HC Deb 10 February 1954 vol 523 cc132-3W
100. Mr. Hamilton

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty how many workers have been dismissed from Rosyth Dockyard, Fife, and other naval establishments in Scotland for political reasons in each of the last four years; and how many juveniles have been refused work at any such establishment in the last two years on the grounds that one or both of their parents were known Communists.

Mr. J. P. L. Thomas

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to discharges made in accordance with the statement made by the then Prime Minister in the House of Commons on 15th March, 1948. Only one such discharge has taken place from naval establishments in Scotland, and that was in 1950. It would be contrary to policy to disclose the reasons why individuals are rejected for employment, but no juvenile applicant for employment has been rejected on account of the Communist associations of his parents.