The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Tag: 1990

  • PMQT – 13 December 1990

    The text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 13th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. After my duties in the House, I shall be leaving for the European Council in Rome.

    Mr. Maclennan : Will the Prime Minister find time to give another impetus to his ideal of a classless society, in which public power is not abused, by responding to the growing movement for constitutional reform? In the spirit of the times, will he institute cross-party talks on a Bill of Rights, decentralised government and a fair voting system?

    The Prime Minister : As I have made clear to the hon. Gentleman and as he will know from what I have said in recent weeks, my vision of a classless society deals with increased opportunity and choice. I have no immediate proposals for constitutional change.

    Mr. Luce : As protectionism would do much to undermine the economies of the world and to increase unemployment, will my right hon. Friend take a positive lead this weekend in the European summit to persuade the Community to adopt a less protectionist stance with regard to agriculture, with a view to unblocking the GATT negotiations?

    The Prime Minister : I shall be arguing for a positive statement from the European Council, which will make absolutely clear the Community’s determination to make a success of the GATT negotiations. They are extremely important and the cost if they fail, to us and to many other countries, is very great.

    Mr. Kinnock : Will the right hon. Gentleman take this opportunity to confirm that the large rises in unemployment are a direct and deliberate result of his policies?

    The Prime Minister : Everyone regrets the rise in unemployment, but, as the right hon. Gentleman knows, I have been warning for some months that if wage rises stay high, they will have a necessary effect on jobs.

    Mr. Kinnock : Does not it strike the right hon. Gentleman as somewhat dishonest that, whenever unemployment goes down, it is evidence of the Government’s success ; but whenever it goes up, it is evidence of somebody else’s failure? Why is not the right hon. Gentleman man enough to own up properly to the reasons for the rise in unemployment and to accept the blame for his own policies? As he knows the economic and human cost of unemployment, what is he going to do now to stop unemployment rising still further?

    The Prime Minister : Upon the right hon. Gentleman’s own premise, he knows precisely the success that the Government have had. If he looks across the whole Community, he will see that our rate of unemployment is among the lowest in the Community, at 6.2 per cent. Long-term unemployment is still falling and the extent to which the economy has been revived can also be seen in the fact that 50 per cent. of those who have just lost their jobs will be back in work within three months.

    Mr. Kinnock : This is the second time in a decade that the Government have brought severe recession and rising unemployment to this country. Will the Prime Minister now answer the question? What does he intend to do to stop unemployment rising further?

    The Prime Minister : As the right hon. Gentleman knows, we have a higher percentage of our work force in work than almost any other country in Europe. If the right hon. Gentleman is so worried about unemployment, why does he support a national minimum wage, which would cost three quarters of a million jobs?

    Sir Peter Tapsell : May I put it to my right hon. Friend that when he leaves for Rome later this afternoon, he will carry with him the exceptional good wishes of the British people, who have been greatly impressed by his decisions and his bearing since he became Prime Minister?

    The Prime Minister : I am most grateful to my hon. Friend. I shall certainly endeavour to ensure at the European Council not only that we protect British interests but that we consider the interests of Europe as a whole.

     

    Q2. Mr. Pike : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Pike : Does not the Prime Minister recognise that Christmas for many of my constituents and many hundreds of thousands of people throughout Britain will be marred by having to make appearances in court because of their inability to pay their poll tax? When will the Government recognise that making promises–or alleged promises–to do something in two years’ time is not acceptable? Will he do something to remove the requirement on the lowest-paid people to pay 20 per cent. of the poll tax and increase the level of income at which some rebate can be paid to those who cannot afford to pay their poll tax?

    The Prime Minister : As the hon. Gentleman will know, a large number of people are eligible for substantial rebates. The hon. Gentleman would make a good start by persuading some of his hon. Friends to pay their community charge.

     

    Q3. Mr. Gill : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Gill : When my right hon. Friend goes to Rome this weekend, will he bear it in mind that, in the final analysis, the British Government must go whichever way gives British agriculture and industry the best prospects of creating wealth for the people who live in these islands? Will he tell our European partners that wealth creation through free trade remains our top priority?

    The Prime Minister : I shall be happy to carry that message to all members of the Community. I very much agree with my hon. Friend. A great deal of the growing prosperity in recent years has clearly been the result of the steady removal of barriers to trade. We wish that to continue.

    Mr. Boateng : Last weekend in London the severe weather shelters were kept closed because it was not “cold enough”. In the Prime Minister’s classless, caring, opportunity society, how cold does it have to be and for how long before the homeless are given the opportunity of shelter and warmth?

    The Prime Minister : In view of the hon. Gentleman’s remarks, he may be interested to know that my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning will announce within the next few days a substantial number of new bed spaces in hostels and long-term housing in central London. [Interruption.] Opposition Members may not like this, but it is directly related to the point that the hon. Gentleman made. My hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning is talking to front-line agencies and together they are developing new and more effective ways of getting rough sleepers off the streets. I should have thought that Opposition Members would wish to hear that and support it.

     

    Q4. Mr. Moate : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Moate : With regard to the Gulf crisis, will my right hon. Friend reaffirm today that any partial withdrawal by Iraq from Kuwait would be wholly unacceptable and that Saddam Hussein must be required to comply in full with all the requirements of the United Nations resolutions?

    The Prime Minister : I am happy to confirm absolutely what my hon. Friend says. Partial withdrawal simply will not do. Iraq needs to comply fully with all the provisions of the UN Security Council resolutions. That means total and unconditional withdrawal. The United Nations has made it clear that the use of military force will be justifiable if Saddam Hussein has not met the requirements of the resolutions in full by 15 January.

    Mr. Canavan : Does the Prime Minister agree that it is absolutely diabolical in this day and age for a 20-year-old, unemployed person to be sent to prison for failing to pay the poll tax? Would he care to reflect on the fact that if everybody touched the forelock and obediently stumped up the poll tax, herself would still be in 10 Downing Street, Tarzan would still be languishing on the Back Benches and the poll tax would be under no immediate threat whatever?

    The Prime Minister : As the hon. Gentleman knows, we are examining the whole question of the community charge and in due course we shall make a statement.

     

    Q5. Mr. Sumberg : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Sumberg : Will my right hon. Friend take time today to reflect on two significant, but contrasting parliamentary achievements that have recently occurred : first, that he is now the youngest serving Prime Minister of this country this century, and, secondly that his opposite number is the longest-serving Opposition leader in parliamentary history?

    The Prime Minister : I shall no doubt grow older in the job and no doubt so will the right hon. Gentleman.

     

    Q6. Mr. Andrew F. Bennett : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Bennett : Does the Prime Minister agree that when he answered my question on Polaris last Thursday, he was unhappy with his answer? Will he confirm that, having had more time to look into the problems associated with Polaris, he must be even more unhappy? Is he confident that Polaris will go on being an effective deterrent for the next four years and can be kept safely at sea? Would not this be a good time to scrap it and put forward proposals for getting rid of our nuclear seaborne deterrent as part of the negotiations in the spring?

    The Prime Minister : The nuclear deterrent has served this country extremely well in the past few years and I have no plans to change that policy.

    Mr. Peter Robinson : Was the Prime Minister encouraged, as I was, by the reports of the Dail Eireann debate yesterday, which showed growing support for amendments to articles 2 and 3 of the Republic’s constitution? As those two articles claim jurisdiction over a part of the United Kingdom’s territory, will the Prime Minister encourage that process?

    The Prime Minister : I certainly propose to study carefully what was said yesterday.

     

    Q7. Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Taylor : On this our first opportunity, may I on behalf of my right hon. and hon. Friends in the Ulster Unionist parliamentary party congratulate the right hon. Gentleman on his appointment as Prime Minister? Recently, he will have recognised that it is necessary to create confidence and trust in Northern Ireland to have political progress. Is he aware of the unease and alarm created by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland three weeks ago when he said that the British Government had

    “no strategic, or economic interest in Northern Ireland”? Will he, therefore, prove that he is the leader of the Conservative and Unionist party, not just the Conservative party, and support and strengthen the union between Great Britain and Northern Ireland?

    The Prime Minister : The right hon. Gentleman will know that the troops are in Northern Ireland both because that is the wish of the people of Northern Ireland and to ensure the security of the people of Northern Ireland. That is and remains the position. It is generally accepted throughout Northern Ireland the my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is one of the best friends that the Province has had for a long time.

     

    Q8. Mr. Amess : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Amess : Is the Prime Minister aware that when he spoke recently about a classless society, he struck a chord with many of my constituents in Basildon? Does he recall that when he visited our town some time ago, he recognised that it had a fine community spirit, despite local socialists who try to cause class divisions by their support of Militant Tendency and the like? Does he agree that it is only the policies of the Conservative party that allow people to get ahead and that Opposition policies cause division and hold people back?

    The Prime Minister : I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. It always has been that way. The Conservative party is determined to increase choice and opportunity and, unlike Opposition Members, we shall not put barriers in the way of such opportunity and choice.

     

    Q9. Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Griffiths : Would the Prime Minister like to reflect upon the fact that the appalling unemployment figures announced today will be further augmented next month, not least by my constituents who are employed by a company called Euroshape, who had redundancy offered to them this week without any hope of pay? That company once employed 300 people, but what hope can the right hon. Gentleman offer them following his announcement on 27 October last year, when he said that the harsh truth was that if the policy was not hurting, it was not working? Will that message apply this year and next Christmas as well?

    The Prime Minister : As the policy self-evidently is working, we shall first see a considerable reduction in inflation in the next few months. Following that reduction we shall return to a period of growth. I remind the hon. Gentleman that, in the past 10 years, our growth record has exceeded that of any other European country.

  • Christmas Message to the Falkland Islands – 12 December 1990

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Christmas Message to the Falkland Islands on Wednesday 12th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    This is my first opportunity to speak to you as Prime Minister. Norma and I want to wish you a very happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

    1990 has really been a remarkable year for all of us. We have seen sweeping changes throughout Europe. The Berlin Wall has come down and Germany has been reunified again. And now we face a very difficult situation in the Gulf as a result of Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait. Our Armed Forces are there to help recover the liberty and independence of a small country, precisely as they did for the Falklands in 1982.

    In your part of the world there has been the agreement to restore full diplomatic relations between Britain and Argentina. I believe this will be helpful in the future, not least of course because it will make the South Atlantic a more peaceful and stable area. And now that we have the agreement on fisheries conservation as well, the prospect is far brighter that fishing will provide an important source of revenue for the long-term.

    I do assure you that we achieved these agreements with Argentina without in any way compromising our position on British sovereignty. You need be in no doubt that we will continue to honour our commitments to you.

    All of you know how close the interests of the Falkland Islands and their people were to my predecessor, Margaret Thatcher. They are equally close to mine.

    Norma and I would very much like to visit you and hope one day to be able to do so. I know for the moment you will understand how difficult it is to get away. In the meantime, therefore, Tristan Garel-Jones, the Minister of State at the Foreign Office, will be visiting the Falkland Islands early next year. I know that he hopes to meet as many of you as possible and he will then report fully to me when he returns. I am sure you will give him a generous welcome.

    May I also take this opportunity to send my warmest wishes to the men and women of the Armed Forces who are far away from their families at Christmas. We are grateful to them and proud of them.

    A Very Happy Christmas to you all.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 12 December 1990

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 12th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Test Ban Treaty

    Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to raise the amendment conference of the 1963 partial nuclear test ban treaty, to be held in January 1991, when he meets the President of the United States.

    The Prime Minister : We consult with the United States Administration on the partial test ban treaty at all levels.

    Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to attend the opening session of the amendment conference of the partial test ban treaty in New York in January 1991.

    The Prime Minister : I have no plans to attend the partial test ban treaty amendment conference.

     

    AIDS

    Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will reconvene the Cabinet committee reviewing AIDS.

    The Prime Minister : The Government will continue to pursue vigorously a strategy for dealing with AIDS, but I have no plans to establish a Cabinet committee specifically to consider AIDS issues.

     

    Israel

    Mr. Nellist : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his recent meeting with Prime Minister Shamir.

    The Prime Minister : I had a useful first meeting with Mr. Shamir. We discussed bilateral and regional issues including the immediate issue of the Gulf crisis, as well as the longer term issue of the Arab-Israel dispute.

  • Mr Major’s Speech to the Young Deaf Achievers Awards – 12 December 1990

    The text of Mr Major’s speech to the British Telecom Young Deaf Achievers Award, held at the Cafe Royal in London on the 12th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Ladies and Gentlemen:

    Chairman, thank you very much indeed. I must let you into a secret that not many people are aware of – indeed, if they were, I suppose in a curious way it would not be a secret! But we do have in the House of Commons something of a trade union of former Ministers for the Disabled. It is a very discreet, very select, rather enjoyable trade union but in that trade union the Father of the Chapel, irrespective of anything to do with politics, is undoubtedly Jack Ashley and it is a very great privilege for me to follow him today and to thank him publicly for the extraordinary amount of work he has done not just for people who are disabled through deafness but for people who are disabled in a whole range of ways. He has done more in my judgement [Applause]. Well there you are, I need not say it because you know, so it does not need saying!

    Jack was kind enough to say that minutes were precious and to thank me for coming. If I may say so, I think perhaps I should thank him for inviting me because the reason I was keen to come today is because there are many of us here who are very fortunate in that we have to face no disability in the normal journey through life that all of us have; but those who do need a very special courage to face that – not just the courage to meet the challenges, but the ordinary everyday courage to actually decide to take on those challenges in the first place, perhaps to go to a workplace or a university or to enter into a sport or to enter into the normal social contact that most people accept, anticipate and enjoy with no difficulty whatsoever.

    Faced with a disability, whether it be deafness or perhaps some other disability or perhaps a myriad series of disabilities which alas is so often the case, it does take a very remarkable kind of personal courage to enter into that commitment into society and the young people that I had the privilege of meeting just before lunch today were people who have not only had the courage to enter into society in that particular fashion but have achieved very remarkable things as a result of having done so and for me, it is a very great privilege today to have had the opportunity of meeting them. A privilege but not a surprise, for having been Minister for the Disabled, albeit for the all too short time of just a year, I learned during that period across a whole range of disability, with what enormous courage so many people in this country face hurdles that many of us cannot imagine and perhaps would not be able to cope with if we were able to imagine them. For we ought not to pretend, as we see these young people receiving their well-deserved awards in a few moments, that what they have achieved has been easy or comfortable or without some difficulties, for it has not been and indeed, in many ways it simply could not have been.

    Many of us might think what today’s finalists have done was almost impossible but I think if you do think that, that shows the failure of our imagination and not theirs, for the young people who receive these awards did realise what could be done, put themselves to do it and have succeeded in my judgement in rather spectacular fashion.

    One of the reasons I regard this as an important occasion is to touch upon something that Iain Vallance said. In many ways, these young people offer a very considerable beacon of hope to other people who are disabled as to what they can achieve in their own lives and they have precisely the same right to achieve what they can in their lives that everybody else has and we have an obligation to assist them to do it, whether or not they be disabled, and to ensure that they can get the maximum possible out of their lives provided that they will put into it – as those we meet today and hundreds of thousands of others do – the effort and courage that is necessary to deal with the difficulties they often face.

    I hope that those people who perhaps still have in their minds some form of prejudice or difficulty because somebody has one form of disability will realise that one form of disability does not disable people from the normal functions of life, the normal responsibilities of life, the normal duties of life and the normal pleasures that the rest of us are able to enjoy.

    If there is one thing that has been happening remarkably in the last twenty years or so, but which still has further in my judgement to go, it is to open up the opportunities for people who are disabled that those who are not disabled have over the years come to take for granted and I hope that that is something we will all be able to take a part in doing in the years ahead.

    The people who are disabled know from their own experience the will power that is necessary to achieve what they have achieved and I think in terms of will power and courage, if there are two attributes that the young people you will meet shortly have demonstrated to a very remarkable extent it is those. I hope that we will continue to encourage them and many others to achieve precisely the same things in the future.

    I would, if I may, therefore like to thank most warmly both [indistinct] and Iain Vallance and British Telecom for sponsoring this event, for the enormous amount that they have done, are doing and I very much hope will continue to do in the future and perhaps I should also mention just as an example, the contribution that British Telecom has made to the Royal National Institute for the Deaf telephone exchange for the deaf, which it has been jointly funding with the Government. This does allow deaf people to telephone, hearing people by providing an operator with whom deaf people can communicate through text; the operator then passes on their message. British Telecom announced a grant of 4 million pounds this year to allow this service to continue and I would like publicly to express my thanks to Iain Vallance for that very generous and … [Applause].

    I think, if I may presume to speak upon behalf of the award winners today and perhaps also a little wider on behalf of disabled people – people who have disabilities I might more accurately say – elsewhere in the community, there are, I think, some people whom they would wish to thank and whom I might thank on their behalf and that is their parents and friends who will have encouraged them and helped them throughout the vast majority – in the case of their parents, throughout all their lives – to deal with their disabilities and to make the most of their opportunities. On behalf of disabled people, I would like to extend those thanks most warmly for I think they are thanks well deserved by those who offer so much to people who have been treated so harshly in so many instances.

    I think, if I may say so, Chairman, that the principal purpose of today’s meeting is to honour those young people who have won in a very in a very remarkable fashion these awards which are so difficult to obtain and so I will say no more except to say that in a few moments I hope you will give a very warm welcome indeed to a number of very remarkable young people who have achieved what few could have achieved and which all of us may look at with a certain degree of pride that young people in our country can do such things despite the handicaps that they face. [Applause].

  • PMQT Written Answers – 11 December 1990

    The text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 11th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Gulf Crisis

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister whether any disciplinary action is proposed against Brigadier Patrick Cordingley in respect of public statements about potential casualties in the event of resort to a military option in the Gulf.

    The Prime Minister : No.

     

    Iraq (Supergun)

    Mr. Caborn : To ask the Prime Minister which Government Departments were consulted about the orders for Iraq placed in 1988 by Walter Somers and Forgemasters.

    The Prime Minister : In the case of Walter Somers, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Defence were involved. For the licence application made by Sheffield Forgemasters only DTI was involved.

     

    Nature Conservation

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the representations he has had from staff of the Nature Conservancy Council in Peterborough and Huntingdon about the break-up of the Nature Conservancy Council.

    The Prime Minister [holding answer 10 December 1990] : In my capacity as the Member for Huntingdon, I received several letters and other representations from constituents employed by the Nature Conservancy Council about the planned reorganisation of the council. I have responded to those representations.

     

    Science Policy

    Dr. Bray : To ask the Prime Minister if he intends to take the overall responsibility for science policy; if he proposes to chair the Advisory Council on Science and Technology and the Cabinet Committee on Science and Technology; and what arrangements he proposes to make for overall ministerial responsibility for science policy.

    The Prime Minister [holding answer 10 December 1990] : My intention is to continue the arrangements set out in the White Paper, “Civil Research and Development” (CM 185) of July 1987. In particular there will be collective ministerial consideration, under my chairmanship, of science and technology policy and priorities and the provision of independent advice from the Advisory Council on Science and Technology (ACOST), chaired by Sir Robin Nicholson FRS.

  • PMQT – 11 December 1990

    The text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 11th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Gulf Crisis

    Q1. Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the answer of the right hon. Member for Finchley (Mrs. Thatcher) of 13 November, Official Report, column 446, if he will specify those figures which he possesses relating to oil stocks, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide which differ from those given by King Hussein, showing in each case the comparable figures and the source for those which he uses.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : No, Sir. The calculations rest on assumptions about the consequences of a conflict in the Gulf which, by their nature, are not quantifiable. The best way to avoid any adverse consequences is for Saddam Hussein to comply with the United Nations resolutions in full.

    Mr. Dalyell : Is not the spine-chilling truth that no mining engineer, no scientist and no politician knows for certain what will occur if 300 deep-mined oil wells are detonated? In those circumstances, might not the fires rage for months, if not years, in a fashion quite outside human experience? In view of that, should not the damage to the planet, let alone the human slaughter and the Arab ecological disaster, rule out any talk of a military option?

    The Prime Minister : As the hon. Gentleman says, no one can be absolutely and precisely certain about the outcome. In so far as it is possible to make an assessment, we see no reason to agree with any of the views put forward thus far as to what the outcome might be.

    Dr. Michael Clark : Is my right hon. Friend aware that last week I visited the Council for Higher Education in Amman, where the calculations were carried out for King Hussein? Does my right hon. Friend agree that the horrors of war, whether human or environmental, should be made abundantly plain to Saddam Hussein in particular?

    The Prime Minister : I entirely agree with my hon. Friend about that, but, on the assumptions that King Hussein used, we believe that some of the difficulties to which he referred would not be precisely as described.

    Mr. Livingstone : Will the Prime Minister take time today to read the recently published report of the Association of London Authorities– [Interruption.]

    Mr. Speaker : Order. I call Mr. Butcher.

    Mr. Butcher : While my right hon. Friend is considering the risk of an ecological disaster from airborne pollutants in the middle east, will he bear in mind that there is a risk from Saddam Hussein himself? He has already used chemical weapons, he has developed illegal biological weapons, and he may soon possess nuclear weapons. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the best way to safeguard the security of Iraq’s neighbours is for the United Nations to ensure that Saddam Hussein does not keep one piece of Kuwaiti territory that he has gained by armed aggression?

    The Prime Minister : The risk to which my hon. Friend refers is there. It is for that reason that there is a most remarkable degree of international consensus that the Security Council resolutions must be met in full.

     

    Engagements

    Q2. Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 11 December.

    The Prime Minister : This morning, I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall today be having further meetings. This evening I hope to have an audience of Her Majesty the Queen.

    Mr. Brown : In the course of his busy day, will the Prime Minister consider selling to me any of his personal possessions–one of his houses would be very nice–at 60 per cent. of the true market value? If he is not willing to do that with his personal possessions, why is he willing to do it with the nation’s?

    The Prime Minister : I have only one house, and I propose to stay there and keep it.

    Mr. Gregory : Does my right hon. Friend agree that the denationalisation of the electricity industry has been a great success and, furthermore, will ensure that Britain develops as a real share-owning and property-owning democracy?

    The Prime Minister : I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. The offer has been a huge success–clearly the most successful ever–and oversubscribed 10 times. It shows clearly that people are prepared and willing to become share owners in a share-owning democracy.

    Mr. Kinnock : Will the right hon. Gentleman confirm that, as a result of the Government’s underpricing of electricity shares, the British taxpayer stands to lose £3 billion or more?

    The Prime Minister : The right hon. Gentleman has said something like that about each privatisation. Every privatisation has been a success. Is the right hon. Gentleman proposing to renationalise?

    Hon. Members : Answer!

    Mr. Kinnock : I will, as Prime Minister after the next general election–do not worry about that. [Interruption.]

    Mr. Speaker : Order. How can the Leader of the Opposition answer with such shouting going on?

    Mr. Kinnock : Selling public assets for 40 per cent. less than they are worth is, by anyone’s judgment, a national scandal. Today, with the electricity sale, the British people are being subjected to a national scandal and a great swindle by their own Government. Any Government who inflict that on their own people are guilty of infamous incompetence or great dishonesty, or both.

    The Prime Minister : I reject absolutely the right hon. Gentleman’s charge, and I repeat the question–will he renationalise?

    Mr. Kinnock : Will the Prime Minister provide me and the British people with a justification for selling off a national asset for £3 billion less than it is worth and, in the course of that, showing the dishonesty of the Government and the willingness of the Government to swindle their own people?

    The Prime Minister : There are two points in answer to the right hon. Gentleman. First, the share price absolutely reflects the aim of getting value for the taxpayer. Secondly, in view of what the right hon. Gentleman has said, what on earth was the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull, East (Mr. Prescott) saying when he made the prediction that we would not succeed in privatising the electricity industry?

    Sir Fergus Montgomery : Is my right hon. Friend aware of the deep disappointment in the north-west that Manchester is not the venue for the Olympic games in 1996? Will he bear in mind that yesterday Manchester launched its bid to be the venue in the year 2000? As I expect that my right hon. Friend will still be Prime Minister at that time, may I have an assurance from him that the Government will totally support the British bid for the Olympics in 10 years’ time?

    The Prime Minister : Not only that–I look forward to attending them.

     

    Q4. Mr. Archer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 11 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the right hon. and learned Gentleman to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Archer : Reverting to the loss to the Exchequer from the mismanagement in marketing electricity shares, when 3,500 hospital beds are out of commission because of underfunding in the health service, has the right hon. Gentleman reflected that if a local council had made a similar pig’s ear of its affairs councillors would face personal surcharges? What sanction does he suggest for incompetence among Ministers?

    The Prime Minister : In my view, an offer that is oversubscribed 10 times is a success and not a pig’s ear.

     

    Q5. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 11 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Marshall : Is my right hon. Friend aware that the chairman of the Haemophilia Society is one of my constituents? Has my right hon. Friend read the Adjournment debate that I initiated on 15 October, and when does he expect to be in a position to act on this deep human tragedy?

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire, South (Mr. Cormack) raised this problem the other day. I can now tell the House that the Government have been examining this matter and have been able to agree in principle to proposals been put forward by the plaintiffs’ lawyers. Provided that the proposals are formally approved by individual plaintiffs–and, in the case of minors, by the courts–they should provide a basis for bringing the matter to an agreement successfully and soon. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health will inform the House of the details. I am sure that hon. Members of all parties will welcome this development, as I do.

     

    Q6. Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 11 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Taylor : When the Prime Minister was elected leader of the Conservative party, the House was aware that during his campaign he had referred to the difficulties facing teachers, and especially their low morale. As he is his own man, what does he intend to do to change policy and to increase morale among teachers?

    The Prime Minister : I share the hon. Gentleman’s view that morale in the teaching profession is immensely important. It depends on a whole range of factors–not only salaries, but on job opportunities, the quality and nature of education, and the opportunities for advancement within the profession. My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Science is examining all these matters.

     

    Q7. Mr. Paice : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 11 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Paice : Referring back to the earlier questions about electricity privatisation, is not it clear that the lesson from the many privatisation issues in the past few years is that what the public really want when they refer to “public ownership” are share certificates, property deeds and pensions with their own personal names on them? Does my right hon. Friend agree that that is true public ownership and that the accumulation of personal wealth which it creates will bode well for the economic future of this country?

    The Prime Minister : I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. It is also a matter of some importance that the sale of the 12 discos will raise £8 billion.

    Mr. Spearing : Has the Prime Minister seen the document sent to the President of the European Council on Friday by President Mitterrand and Chancellor Kohl? Does he agree that it contains proposals for adding security, citizenship and foreign affairs to the competence of the European Communities, together with co-legislation of the Parliament and majority voting on all but a few issues? Does he further agree that that creates even more centralism than exists at the moment, thus increasing the democratic deficit? As the documents were placed in the Library after the House had debated these matters last Thursday, will the right hon. Gentleman tell his colleagues in Rome next week that such matters and the way in which the President can introduce business at such late notice is unacceptable and only increases the democratic deficit?

    The Prime Minister : I share the underlying concern that the hon. Gentleman has raised about the shortness of notice in such matters. In another sphere, I have raised this issue at ECOFIN on a number of occasions. Decisions taken in the Community should be preceded by proper examination, proper costings and proper consideration. I shall certainly make that point.

     

    Environment

    Q8. Mr. Hunter : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a further statement on the United Kingdom’s contribution to international co- operation on environmental issues.

    The Prime Minister : The United Kingdom plays an active part in the work of many international bodies dealing with environmental issues. We are fully involved in the preparations for the 1992 United Nations conference on the environment and development in Brazil, which includes negotiations on a framework convention on climate change and on biological diversity.

    Mr. Hunter : Although I welcome such international co-operation and the Government’s part in it, will my right hon. Friend be on his guard against wasteful duplication and abuse of taxpayers’ money? In that context, will he look at the work of the European Environmental Statistics Office, the European Environmental Agency, the European Environmental Monitoring and Information System and the European Environmental CORINE Programme? International co-operation is desirable, but the duplication of bureaucracy in the EEC is not.

    The Prime Minister : Environmental care is a matter of great importance to the Government, but my hon. Friend is surely right to draw attention to the dangers of duplicated expenditure. I shall bear in mind what he says.

    Mr. Wigley : If, as is widely reported in the European newspapers, Chancellor Kohl and other leaders are likely to ask at the forthcoming conference in Rome for a level of elected regional government to be developed within Europe as a counterbalance to centralisation, will the Prime Minister give an undertaking not to rule out the idea out of hand?

    The Prime Minister : That is a matter which may conceivably be raised at the weekend. Certainly, I have had no notice that it will be raised. The matter will need to be carefully examined.

    Mr. Speaker : Mr. James Pawsey. Mr. Pawsey?

    Several Hon. Members rose–

    Mr. Speaker : Mr. Harry Ewing.

    Mr. Harry Ewing : I am grateful both to you, Mr. Speaker, and to the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth (Mr. Pawsey).

    May I take the Prime Minister back to his first answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) when the right hon. Gentleman talked about the military option in the Gulf? Do the Government have any contingency plans to reintroduce conscription and national service to sustain the military option in the Gulf?

    Mr. Dickens : On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Under the conventions of the House, should not any question that you call be related to question 8?

    Mr. Speaker : The hon. Gentleman is always so helpful. However I called question 9. I think that technically the hon. Gentleman may be right but I turned a blind eye to that in view of the absence of the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth (Mr. Pawsey).

    The Prime Minister : I understand the important question that the hon. Gentleman asked about the Gulf which as he knows, is a matter that we debate frequently in the House.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 10 December 1990

    The text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 10th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Downing Street (Gates)

    Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Prime Minister if he has any plans to dismantle the gates at the end of Downing Street.

    The Prime Minister : I have nothing further to add to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Walsall, North (Mr. Winnick) on 6 December at column 166.

     

    Fiscal and Environmental Policy

    Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Prime Minister if he will now take steps to achieve the integration of fiscal and environmental policy.

    The Prime Minister : We already seek to ensure that all the environmental implications of policy decisions under discussion are considered before conclusions are reached. My right hon. Friend has nominated the Minister of State, Treasury the Minister responsible for considering the environmental implications of policies.

     

    Ministerial Committee on the Environment

    Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Prime Minister how he intends to ensure parliamentary accountability of the new ministerial committee on the environment.

    The Prime Minister : Cabinet Committees are internal mechanisms for co-ordinating policy within Government. They do not affect ministerial accountability to Parliament.

     

    Parliamentary Sitting Times

    Ms. Harman : To ask the Prime Minister if he will establish a review of the hours at which the House sits and the dates of the summer recess.

    The Prime Minister : I have nothing to add to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Sir R. McCrindle) on 6 December at column 452.

     

    Nature Conservation

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister which Minister is responsible for answering for the actions of the Joint Nature Conservation Committee; and if he will publish a table showing the resource allocations to England, Scotland and Wales and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee for 1991-92 as compared with the recommendations in the Inbucon report.

    The Prime Minister : The Joint Nature Conservation Committee is a committee of all three country councils each of which is answerable to its own territorial Secretary of State for all its functions, including those exercised through the JNCC. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment would normally expect to take the lead in answering any questions about the committee.

    The predecessor of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment announced on 9 November that the grant in aid to the Nature Conservancy Council for England (NCCE) in 1991-92 had been set provisionally at £32.411 million. Announcements about the grant in aid to be provided to the new agencies in Scotland and Wales will be made shortly by my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Wales respectively.

    The Inbucon report was commissioned by the Nature Conservancy Council to assist it in preparing its proposed forward plans. It was made available on request by the council in October. The figures contained in the report are therefore already available for examination.

     

    Hospitals (Foreign Use)

    Mr. Nellist : To ask the Prime Minister how many unused or disused civilian or military hospitals in the United Kingdom are owned or run by foreign Governments or armies; and if he will make a statement.

    The Prime Minister : Details of civilian hospitals owned or run by foreign Governments are not available.

    United States forces have contingency hospitals at RAF Chessington, RAF Little Rissington, RAF Nocton Hall and RAF Bicester. These are laid out as hospitals, but supplies and staff have to be brought in to activate them at a time of crisis.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 7 December 1990

    The text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 7th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    The Gulf

    Mr. Wray : To ask the Prime Minister what urgent steps he has taken in order to assess the (a) economic, (b) financial and (c) humane costs of an armed conflict of Arab, British and American troops with Iraq; and what information Her Majesty’s Government are gathering about the economic, social and political impact of such conflict upon non-oil producer countries in the third world and those in the middle east in particular.

    The Prime Minister : We are doing everything in our power to contribute to a peaceful solution to the Gulf crisis based on the full implementation of the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council. It is not possible to make exact predictions of the effects of hostilities in the manner suggested, should it be necessary to use force to eject Saddam Hussein.

     

    Latin America

    Mr. Wray : To ask the Prime Minister what support her Majesty’s Government are giving to the call of Finance and Economy Ministers of Latin America to start negotiations with the European Community for a free trade accord.

    The Prime Minister : No formal request for this purpose has been received by the Community. If one were, it would be carefully considered. The Government would play a full part in that process.

     

    Nuclear Test Veterans

    Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister how many representations he has received concerning compensation for nuclear test veterans.

    The Prime Minister : I have not, as far as I am aware, received any representations from nuclear test veterans. The Ministry of Defence has, however, received about 120 claims from individuals seeking compensation for damage to health allegedly due to participation in the United Kingdom’s nuclear weapon test programme. In addition, a number of representations have been made by test veterans’ organisations concerning compensation for their members.

     

    India

    Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister if he has any plans to visit India.

    The Prime Minister : I have no plans at present to visit India.

     

    Mr. John Hall

    Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister, further to his answer on 4 December concerning the case of Mr. John Hall, Official Report, column 172 if he will agree to meet Mr. Hall to discuss compensation.

    The Prime Minister : I understand that Mr. Hall is in receipt of a war pension. He has made no claim for compensation other than this. Should Mr. Hall pursue a claim for compensation, Government officials would be happy to discuss the matter with him.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 6 December 1990

    The text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 6th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The Gulf (Ecological Consequences)

    Q9. Mr. Tam Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister what assessment has been made of the ecological consequences of a military option in the Gulf.

    The Prime Minister : On any realistic estimate, the main effect would be to increase annual world CO emissions by a small amount. Any environmental damage is undesirable, but the international community believes that the issues at stake are overriding. The way to avoid any of the consequences to which the hon. Member draws attention is for Saddam Hussein to comply with the resolutions of the United Nations and to withdraw from Kuwait.

    Staff

    Mr. Winnick : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the names, duties and grading of those now employed in his office.

    The Prime Minister : The senior staff currently employed in my office and paid from public funds are :

    Name |Grade |Position
    ——————————————————————————————————–
    Mr. A. Turnbull |Grade 2 |Principal Private Secretary
    Mr. C. D. Powell |Grade 3 |Private Secretary-Overseas Affairs
    Mr. D. C. B. Morris |Grade 5 |Private Secretary-Parliamentary Affairs
    Mr. B. Potter |Grade 5 |Private Secretary-Economic Affairs
    Miss C. A. Slocock |Grade 7 |Private Secretary-Home Affairs
    Mr. J. R. Catford |Grade 5 |Secretary for Appointments
    Mr. A. T. O’Donnell |Grade 3 |Chief Press Secretary
    Mr. T. J. Perks |Grade 5 |Deputy Chief Press Secretary
    Mr. C. Fountain |Grade 7 |Security Co-ordinator
    Mrs. S. Hogg |Grade 1A |Head of Policy Unit
    Mr. J. Mills |Grade 5 |Policy Adviser
    Miss C. Sinclair |Grade 5 |Policy Adviser
    In addition, there are currently 56 employed on administrative and support duties. I am considering further appointments to my policy unit.

    Downing Street (Gates)

    Mr. Winnick : To ask the Prime Minister if he has any plans to remove the gates to the entrance to Downing Street.

    The Prime Minister : No.

    Ministerial Responsibilities

    Mr. Maxwell-Hyslop : To ask the Prime Minister when the Cabinet Office will issue an up-to-date edition of the document entitled “List of Ministerial Responsibilities.”

    The Prime Minister : An up-to-date edition will be deposited in the Library as soon as possible after ministerial responsibilities in Departments have been determined.

    Department of Energy

    Mr. Arbuthnot : To ask the Prime Minister whether it is his intention to retain the Department of Energy as a separate Department.

    The Prime Minister : My present expectation is that work in the energy area will justify the retention of a separate department at least until the end of this Parliament.

  • PMQT – 6 December 1990

    The text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 6th December 1990.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Ms. Quin : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 6 December.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

    Ms. Quin : Does the Prime Minister recall that only two days ago he appealed to his party to close ranks? Can he explain why so many of his colleagues refused to support him in the poll tax debate last night? Can he also explain why the British people, many of whom have suffered hardship as a result of this tax, should be expected to have any confidence in the Conservative party, when it is now clear that Tory Members who originally voted to impose the poll tax on us clearly did not believe in it all along?

    The Prime Minister : The hon. Lady is slightly mistaken. A large number of my ministerial and Back-Bench colleagues were abroad unpaired yesterday, and my right hon. Friend the Chief Whip saw no need to bring them back, because we are united.

    Mr. Holt : Is my right hon. Friend aware that it has not gone unnoticed on Teesside and in the north-east that, on Tuesday night, he supported the Tees and Hartlepool Port Authority Bill in the Lobby, and that the Leader of the Opposition did not oppose it? My right hon. Friend will be most welcome throughout the north-east when he makes his frequent visits–unlike the Leader of the Opposition, who has occasionally dropped in on the Durham miners’ gala and then scarpered back to the south.

    The Prime Minister : I am grateful to my hon. Friend. I look forward to visiting Langbaurgh and the north-east on many occasions.

    Mr. Kinnock : When he knows what he knows, why does the Prime Minister refuse to abolish the poll tax now?

    The Prime Minister : Unlike the right hon. Gentleman and his party– who have, on the latest count, changed their policy on this matter on 52 occasions–we are conducting a comprehensive review to determine how best to deal with it.

    Mr. Kinnock : Will the Prime Minister confirm for the British people that the poll tax will still be in place at the time of the next general election?

    The Prime Minister : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment made it perfectly clear yesterday that we were undertaking a fundamental review, and a fundamental review is what we shall undertake. We shall see how long that will take. I think that the country will notice that, although he professes to oppose the system, the right hon. Gentleman will make no constructive moves towards a constructive dialogue to correct it.

    Mr. Kinnock : When the right hon. Gentleman’s proposal last night did not even convince his hon. Friends, how does he seriously expect it to convince anybody else? Will he now answer the question? Will he confirm that the poll tax will still be in place at the next general election–yes or no?

    The Prime Minister : The right hon. Gentleman might confirm that he has made it clear that under his plans the time scale for change may be considerable.

    Mr. Fishburn : Will my right hon. Friend win the hearts of Londoners today by endorsing the proposals for leasehold reform put forward last week by the Lord Chancellor? Does he accept that the draft Bill for commonhold will allow London flat dwellers to own their flats on freehold for the first time, thereby ending the injustices of leasehold that make so many London flat dwellers into second-class home owners?

    The Prime Minister : As my hon. Friend will know, over the past 10 years we have done more to increase owner-occupation, with the personal security that that offers, than any previous Government. It is noticeable that that is not the policy of the Labour party.

    Mr. Ashdown : Does the Prime Minister realise that we welcome the proposal made last night for discussions with Opposition parties on a replacement for the poll tax? My party will contribute constructively to those discussions. We shall not play parliamentary games while millions out there are suffering from the effects of this unjust tax. In that context, may I ask the right hon. Gentleman to remember the promise that he made in his 1974 election address, in which he said that he would abolish the rates

    Mr. Speaker : Order. I do not think that we need visual aids.

    Mr. Ashdown : –in which he said that he would abolish the rates–

    Mr. Speaker : Order. The right hon. Gentleman can make his point without the visual signs.

    Mr. Ashdown : He said that he would abolish the rates and replace them with a tax related to the ability to pay. Does he still agree with that and does he realise that the only tax properly related to ability to pay is a local income tax?

    The Prime Minister : On the last point, the right hon. Gentleman knows that we are considering local taxation at the moment. On the first point, I share what I think is implicit in what the right hon. Gentleman said, which is that the House of Commons need not necessarily be a perpetual cockpit of confrontation. I regret very much that Labour Members, despite all that they said, have no intention of helping to determine common principles for the role of local government. If they do not wish to do so, that is a matter for them, but others will.

    Mr. Speaker : Mr. Michael Lord. [Hon. Members :– “Who?”] Order.

    Mr. Lord : As our new Prime Minister will have considerably fewer problems to deal with on taking over his appointment, may I urge him to bring to the top of the list the problem of haemophiliacs who have been infected with the AIDS virus through no fault of their own? He would earn the undying gratitude of the victims, their families and the House if he could take steps to bring about an out-of-court settlement as quickly as possible.

    The Prime Minister : As my hon. Friend knows, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has made it clear that we are spending a considerable amount of money to deal with that problem, which we shall continually keep under review.

     

    Q2. Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 6 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Hinchliffe : Is the Prime Minister aware that in the past 12 months a baby has been abducted from a hospital in London, an 11-year-old girl has been raped at a hospital in Surrey, a 77-year-old woman has been indecently assaulted at a hospital in Leeds and last week two doctors were murdered at a hospital in Wakefield? As the Government are committed to spending about £200 million on allowing hospitals to opt out, but a mere £20,000 on hospital security, does the Prime Minister feel that he has his priorities right?

    The Prime Minister : The hon. Gentleman should bear it in mind that the direct management of hospitals lies with health authorities and, in the case of national health service trusts, with the management of those trusts in due course. I am sure that they will take note of what the hon. Gentleman says.

    Mr. Cormack : Is my right hon. Friend aware that there would be almost universal delight and gratitude if, before Christmas, the problem of the haemophilia AIDS victims were solved by adequate compensation being paid without liability being admitted?

    The Prime Minister : As my hon. Friend knows, we have already made a payment into the Macfarlane Trust. I understand the sensitive nature of the matter, but I have nothing further to add today.

     

    Q3. Mr. Mullin : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 6 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Mullin : Is the Prime Minister aware that of the 181 children who left Pennywell comprehensive school in my constituency earlier this year, only 10 found some form of employment, 32 went on to higher education, and of the remaining 150 or so, half went on to Government training schemes, which will lead to the dole, and the other half went directly on to the dole? What hope can he offer the children of Sunderland that life in John Major’s Britain will be any different from life in Margaret Thatcher’s Britain?

    The Prime Minister : As the hon. Gentleman knows, there have been considerable improvements in every aspect of life in the past 10 years, and that will continue. On the specific point that he made, a larger percentage of our youngsters now go on to further education than ever before, a higher percentage of our population is in work than ever before and there is a higher level of opportunities and training than ever before. That bodes well for the young people of Sunderland and indeed for young people everywhere.

    Mr. Riddick : Will my right hon. Friend comment on the fact that many local education authorities, including mine of Kirklees, are holding back far more of their education budgets for central administration than was originally intended by the Government? As the Government have announced that they intend to carry out a full review of the structure of local government, does he think that we should consider taking the control of education out of the hands of local education authorities and giving it to schools?

    The Prime Minister : I have considerable sympathy with that point of view, not least because of the enormous success of local management of schools. I hope that education authorities will release as much money as possible to go directly into the classroom.

     

    Q4. Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 6 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Smith : Will the Prime Minister tell us whether, as a result of the frantic trawling for options and ideas that is under way in the Department of the Environment, there will be any reduction whatsoever in the poll tax bills that people will receive in April, or will the amounts be precisely the same as they were always going to be?

    The Prime Minister : As for trawling for options, I remind the hon. Gentleman that his party has had 52 changes of mind on local government. That is not so much a U-turn as a merry-go-round.

    Mr. Nicholas Winterton : Does my right hon. Friend accept that manufacturing industry is the only genuine source of non-inflationary growth and that the continuing use of high interest rates is damaging to investment and to competitiveness? Will my right hon. Friend look again at an alternative industrial manufacturing strategy?

    The Prime Minister : As my hon. Friend knows, the central core of economic policy is to bear down on inflation. As it reduces–and I expect that it will reduce, which is the general view of external commentators as well- -the options may exist for a reduction in interest rates. I can give no indication of when that may be.

     

    Q5. Mr. Andrew F. Bennett : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 6 December.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Bennett : Does the Prime Minister agree that given that two of the Polaris submarines are no longer seaworthy and that the other two were on the Clyde earlier this week, he is the first Prime Minister for 20 years not to have had a nuclear deterrent at his fingertips? Does he further agree that that did not cause him or the country any problems? Will he now agree that, rather than trying to patch up the remaining Polaris submarines, he should abandon the whole programme and give a clear lead to the non-proliferation talks in January that we want to have a non-nuclear world?

    The Prime Minister : Our nuclear capacity remains a deterrent and remains an important part of our defence.

    Sir Robert McCrindle : As my former area Whip–which until now has, no doubt, been his greatest claim to distinction–will my right hon. Friend comment on the possibility of some change being brought to the hours that the House works? Will he tell me why, having had that matter raised on many occasions in the 20 years in which I have been in the House, I remain sceptical? What can my right hon. Friend do to reassure me?

    The Prime Minister : I have fond memories of being my hon. Friend’s Whip some years ago. The hours of work in the House are essentially a matter for the Procedure Committee and for hon. Members themselves. Each will have his own individual views. If the House were to express views, I do not think that I would stand against them.