§ Mr. Hayhoeasked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any evidence of a significant correlation between the incidence or severity of industrial disputes and the level of unemployment during the last 25 years.
§ Mr. BoothThere does not appear to have been any clear or sustained relationship in the past 25 years between the fluctuations in the level of unemployment in the course of the business cycle and the fluctuations in the incidence or severity of industrial disputes.
§ Mr. George Rodgersasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish figures in the Official Report showing the number of days lost through industrial disputes in each year from 1970 to 1974 and the number of days so lost in the present year.
§ Mr. John FraserFollowing is the information:
STOPPAGES OF WORK DUE TO INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES: UNITED KINGDOM Working days lost in all stoppages in progress in period 1970 10,980,000 1971 13,551,000 1972 23,909,000 1973 7,197,000 1974 14,750,000 January-September 1975* 5,337,000 * Provisional. The figure for October 1975 is not yet available.