing

Can the Minister give us any time scale for the announcement of details of the cut-back in manpower on stations? In Moray and Nairn, where there are two stations, there is considerable uncertainty in the whole community, and uncertainty is good for nobody—neither for the members of the RAF nor for the civilians involved in the work. Will the time scale be one month, two months or three months?

Mr. Rodgers

I entirely agree with the hon. Lady about uncertainty. We are as anxious as she is to end it. We have it in mind to publish a Defence White Paper giving the conclusions of the review when we have completed our consultations The hon. Lady may therefore be sure that the information will be available then, if not sooner.

Mr. William Hamilton

Does my hon. Friend agree that if there are to be substantial cuts in defence expenditure there must inevitably be cuts in the number of jobs available? Will he make it clear to Members who are the most vocal advocates of the highest cuts and who have defence projects in their areas that that is the certain consequence of what they are advocating?

Mrs. Ewing

It is Polaris we are against.

Mr. Rodgers

It is painful but inescapable that major savings in defence expenditure have consequences for employment. We shall try as far as possible to ensure that such savings do not fall mainly on areas of high and persistent unemployment. We shall do our best to find alternative work for those in areas where job opportunities are lost.

Mr. Peter Walker

Further to the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Ripon (Dr. Hampson), may I ask the Minister to include in the Government's White Paper a passage about North Sea defences? It is a matter about which there is a great lack of information. The public are very interested.

Mr. Rodgers

I think that the right hon. Gentleman knows about the study at present in progress. We hope to have something in the White Paper even if we cannot make a statement sooner.