§ Baroness Turner of Camdenasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will explain why they have failed to consult the TUC and the CBI on changes adopted by the European Council of Ministers to long-established procedures for preparing certain ILO conventions and recommendations in member states; and whether the omission will be rectified.
§ The Secretary of State for Employment (Lord Young of Graffham)The recent discussions in Brussels concerned competence to negotiate for the Community in the preparation of ILO instruments only when these were the subject of exclusive Community competence (that is, when the subject matter of a proposed ILO instrument was covered by existing EC legislation). The need to preserve confidentiality in the EC forum prevented consultation with the TUC and CBI before a decision was reached.
However, negotiation ensured that the Council decision taken on 22nd December included reference to the ILO obligation on member states to consult with both sides of industry on the subject of proposed ILO instruments. The CBI and the TUC were informed of the decision at an early date, and were assured that existing consultation procedures on ILO instruments would remain substantially the same.