HC Deb 20 January 1976 vol 903 cc1115-7
5. Mr. Michael Latham

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will now make a further statement on the current level of unemployment in the construction industry and on his Department's training and retraining programme for that industry.

Mr. Harold Walker

In December there was a total of nearly 198,000 registered unemployed male construction workers, including the unskilled.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the construction industry has been given substantial aid under the measures introduced to mitigate the effects of the recession on longterm training opportunities.

Construction industry training board grants for off-the-job apprentice training have been increased in order to assist in maintaining recruitment levels. The Training Services Agency has made 2,750 Training Award Scheme places available to the CITB. The Board is also offering premium grants to employers recruiting additional trainees for on-the-job training in certain occupations, and grants to companies recruiting additional apprentices for off-the-job training in their own training establishments. The training awards are financed jointly by the Board and the Training Services Agency; the other grants are funded wholly from public funds. I am also informed by the Manpower Services Commission that on 30th September 1975, 3,636 people were being trained in construction trades in Great Britain under the Training Opportunities Scheme (TOPS).

Mr. Latham

Does the Minister agree that there is an absolutely disgraceful level of unemployment among construction workers? In the light of the extremely serious figures from the Economic Development Committee for Building, showing a further fall in output for 1977, is it not the clear duty of the Minister's Department to insist that any further cuts in public expenditure should be on transfer payments, such as food subsidies, rather than on the construction programme?

Mr. Walker

Certainly I should not want to say anything that in any way minimised the seriousness of these figures. However, I am bound to say that it lies ill in the mouth of the hon. Gentleman to lecture the Government about the effects of possible public expenditure cuts when such cuts have been the consistent theme song of the Opposition and could only worsen the situation.

Mr. James Lamond

Does my hon. Friend recall that there have been constant calls from the Opposition for public expenditure cuts that would particularly hit the already disastrously high levels of unemployment in the construction industry? Moreover, does he recognise that projects such as hospitals in the North-West of England are being postponed or cancelled altogether because of proposed public expenditure cuts? In the interests of the unemployed in the construction industry, will my hon. Friend resist as much as he can any proposed public expenditure cuts, whether they be proposed by the Opposition or, indeed, from within the Cabinet?

Mr. Walker

I agree with my hon. Friend that constraints on public expenditure must be considered in the light of their effects on unemployment generally, and especially on unemployment in the construction industry.