Orders of the Day — Defence

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 7 May 1975.

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Photo of Mr Robert Bean Mr Robert Bean , Rochester and Chatham 12:00, 7 May 1975

I was interested to hear the hon. and gallant Member for Eye (Sir H. Harrison), who was Chairman of the Defence Expenditure Committee, saying that the Committee would be reviewing the conduct of work of the four dockyards in view of the Royal Navy's declining fleet. As the Member of Parliament representing Rochester and Chatham a dockyard community, I accept that such a review is necessary, but I hope that it will not once again raise the fear of closures.

My hon. Friend the Member for Barking (Miss Richardson) referred to unemployment as being one of the problems of cutting down defence expenditure. In my constituency approximately 11 per cent. of the 90,000 work force is dependent on defence. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister assured the electorate in the last election that the future of the dockyards was safe. Indeed, he said that they were national assets that must be preserved for the use of the country. I accept that, but we must ensure that the dockyards are efficient and competitive in every sense of the word.

The Defence Estimates pay tribute to the work that has been done in Chatham dockyard on nuclear refuelling and refitting. This is pioneering work that will have its effect in future uses in the civilian world. It is many years since Chatham pioneered the use of glass-reinforced plastics for use in shipbuilding. We must not run down the dockyards but extend their activities.

The dockyards have been allowed to decline over the years. I am familiar only with Chatham dockyard. It is fairly easy to see that it is based on Victorian buildings and Victorian machinery. Much of the machinery dates from before the First World War. I was told that the ship plate-rolling machine dates from 1913 and that the punching and shearing machinery dates from 1914. The newest dockyard crane dates from the last war—namely 1944. The dockyard is rundown and is ineffectual in coping with modern needs and modern technology. We need to revitalise the dockyards in view of their great expertise.

What is needed in Chatham is new construction work. Such work would raise morale, raise technological knowledge and increase trading opportunities. That is necessary if we are to have our ships maintained for many years. I welcome the review but I hope that it will recognise the opportunities and will not attempt to restrict output.

There is an excellent opportunity in Chatham dockyard in terms of North Sea oil. The Manpower Services Commission has reported on the exploiting of North Sea oil. We know that the programme is already two years behind schedule. One of the drawbacks is that we are short of skilled manpower in the shipbuilding industry. In fact, by 1976 we shall be 16,000 men short. Given that situation the dockyards could be of great help, and particularly Chatham.

There is plenty of space at Chatham. As a casual observer I would say that there are 50 acres of redundant land in Chatham dockyard that could easily be put to use on the North Sea oil project. The Government should look to the dockyards in terms not merely of Royal Navy use but of Royal Navy plus civilian use. In that way not only would we gain efficiency from having efficient refittings, but we would be able to get the North Sea oil ashore.

I shall support the Government tonight. I think that they have the correct balance. They are providing a viable defence force bearing in mind our economic capacity. I was interested to hear hon. Member saying that they feel that Russia will not attack us and that détente is a reality. I accept that. It should be realised that Russia is still dominated by the fear of a war. We must recall that Russia lost 20 million souls during the last war. However, as a young schoolboy I remember the Berlin airlift and the tensions in Europe. Having a defence force has eased the situation. I am prepared to accept the burden of continuing defence expenditure as I feel that it is up to the politicians to relieve tension in the world.