Industrial Relations

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 8:04 pm on 18 February 1992.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mr Dennis Turner Mr Dennis Turner , Wolverhampton South East 8:04, 18 February 1992

First, it is appropriate that I should declare my membership of the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation, from which I receive no sponsorship. I am proud to be associated with that union, as a member, because of the skills and talents of its work force in the steel industry. We know that that industry has recently been devastated by the further loss of many jobs because of the decision on Ravenscraig.

I am supported in my endeavours in Parliament through the Labour and Co-operative party. I am a co-operator and therefore I receive support, not for myself, but for my constituents, who also believe in the world of co-operation.

A comparison between the Secretary of State's speech at the beginning of the debate and the speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Sedgefield (Mr. Blair), speaking for the Labour party, showed clearly that the Government have run out of ideas and have to resort to the old and outdated confrontational argument of the 1970s—in the modern idiom, bashing the trade unions. That finds no resonance in this country now.

If we contrast the Secretary of State's speech to the speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Sedgefield, we realise that modern, progressive ideas on employment, training and industrial relations emanate from the Labour party. I have some sympathy for the Secretary of State for unemployment, since it is a difficult task to persuade us of the success of his employment and training policies when he reigns over a real unemployment level of 3.25 million, by his own admission. If one takes into account the changes which have been made—there have been so many in the past decade—