§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what checks were carried out by his Department with Humberside Holdings Ltd. or Humberside Sea and Land Services Ltd. in relation to the abolition of the dock labour scheme to ensure that compensation payments were made only in accordance with redundancy conditions; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinNone. Neither firm was an employer of registered dockworkers.
§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will state the full amounts of compensation recovered under the liquidation arrangements entered into consequent upon the abolition of the dock labour scheme as at 31 July 1991; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinA total of £497,604.
§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the cost to the Tees and Hartlepool port authority of redundancy payments made by the authority under the dock labour scheme covering the years 1989, 1990 and 1991; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThe following is the information.
Year £ 1989 2,883,500 1990 304,000 1991 3,163,500
§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of the full redundancy costs was borne by his Department in liquidation cases, and for what per cent. of the redundancy payments made on the abolition of the dock labour scheme did they register as non-preferential creditors; what amounts were received from the assets of Lindsey Dock Services Ltd. and John Sutcliffe Consolidated Stevedores Ltd. against redundancy paid by these two companies under the dock labour scheme; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinUnder the Dock Work (Compensation Payments Scheme) Regulations 1989, the Department meets the full cost of compensation in such cases, and becomes a non-preferential creditor in respect of 50 per cent., representing the employer's share. It has received an interim dividend of £75,712 from the liquidators for Lindsey Dock Services Ltd. and none so far in respect of John Sutcliffe Consolidated Stevedores Ltd.
§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many redundancies there were within the Tees and Hartlepool port authority in the years 1989, 1990 and 1991 following the abolition of the dock labour scheme; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThe THPA employed 445 registered dockworkers at the time of abolition. Redundancies have been as follows:
556W
Number 1989 183 1990 18 1991 192
§ Mr. BellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many redundancies there were within Immingham and Grimsby docks in the years 1989, 1990 and 1991 following the ending of the dock labour scheme; how many registered dock workers were employed by Lindsey Dock Services Ltd. and John Sutcliff Consolidated Stevedores Ltd.; how many jobs were lost on the liquidation of these companies; what was the amount outstanding in severance liabilities; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThere were 498 redundancies at Grimsby and Immingham in 1989, including the entire workforces of Lindsey Dock Services (106) and John Sutcliffe Consolidated Stevedores (226). Total compensation received by employees of the two firms was £3,028,000 and £7,272,000 respectively. Subsequent redundancies have numbered 24 in 1990 and 10 in 1991.