Shipbuilding (Tyne and Wear)

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 11:44 am on 31 March 1983.

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Photo of Mr Donald Dixon Mr Donald Dixon , Jarrow 11:44, 31 March 1983

The Minister talks about retraining people from the shipbuilding industry, but we live in an island in a world in which seven-eighths of the surface is covered by water. We rely on 98 per cent. of our trade—by weight—being carried by ships. What is the point of retraining shipyard workers? We require a shipbuilding industry, just as we require a shipping industry. There is no point in retraining shipbuilding workers so that they can produce plastic knobs. We shall require ships in the future, and shipbuilders to build and maintain them. We should be retaining them, not retraining them.