§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will meet a deputation of Merseyside hon. Members to discuss the proposed closure of the Lyons Maid factory in Liverpool.
§ Mr. Heseltine:No. The hon. Member will be aware that the Under-Secretary of State for Employment, my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Clitheroe (Mr. Waddington), met a deputation from the Lyons Maid Liverpool action committee on 14 October. As my hon. and learned Friend told the deputation, although the Government regret the loss of jobs associated with the closure, it is Government policy not to interfere in the commercial judgment of firms.