Orders of the Day — Unemployment

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

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Photo of Mr Doug Hoyle Mr Doug Hoyle , Nelson and Colne 12:00, 24 July 1978

Opposition Members have talked about cynicism and have said that people are fed up with party-political debates in the House. And yet Opposition speakers, including the right hon. Member for Crosby (Mr. Page), have advocated increasing rather than cutting public expenditure. The right hon. and learned Member for Hexham (Mr. Rippon) called for new airport facilities at Newcastle. This is what debases politics. One of the difficulties is that it is taking place near to the time when the Opposition believe that there will be a General Election. That makes it difficult to examine the unemployment figures.

We should be talking about unemployment not in this country alone but as a global problem. I listened with interest to the hon. Member for Brentford and Isleworth (Mr. Hayhoe) and I looked for solutions from him, but I did not hear any solutions. All I heard was a description of a toytown economy. He said that the solution lay with those companies employing fewer than 50 people. There might be some scope there, but it will not solve the problem.

The Shadow Front Bench spokesmen speak with different voices. Not long ago the right hon. Member for Leeds, North-East (Sir K. Joseph) told us that all grants and subsidies did great harm. The truth is that if we cut grants and subsidies, unemployment will increase, almost overnight, by between 500,000 and 750,000. The type of speech that the right hon. Gentleman makes brings no comfort to the textile workers in my constituency. The problems go deeper than many Opposition Members seem to think. Many of their ideas are short-term solutions to a long-term problem.

Unemployment in the EEC stands at 6 million. About 40 per cent. of the unemployed are young people. In the OECD area—I do not include Portugal and Turkey-16·3 million people are unemployed. That is the scale of the problem. We should turn our attention to it.

So far no one has suggested that we shall solve the problem overnight or by a cross on a ballot paper. If anyone said that he would be misleading the people. More people are in work now than in 1972, when the Conservatives were in power. The labour force between 1977 and 1986 will rise by 6·6 per cent. Most of that extension will be made up of young people and women who will be looking for jobs. Shall we be able to find jobs for those people? I do not think that we shall, if we follow the orthodox policies that are being followed throughout the Western world.

It is estimated that if there is no change in the policies in this country and in West Germany there will be 5 million unemployed here and 5 million unemployed in West Germany by 1980.