Orders of the Day — Unemployment

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 24 July 1978.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mr Barney Hayhoe Mr Barney Hayhoe , Hounslow Brentford and Isleworth 12:00, 24 July 1978

Those situations are worrying. One of the reasons the skilled toolmaker moves into a job which does not require his skill is his desire for security of employment. Sometimes small or badly managed organisations represent a risk to a man's continuity of employment. Men are tempted to go for jobs which have a secure future.

We must examine this situation. There is a craziness about a system which makes it possible for a man to have more money in his pocket when he is not working than when he is working. This situation is caused by a combination of tax, social benefits, low pay and low productivity. Unless we create more wealth we shall not begin to solve these difficult problems.

More must be done during the transition from school to work. Some of the Government's new schemes under the opportunities programme for young people are helpful. But I should like to see more done. There must also be better co-operation between the Department of Education and Science and the Department of Employment. It is worrying to find that there are vacancies at skillcentres. In a recent parliamentary answer it was revealed that such vacancies amount to about 30 per cent.

We must consider the relative costs of people in skillcentres. About £5,000 appears to be the cost per year—and that is more than many university places cost. We should examine the use of such scarce resources. We must assess whether the resources are being used in the most efficient manner. I should like to see a greater regional and area impact on training so that training matches local needs more than it does at present.

I turn to the question of mobility. There are 12 million people unemployed and many vacancies are unfilled. The mobility of individuals and their families must affect the situation. Present housing policies often freeze people into unemployment. Even when people are offered jobs away from their present homes they cannot be certain of acquiring a house. The advantage of a highly subsidised council house is often so great that, because of housing difficulties, people believe that it is better to stay unemployed where they are than to move and do a useful job somewhere else.

The employment transfer scheme has been running for some time. I am glad to say that it has been changed sine it was discovered that 70 per cent. of the people helped would have moved anyway. But some people do run into difficulties over travel costs. We should look at the matter in a flexible and sensible manner.

Where are the new jobs to come from? They will not come from higher taxes and increased public spending. That would create the difficulties that we faced in 1976. They will not come from the already over-manned basic industries such as steel because if they are unable to slim down they will be at greater risk. They will not come directly from large international manufacturing companies, although their investment creates many jobs in the construction industry and elswhere. Sometimes massive new investment means that more is produced by fewer people, but the indirect effect upon jobs is considerable.

The wealth that such large industries creates provides resources which can be used for improving our health service. The problem with the hospitals in my area is not that we are spending too much on them but that, because of the policies the nation has been pursuing, we cannot afford to spend more. The only way to solve the problem is to create more wealth in the wealth-creating sections of the economy.

There are two areas in which there is real scope for increasing the number of jobs. They are small businesses—[HON. MEMBERS: "Ah."] and the service sector. Perhaps some Labour Members have learnt that their Front Bench does not say "Ah" now. The Front Bench has cottoned on to the importance of this sector, albeit very late and after it has done immense damage. How worrying it must be for the Government Front Bench to see that its Back Benchers have such little understanding of the possibility for increasing job opportunities among small businesses.

We must concentrate on the things we can do well. There should be a growth in personal services. I see an increasing role for private welfare services. We must take another look at the effects of legislation, particularly the Employment Protection Act. How absurd it was to have an independent survey of the effects of that Act and to exclude from the survey firms employing fewer than 50 people. It is from those firms that most of the criticisms of the Act have been flowing in. There is little doubt that the opportunities that the small firms can provide for increasing the number of jobs have been much affected by the Act.