My hon. Friend is right. The previous speaker, the hon. Member for Uxbridge (Mr. Shersby), has hastened from the Chamber and is therefore not able to hear our interesting interchange.

The Leader of the Opposition made much play in her low-key and ineffective speech about the position of the trade unions. The Conservatives think that there is some political advantage to be gained from that, just as when the tanker drivers and the lorry drivers went on strike the Conservatives thought that there was a political advantage to be gained from declarations of a state of emergency. Of course, both those strikes were settled. The Tories want conflict while the Labour Party is in office.

The Conservatives' solution is, again, that trade unions should be wreathed round in legal circles. Some Tory Members ought to declare their interest in that solution because they would stand to make a pretty penny from some of the court actions.

It is worth looking at the record of the Government, against whom the Conservatives have tabled a motion of no confidence, and compare it with the record of the last Tory Government. They had exactly the same attitude when they came to power in 1970. They said that they would have an Act and put all sorts of legal restrictions on the trade unions.

In the four years of the Conservative Government, the country lost more than 50 million days in strike action. In the first four years of this Government, the figure is about 29 million days—about one-half. Our industrial relations record is 100 per cent. better than that of the last Tory Government.

In 1972, the year after the Industrial Relations Act and the year when it really came into operation, there were a record 23 million days lost in strike action because that Government's attitude was one of conflict.

The Tories talk about the imposition of secret ballots by law. They had them when they were last in Government. Have they forgotten that they imposed a secret ballot on the railway unions? One result was a very high poll—87 per cent.—but the other result was that 81 per cent. of those union members voted for strike action. The Conservatives have tried their magical solution in industrial relations, and it failed miserably.

No one suggests that this Government's record on industrial relations is perfect. Conservative Members may chortle at that. We are not claiming perfection.