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Job Insecurity
5. Mr. Hain: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent assessment he has made of job insecurity in Wales. [18832]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: In spring 1996, according to the labour force survey, 8.3 per cent. of Welsh employees were in temporary employment.
Mr. Hain: Has the Minister had any discussions with Lucas Industries Ltd. over the closure of its Neath factory and the transfer of 170 jobs to Poland? Why does he keep
denying that job insecurity in Wales is rife, when the number of temporary workers has increased since the last election by more than a quarter, and in his own backyard in the Welsh Office, it has increased by a half? He will soon understand a great deal more about job insecurity when the voters of Wales sack all the Conservative Members on 1 May.
Mr. Evans: The hon. Gentleman would do better not to prejudge the outcome of the election. As he is interested in international comparisons, let me point out that the number of people who are engaged in temporary employment is higher in France, Germany and Spain than in Wales. Furthermore, if he is concerned about the exportation of jobs, it is rather odd that he should be spending his time arguing in favour of a national minimum wage and the social chapter, which will destroy jobs in Wales.
Dr. Spink: Will my hon. Friend confirm that job insecurity is a function of unemployment--the higher the unemployment, the more insecure people feel about their jobs? The policies that lead to higher unemployment are those that the socialists would introduce, such as the minimum wage and the social chapter; policies that would see the expansion of the Welsh Assembly, which would deter inward investment to Wales, destroy Welsh jobs and increase job insecurity.
Mr. Evans: My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Every week, we hear of new inward investment projects in Wales and of jobs going to the Principality. The United Kingdom stands at the top of the tree of performance in Europe in attracting new inward investment, and Wales is taking more than its proportional share of that. Wales has been pursuing that success under a Conservative Government--success that would come to an end if there were to be a change on 1 May.
Mr. Rowlands: The Secretary of State said a few minutes ago that he was proud of the employment record under his Government. Is he proud of the fact that 40 per cent. of men aged between 50 and 64 are economically inactive? That is the highest percentage of any region or nation in the United Kingdom. Is he proud of the fact that, despite many representations, he and his predecessor have done nothing about one of the most serious social and economic problems that has faced our communities?
Mr. Evans: The Secretary of State and I are proud of all of the efforts that are being made to attract new job opportunities to Wales and, especially, to the hon. Gentleman's constituency. Significant investment has been made in the road network and in new job opportunities in his constituency. His constituents would not have had those opportunities under a Labour Government.
Mr. Garnier: Would not one of the best ways to increase job insecurity in Wales be to introduce some of the working practices of mainland Europe? For example, is my hon. Friend aware that it is illegal to work more than 80 hours a year overtime in Spain; it is illegal to work any overtime at all in Luxembourg without informing the authorities; and it is illegal to work overtime in Belgium without the express permission of the authorities? Are not those the policies of the European social model that is warmly advocated by the Labour party?
Mr. Evans: That is why industrialists and those who are running businesses in Wales have expressed their concerns to us about the proposal to sign the social chapter. The Labour party advocates an idea that would destroy jobs in Wales. We must not, and we will not, go down that route.
Mr. Morgan: Does the Secretary of State agree that he could reduce job insecurity in Wales by approving the Eurofreight terminal at Wentlloog between Cardiff and Newport? Unconscionable delays have been caused by his inability to make a decision, and thousands of jobs have been destroyed. Before the Secretary of State leaves Wales in his private plane to join the Tory leadership contest, will he undertake today to announce the decision on the Eurofreight terminal before the end of this Parliament? His uncertainty on the issue makes Prince Hamlet of Denmark look like General Stormin' Norman Schwarzkopf.
Mr. Evans: It is my understanding that the Secretary of State is awaiting a report from the Welsh Development Agency on that matter. [Interruption.] I recall that the hon. Member for Cardiff, West (Mr. Morgan), who is making such a noise from a sedentary position, said some months ago that it was the most important decision to be made in south Wales. He made that statement two weeks before the Secretary of State announced the biggest inward investment project in Europe by LG. That shows how in touch the hon. Gentleman is.
District General Hospitals (Dyfed Powys)
6. Mr. Dafis: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement about funding for district general hospitals within the Dyfed Powys health authority area. [18833]
Mr. Gwilym Jones: For 1997-98, we have announced a cash increase of £6 million for Dyfed Powys health authority.
Mr. Dafis: The Secretary of State has recognised already the need to reconsider funding for health care in Dyfed Powys to take account of rurality. He must know also that some trusts in the area are heading for significant deficits this time next year, because of the present funding arrangements. Does he accept that that will lead to serious problems for some district general hospitals, especially Bronglais hospital, which serves a wide area? To prevent that immediate crisis from developing, additional funding is urgent and necessary. Will the Secretary of State commit himself or his successor to provide that additional funding?
Mr. Jones: I have already announced additional funding for Dyfed Powys health authority of £6 million. I have the strangest sense of deja vu, because the first time that the hon. Gentleman raised the matter in the Chamber he started the scaremongering about Bronglais general hospital. Now that the scare over the community hospitals, which was so wickedly whipped up by certain people--not those on the Conservative Benches--has been resolved, scares are being raised about the general hospitals. That is a contemptible way to approach health care in west Wales.
Mr. Ainger: Given his answer to the hon. Member for Ceredigion and Pembroke, North (Mr. Dafis), has the
Minister read the report produced by Dyfed Powys health authority, entitled "Effective Care and Healthy People", in which it offers three options to cope with the financial crisis? The first is to close all community hospitals in the area; the second is to close two out of four of the district general hospitals; and the third is to close some of the community hospitals and cut some of the district general hospitals. Opposition Members are not scaremongering: the health authorities are telling the truth, but the Welsh Office refuses to listen.
Mr. Jones: The new Dyfed Powys health authority, which has inherited an overspending tendency, is conducting a review. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State stated his regard for community hospitals during the Welsh affairs debate on 27 February, and added that he wanted them to continue their role. When he considers any proposals, he will have strong regard for local views about local health needs, and will not adopt the scaremongering approach advocated by the Opposition.
Mr. Alex Carlile: Will the Minister give a clear undertaking that there is no risk of closing any of the valuable community hospitals in Powys?
Mr. Jones: There is no need to say any more because my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State made the position clear on 27 February. I say simply to the hon. and learned Gentleman--before he flits off to pursue his more prosperous legal practices--that neither my right hon. Friend nor I is in the business of closing necessary hospitals anywhere in Wales. We are certainly not in the business of cutting the NHS. We are committed to expanding it--a commitment that the Labour party markedly refuses to match.
Mr. Ron Davies: Is it not disgraceful that the Under-Secretary seeks to avoid responsibility for this serious matter by claiming that the health authority has "inherited" the relevant responsibilities? I remind him that he created the health authorities and appointed the people to run them. They are directly his creation. Is it not clear that something is fundamentally wrong with the funding of Dyfed Powys health authority? I make it clear that the Labour party supports the campaign now being waged to conduct a fundamental review of the funding formula. Is not the Under-Secretary's opposition to the closure of community hospitals by the health authority both hypocritical and dishonest, as he is directly and personally responsible for that funding crisis? In addition, all his words this afternoon have not changed the fact that that crisis remains. Is that not typical of the Government, who practise deception and evasion and advocate the fraudulent making of policies today which they have no intention of honouring tomorrow? Is it any wonder that they have lost the trust of the people?
Mr. Jones: The hon. Gentleman clearly is not aware of the circumstances. I have moved to assist Dyfed Powys health authority by extending one loan and providing another, and I am ready to assist it with transitional cash flow. It is the hon. Gentleman who is clearly ducking, as he will not make a promise--perhaps because he knows that he cannot honour it--to match our commitment to continue the real increases in spending for the health service each and every year in the next Parliament.
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