Orders of the Day — Unemployment in Wales

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 31 July 1958.

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Photo of Mr Henry Brooke Mr Henry Brooke , Hampstead 12:00, 31 July 1958

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. What I was doing was simply pointing out the weaknesses in the argument of the hon. Lady the Member for Carmarthen. It were established that a new industry should never have an I.D.C. to set up in an area where there is no unemployment or little unemployment, that would ab initio rule out Newport as a site for the steel works. The hon. Lady might wish to do that, but I do not think that any other hon. Members would wish to do it, and she herself would do it not out of any hatred of Monmouthshire but only out of love of Carmarthenshire.

Reference was made to the possibility of clearing the derelict Landore site, which I have known only too well for many years. That would cost money, and one must judge, when seeking to spend money, whether greater economic gain would be achieved by clearing an eyesore of that character rather than spending it for some more constructive purpose. It is not as though there were no other possible sites in the area. There is not at present a shortage of sites.

Reference were made to road improvements. If I may say so, I think that it would be a mistake to advocate road improvements as a sort of relief work just for absorbing the unemployed. If we are to carry out road improvements, they should be based on economic purpose. In fact, the great new motor roads which are being driven do not employ a very large number of people in relation to their cost.

The Government's policy, confirmed by an announcement to the House yesterday, is to carry forward with these road improvements designed to better the access to South Wales and West South Wales from the Midland area. We believe that that is of high economic importance, and, indeed, that it is essential if we are to secure one of our objects, namely, that men who are running successful businesses in Birmingham or the Midlands shall cast their minds westwards to Glamorgan or Carmarthenshire when they wish to expand. At the moment, anybody driving along the Heads of the Valley road can be held up for miles and miles because some bus is slowly climbing the hill in front.

One or two hon. Members expressed doubt and anxiety about future employment in the mining industry. I know that by one or two, at least, of the deputations received by Ministers not long ago, a request was made for an authoritative statement, particularly about future employment in the anthracite area. I have been in consultation with my noble Friend the Minister of Power about this and he has authorised me to say that the National Coal Board has informed him that, provided there is reasonable co-operation from the men, the Board does not expect any substantial decline in mining employment in the anthracite areas up to 1970. This is not to say that there will not be closures. On the contrary, a number of pits will be closed and new ones will come into production. It may well be, moreover, that some men from the closed pits will not be able to find work at the new or reconstructed pits, and there will also have to be movement within the anthracite areas. But, provided the men co-operate, there should be about as many men in mining in the anthracite areas in 1970 as there are now. I hope that that information available to my noble Friend will give reassurance in an area where I know doubt has existed.