Mr. Ron Brownasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will bring forward new proposals to settle the current dispute in the Blood Transfusion Service in Scotland; and when he intends to invite the union concerned to meet him to discuss the matter.
§ Mr. FairgrieveThe national dispute over emergency duty payments to medical laboratory scientific officers is a matter for the management and staff sides of the relevant committee of the Whitley Council to settle through negotiation, and is on the agenda for the next joint meeting of the committee on Wednesday 26 March. Although my right hon. Friend and I deeply deplore the tactics adopted in some parts of Scotland of delaying or disrupting services to patients, ministerial intervention in recognised negotiating procedures is not desirable.