HC Deb 01 February 1988 vol 126 c693
11. Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has held with the chairman of British Rail about the future size of the work force in British Rail Engineering Ltd.

14. Mr. Anderson

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has held with the chairman of British Rail about the future size of the work force in British Rail Engineering Ltd.

Mr. David Mitchell

My right hon. Friend discussed BREL's future with the British Rail chairman last November. He then made a statement to the House announcing approval for British Rail to offer the company for sale. Employment at BREL is a management matter for the company and, until it is sold, for the British Railways Board.

Mrs. Dunwoody

Did the Minister accept that part of the British Rail corporate plan which said that the work force of BREL should be reduced to 4,000? If he did, does he intend that the privatised units will have the full right to tender for any work that is handed out by British Rail, or was it just a way of scrapping thousands of engineering jobs, with complete disregard for the interests of people such as my constituents?

Mr. Mitchell

British Rail Engineering Ltd. has no plans for more major redundancies before the sale takes place, which will confine the loss of jobs to the 3,000 redundancies announced last September. As for the second part of the hon. Lady's question, the purchasers of the company will decide for which contracts to tender.

Mr. Anderson

Will the Minister confirm that, in spite of grossly overcrowded trains and frequent cancellations due to defective stock, he and his colleagues see no future for BREL? Will he take on board the fact that up to 3,500 jobs could be created over a two-year period in BREL merely by putting one extra carriage on each commuter train leaving the London termini at peak hours? Is he concerned about the prospect of positive job creation through BREL?

Mr. Mitchell

There are certain practical difficulties about adding an extra coach to all the trains, as the platforms would have to be lengthened, too. British Rail is responsible for its own investment proposals, which it puts to Ministers. Ministers have approved all proposals that have come forward from British Rail, and the reductions in the labour force at BREL are a result of a fall in repair and maintenance work, much of which is a result of new investment in rolling stock, leading to fewer repair requirements.