§ 5. Mr. Norman Hoggasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the latest number of long-term unemployed persons in Scotland.
§ Mr. Allan StewartOn 12 January 1984, the latest date for which information is available, there were 129,145 claimants who had been unemployed for over one year in Scotland.
§ Mr. HoggIs it not the case that these figures show the underlying trend of increasing unemployment, which contrasts sharply with Minister's frequent optimistic statements about jobs, which have no basis in fact?
§ Mr. StewartNo, Sir. The total number of those in work is rising. Seasonally adjusted unemployment fell by 2,000 during the last two months. In the hon. Gentleman's constituency existing companies are expanding — for example, the Loveable company — and there is new investment in Barclay Glass Lab. The hon. Gentleman will be delighted to know that today Avery Label Systems announced an expansion worth £2 million, which will increase its work force to 100.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonIs my hon. Friend aware of the strong case for the Manpower Services Commission concentrating its resources on training and community based projects? Will he pass on these representations to it?
§ Mr. StewartI note my hon. Friend's comments. He has been in correspondence with me about such schemes in his constituency. However, the mode B schemes had over-capacity this year. It is sensible to emphasise the employer-based youth training schemes, which provide direct, work-related opportunities.
§ Mr. Tom ClarkeIs the Minister not worried that many of those job losses are in the construction industry? Will he draw to the attention of his hon. Friend, the Minister with responsibility for health the appalling conditions of health board houses in Fauldhead? Staff who work in Woodilee are living in atrocious conditions. Will he do something to help those people and at the same time provide useful jobs in the construction industry?
§ Mr. StewartThe construction industry will benefit from the steady economic expansion in Scotland, which the Government's policies are now clearly and demonstrably achieving. The detailed point is a matter for the health board.
§ Sir Hector MonroDoes my hon. Friend agree that it is most important to keep whatever jobs we have? Will he warmly congratulate the Scottish police on their outstanding work in keeping Ravenscraig open and allowing people to go to work? Will he condemn as irresponsible the attitudes of those unions who wish to close the plant?
§ Mr. StewartAll reasonable hon. Members will join my hon. Friend in congratulating the police on the job that they have done in sometimes difficult and dangerous circumstances. I deeply regret any threat to coal supplies to Ravenscraig and the effect that that will have on jobs there.
§ Mr. StrangDoes the Minister recognise that the jobs which he says have come to Scotland represent a fraction of the jobs which he has destroyed as a result of cuts in the public sector? Can we at least have an assurance that, having destroyed jobs at Henry Robb, the Government will ensure that investment is made available to sustain and expand Leyland Vehicles at Bathgate?
§ Mr. StewartAs the hon. Gentleman will be aware, the Government are still considering British Leyland's corporate plan. He must also be aware that the shipbuilding industry faces major problems of overcapacity, not just in the United Kingdom, but in the world. I should tell the hon. Gentleman that employment in the sevice industries in Scotland has been expanding very quickly.
§ Mr. Bill WalkerDoes my hon. Friend agree that many jobs have vanished in Scotland because of changes in technology and in consumer demand and, sadly, because of strikes, such as the transport strike, the strike in the steel industry, which contributed to a savage loss of jobs, and the present miners' strike, which looks like doing the same?
§ Mr. StewartMy hon. Friend is right to emphasise the effect of strikes on jobs. The best guarantee of secure employment is satisfied customers. It is encouraging that the structure of the Scottish economy has been fundamentally changed, so that it is well placed to face the challenges of the late 1980s and the 1990s.
§ Mr. CraigenThe Minister says that he can see an expansion of the Scottish economy. May I suggest that he gets a new pair of spectacles? Will he explain to the House how the Secretary of State for Employment can say that there was an increase of 118,000 in the number of people at work between September and December last year when, during the equivalent period, there has been a reduction of 5,000 in the Scottish figures?
§ Mr. StewartThe hon. Gentleman should re-examine the figures, with or without spectacles. In the second half of the last quarter of last year the total number of those employed in Scotland was estimated to have increased, and the reason was an expansion of employment in the service industries.