HC Deb 26 July 1967 vol 751 cc135-6W
Mr. Hazell

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many redundancies he estimates will take place by next October in the East England Conservancy of the Forestry Commission North Norfolk forests; and to what extent private contract work will be reduced to minimise the number of redundancies amongst the Commission's industrial staff.

Mr. John Mackie

Fifteen men are expected to become redundant by October, 1967. This is mainly due to the introduction of new and more economical methods of working. As to the second part of the Question, the Commission propose to work some four-fifths of the timber to be felled in the coming year with their own labour. Only one of the fifteen redundancies is due to contract working.

Mr. Hazell

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement indicating the amount of private contract work undertaken in each of the past three years in Forestry Commission forests, and the total number of industrial workers and the total number of supervisory staff employed in each of the past three years by the Commission.

Mr. John Mackie

The estimated numbers of workers employed on forestry contract work for the Forestry Commission were about 1,900 in 1964 and 1965, and about 1,980 in 1966, and are now about 1,950.

The total numbers of industrial workers and non-industrial local supervisory staff employed at 31st March were 11,002 and 1,153 respectively in 1965, 10,684 and 1,152 in 1966 and 10,237 and 1,105 in 1967.