§ 67. Mr. Ellis Smithasked the Minister of Labour what information he has received arising from the joint meetings held since April between his Department and the representative organisations engaged in Association football; what information he has received from the recent meetings; and what action it is intended to take to put the conditions and relationships on a modern basis.
§ Mr. HareThe hon. Member will be aware of the position up to 30th November from the reply which I gave on that date. Since the decision of the players to take strike action next month my officers have seen representatives of the Football League and the Professional Footballers' Association and a further joint meeting is to take place at my Ministry on Wednesday next, 21st December, Negotiations are, therefore, still in progress and I hope that it may yet be possible to reach an agreed solution of these difficulties. The hon. Member may rest assured that I shall keep in close touch with developments and that I shall continue to do all that I can to assist towards a settlement.