§ Mr. Peter BottomleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the Government's summary of conclusions to the wages council consultations in 1988.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThere were 394 responses to the consultation document. Of these, 80 favoured abolition, 308 wanted the councils to be retained and six were inconclusive. The replies from employer organisations with seats on the councils showed a marked change of view since the 1985 consultations, when the majority wanted the system retained. Replies from employer bodies represented on the six largest councils, which embraced 94 per cent. of the workers covered by the system, showed that a majority wanted the councils abolished.