Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 18 Rhagfyr 1973.
The Secretary of State is asking us to extend for a further 28 days emergency regulations. I am prepared to support him in any efforts he makes to resolve the emergency which exists, but I am a little reluctant to support him tonight because I want him to tell us, first, what action he has taken under the regulations so far which he could not have taken under the existing law. If he cannot tell us of fairly substantial action that he has taken already, why was he so hasty in asking for these regulations in the first place?
My hon. Friend the Member for West Ham, North (Mr. Arthur Lewis) has complained about the lack of action under the emergency regulations. I am making this point as an active trade unionist and sponsored member of the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers. The right hon. Gentleman must realise that trade unionists in particular regard the emergency regulations as being aimed at their activities. It is very difficult for trade unionists to understand the ordinary law, but when emergency regulations are introduced in addition to ordinary law the position becomes even more confused. The concern that has been shown by several hon. Members demonstrates that trade unionists want the right hon. Gentleman to indicate exactly where they stand.
If he is a wise man, the right hon. Gentleman will give that guidance because he must look, as well as to the emergency regulations, to a possible solution of the disputes which have, according to the Government, brought the emergency about. Trade unionists feel that the Government have used the law against them. I am not saying that the Government have done so; I am saying that trade unionists believe that they have.
Incidents such as that which took place in Colchester early in November—under, I presume, the existing law—lead to a great deal of anxiety among not only the 24 trade unionists involved but other trade unionists throughout the country, including the executive of my union, which asked me to raise the matter in Parliament to find out how it was that ordinary, peaceful trade unionists, law-abiding and on a perfectly proper demonstration, were taken into custody when they returned to their homes by bus, kept in custody for a considerable time, had their homes searched—and all for no apparent reason, other than that one of them was suspected of having something to do with the fire at Woolworth's.
This sort of incident leads to trade unionists feeling that laws are being introduced specifically against them. The right hon. Gentleman must make it clear that this is not the case. If he wants trade unionists to co-operate with the Government's future efforts to overcome the emergency, he must make it clear that the Government are prepared to cooperate with trade unionists, explain the law to them, and not use it against them unfairly. If he tells us that that is the stand that the Government will take, I shall be prepared to support him in getting the emergency regulations extended, but not otherwise.