HC Deb 02 February 1982 vol 17 cc120-2
10. Mr. Winnick

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest total number of registered unemployed in the United Kingdom; what was the figure for May 1979; and what the increase has been in percentage terms between the two dates.

Mr. Tebbit

At 14 January the provisional total number of people registered as unemployed in the United Kingdom was 3,071,000. The seasonally adjusted figure, excluding school leavers, was 2,828,900, and the corresponding figure for May 1979 was 1,312,000. The increase between the two dates was 1,516,900, or 115.6 per cent.

Mr. Winnick

Is the Secretary of State aware that those shameful and disgraceful figures illustrate the misery and devastation that have been caused to many people in this country as a result of the Government's policies? Does he agree that all the evidence shows that unemployment will continue to increase? Was that not the clear message in the speech made yesterday by the Leader of the House?

Mr. Tebbit

In a world where it is clear that almost every industrialised country has suffered a sharp increase in unemployment and where unemployment in many countries is now accelerating far faster than in Britain, it is childlike to put all the blame on the Government for these problems. The hon. Gentleman should try to grow up and understand the deep-seated, long-standing problems of British industry, which made it more vulnerable to the recession than any other country.

Mr. Forman

I congratulate my right hon. Friend and his Department on their efforts to alleviate some of the most acute problems of unemployment, notably those affecting young people, but will he assure the House that he is prepared to turn his attention to the problem of the long-term unemployed, which seems to many of us to be the most worrying aspect of the underlying unemployment figures?

Mr. Tebbit

I apologise to my hon. Friend. I was handed an important note and I missed what he said. I should be obliged if he would repeat it.

Mr. Forman

I said that I congratulate my right hon. Friend and his Department on the efforts that they have made to alleviate many of the problems of unemployment, particularly those affecting young people, but will he now turn his attention to the problems of the long-term unemployed, which many of us believe to be one of the most serious and tragic aspects of the unemployment problem?

Mr. Tebbit

My hon. Friend draws attention to what is becoming a most serious poblem, that of the long-term unemployed. I do not believe that there is any quick and simple answer to the problem. The only answer is to restore the competitiveness of British industry to the position in which it can sell goods to its customers and thus create the new jobs that are required for those people.

Mr. John Grant

Does the Secretary of State recognise that his mixture of calculated offensiveness and sheer complacency on this issue is nothing but an insult to the 3 million unemployed in this country, and that by his attitude he is dragging a great Department of State into the political gutter alongside him? Will he now address himself seriously to the question that he dodged last week and which he has just been asked again: why is it that, when we shall have 1 million long-term unemployed before the end of this year, all that he can offer is 30,000 places on the community enterprise programme, which he knows the Manpower Services Commission considers to be quite inadequate? When will he do something about this problem?

Mr. Tebbit

Perhaps the hon. Gentleman could spare the time to listen to my reply. He should turn his attention to the fact that jobs are created not by Governments but by customers who are willing to buy the goods and services offered. Governments cannot wave a wand in the way that he and his right hon. and hon. Friends now pretend that they can do, but were unable to do when they supported the Labour Government.

Mr. Woolmer

Does the Secretary of State recognise that in Yorkshire there are now more than 280,000 unemployed, with 45 people chasing every job? Does he accept any responsibility for the increase in unemployment under his Government? If he does accept some responsibility, what changes does he believe we need to bring unemployment down?

Mr. Tebbit

I entirely accept the collective responsibility of the Government for the fact that many people have been displaced from jobs in overmanned industries. I take it that the hon. Gentleman would not suggest that the prospects of British Leyland or British Steel would be improved by putting back those men to recreate the overmanning and to reduce the efficiency of the industries.

My proposals are that the Government should continue with their present strategy and that we should take some heart from the fact that short-time working is falling, overtime is increasing, unemployment is rising more slowly and that more jobs are being offered now than 12 months ago.

Sir Anthony Kershaw

Is not one of the difficulties an attitude of mind? Is it not regrettable that 60 per cent. of those surveyed in an important poll published a few days ago believed that it was not important whether they worked for an outfit that made profits or did not make profits?

Mr. Tebbit

That underlines the extent to which we need a little better economic education, not only among those 60 per cent. outside, but among the 40 per cent. in the Opposition.

Mr. Varley

Does not the optimistic talk that we have just heard from the Secretary of State about vacancies and short-time working contrast sharply with the sober analysis that was given last night by his right hon. Friend the Lord President of the Council, in which he implied that job prospects and living standards would not improve in the time left to the Government? In view of the Lord

President's propaganda-co-ordinating role, would it not be a good thing if he and the Secretary of State got together so that at least they could sing the same song?

Mr. Tebbit

The right hon. Gentleman again does not seem to have understood anything of what has been said by the Government in the House for many weeks. My right hon. Friend and I are at one in pointing out that there are no slick, easy solutions that can reduce unemployment overnight. That is the right hon. Gentleman's song. We are at one in pointing out that we need to hold (down wages and wage costs to improve competitiveness, and in pointing out that we face a world recession with a world problem that can only be worsened in Britain by the adoption of the irresponsible policies offered by the right hon. Gentleman or his former right hon. and hon. Friends.