HC Deb 27 July 1978 vol 954 cc1780-1
7. Mr. Skinner

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he next expects to meet other EEC Finance Ministers.

Mr. Healey

I hope to meet them at the next meeting of the Finance Council scheduled for 18th September.

Mr. Skinner

Does the Chancellor of the Exchequer realise what is happening inside the Common Market? Is it not time that he and his colleagues woke up and spoke for Britain for a change? Why does he not use some of his well-known parliamentary bullying tactics against the Common Market? Does not my right hon. Friend know that the Jenkins plan—the Franco-German plan announced at Bremen—will result in further industrial penetration of our markets and allow the common agricultural policy, which assists France, to exploit our consumers? Why does he not adopt those tactics inside the Common Market? We cannot expect anything from the European party on the Benches opposite.

Mr. Healey

I can see that my hon. Friend prefers "bovver" boots to knee-pads—

Mr. Skinner

My right hon. Friend knows all about that.

Mr. Healey

—but he would be more impressive if he used them for some purpose other than tap-dancing on the Common Market.

Mr. Adley

Why is it that the Chancellor appears to be polite to his colleagues in the EEC even if he does not agree with them but is consistently rude and abusive to anybody in this country with whom he disagrees? Does he not realise that the British people do not really like the sort of tactics that he and the Prime Minister have been indulging in? Will he give an assurance that he will have second thoughts and not conduct the General Election campaign at that sort of abusive level?

Mr. Healey

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and I try to be honest and straightforward in our dealings with all those whom we meet. All I can assure the hon. Gentleman is that anything which the Prime Minister and I said about the leader of his party on Tuesday is as nothing to what the Conservative press said about her on Wednesday.

Mr. Watkinson

When my right hon. hon. Friend next meets the EEC Ministers, will he continue to express reservations about the proposals brought forward at Bremen? Can he say whether there is any understanding yet among his EEC counterparts of the need for surplus countries to expand under a fixed exchange rate system if other countries are not to be subjected to crippling deflationary polices?

Mr. Healey

There is a series of Questions on this matter on the Order Paper, which I shall answer with Question no. 13.

Mr. Marten

Was there any discussion at the Bremen meeting about the Franco-German proposals of any element of control of the money supply by the Community in each national State?

Mr. Healey

There was certainly no suggestion that every country in the Community should follow the same money supply targets.