§ The Prime MinisterI refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave some time ago.
§ Mr. DubsWhat consultations took place with the trade unions involved, before the Government announced their 6 per cent. pay limit on public sector workers?
§ The Prime MinisterFirst, this is not, and never has been, a pay limit. Normal consultations took place with the local authorities. The Government decided that the ordinary people of Britain could afford to contribute only 6 per cent. to the increased local authority total pay bill. How that is allocated, precisely what negotiations are conducted, and the wage variations between the several groups of local authority employees is a matter for the local authorities concerned.
§ Mr. HeddleWill my right hon. Friend take the opportunity today to remind the country of the words spoken by the right hon. Member for Ebbw Vale (Mr. Foot) on 28 October 1975? He said then that inflation helped to cause unemployment. At one of my right hon. Friend's informal meetings behind Mr. Speaker's Chair, will she endeavour to encourage the right hon. Gentleman to assist her in her fight to bring down inflation?
§ The Prime MinisterI firmly believe that inflation creates unemployment. The only way to secure good job prospects is to pursue this Government's policies and to bring down inflation first.
§ Mr. LeightonIs the right hon. Lady looking forward to her bare-knuckle fight with the CBI?
§ The Prime MinisterI am very much looking forward to seeing Sir Terence Beckett tomorrow. I hope that he is, too.
§ Mr. Cyril D. TownsendTo what cause does my right hon. Friend attribute Soviet intransigence in Madrid? Is it due to their dismal record on human rights since Helsinki or is it due to the contemplation of military aggression against Poland? In either event, will my right hon. Friend make clear that it would be hopeless for the conference to proceed without a detailed and clear review of the implementation of the Final Act?
§ The Prime MinisterI regret that it has not been possible for the Madrid conference on the Helsinki accords to get under way. The Soviet Union does not wish its record on political repression to be shown in its true light.
§ Mr. WigleyWill the Prime Minister find time today to consult local government on the effect of Government expenditure cuts on local services? Will she bear in mind that the county of Gwynedd faces £4 million worth of possible cuts, and that that means closing three old people's homes, one technical college, ending nursery education and doing away with large parts of the home help service? Does the right hon. Lady accept that that will be the result of the Government's policy?
§ The Prime MinisterHow a local authority allocates its income from taxpayers and ratepayers is a matter for the local authority to decide. Too often, many of us have seen cuts made in sensitive areas, and too little in administration. If the hon. Gentleman is correct, and I have no doubt that he is, his remarks give enormous justification for saying that people in the public sector must take into account the capacity of the private sector to finance those who work in the public sector.
§ Mr. SquireDuring her busy day would my right hon. Friend care to speculate on which of the many policies, previously advocated by the right hon. Member for Ebbw Vale (Mr. Foot), will be the first to suffer a U-turn in his new capacity.
§ The Prime MinisterI just trust that the right hon. Gentleman will never have a chance to put them into effect. I recall that it was a woman who defeated him in Devonport.
§ Mr. EnglishSexist!