§ 54. Mr. Pageasked the Minister of Labour whether the National Association of Port Employers has now accepted his invitation to discuss with his officers the desirability of instituting an inquiry into the workings of the National Dock Labour Scheme; which of the various interested trade unions have accepted the 21W invitation; and when he expects the discussions to begin.
§ Mr. WatkinsonI do not think it would help to get these discussions going in an amicable spirit to draw distinctions of this kind. Some of the bodies concerned have accepted the invitation and others have promised a reply at an early date. The discussions will start within the next two weeks.
ESTIMATED NUMBERS OF EMPLOYEES IN EMPLOYMENT IN EACH DEVELOPMENT AREA AT END-MAY, 1951, AND END-MAY, 1954 (Thousands) Development Area End-May, 1951 End-May, 1954 Males Females Total Males Females Total North-Eastern 713.3 272.7 986.0 721.8 278.2 1,000.0 West Cumberland 38.2 12.8 51.0 37.7 13.6 51.3 Scottish (including Highlands) 740.2 403.8 1,144.0 752.8 411.2 1,164.0 South Wales and Monmouth-shire 487.5 165.4 652.9 490.8 174.9 665.7 Wrexham 26.4 8.4 34.8 27.0 8.6 35.6 South Lancashire 97.8 45.9 143.7 97.4 46.8 144.2 North-East Lancashire 53.6 41.7 95.3 52.0 41.1 93.1 Merseyside 374.5 216.7 591.2 377.3 222.7 600.0 TOTAL 2,531.5 1,167.4 3,698.9 2,556.8 1,197.1 3,753.9