British Aerospace and British Shipbuilders (Hansard, 15 December 1975)

§ Mr. Varley

As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced on 4th December my noble Friend Lord Beswick is to be Chairman of the Organising Committee and in due course Chairman of British Aerospace. This appointment has now been made with effect from 5th December. I am consulting Lord Beswick about further appointments to the Organising Committee. These will be made in due course.

The following have accepted my invitation to serve from today as full time members of the Organising Committee and in due course the Board of British Shipbuilders: Admiral Sir Anthony Griffin, G.C.B., Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy, Chairman of the Organising Committee, Chairman Designate of British Shipbuilders. Mr. Graham Day, Managing Director of Cammell Laird Shipbuilders Ltd., Deputy Chairman of the Organising Committee and Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Designate of British Shipbuilders.

I expect to announce shortly the appointment of a second deputy chairman, who will be a trade unionist. I will make further appointments as soon as possible.

The appointments to the Board of British Aerospace and British Shipbuilders will in all cases initially be for three years.

The Top Salaries Review Body has recommended that the Boards of British Aerospace and British Shipbuilders should for salary purposes be included among the second tier boards as listed in its Report No. 6 of December 1974 (Cmnd. 5846), i.e. on a par with such boards as British Airways and the National Coal Board. The Government have accepted this recommendation. Until the Government reach a decision on the Review Body's recommendations about nationalised board salaries in the light of the report of the Royal Commission on the 482W Distribution of Income and Wealth, the salaries of the Boards of British Aerospace and British Shipbuilders will be in line with those currently paid to the boards of other major nationalised industries. The full-time members of the Organising Committees will be remunerated on the same basis as full-time board members. However, until the expiry of his present contract, Mr. Graham Day will be seconded from Cammell Laird Shipbuilders Ltd., to the Organising Committee for the British Shipbuilders.

Fulltime members of the Organising Committees will be entitled to compensation if the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Bill is not enacted or, if enacted, the Act is repealed before dates are specified as the aircraft and shipbuilding industry vesting dates respectively. The secretaries and addresses of the Organising Committees will be:

British Aerospace: Mr. J. Carruthers, Monsanto House, 10–18 Victoria Street, London, SW1H 0NQ.

British Shipbuilders: Mr. A. Dunning, 12–18 Grosvenor Gardens, London, SW1W 0DW.