Mr Timothy Eggar: asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether his Department has a need for technically qualified staff who would be seconded from the major oil companies.
Mr Timothy Eggar: I thank my hon. Friend for that reply. In view of the rapid pace of technological change in the oil industry, does he agree that it will be necessary to ensure that the technical officers in his Department are seconded to the oil industry if the reverse cannot happen?
Mr Timothy Eggar: Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the reactor system used at Harrisburg was different from the system proposed here, being a Westinghouse system as opposed to Babcock and Wilcox?
Mr Timothy Eggar: Will my hon. Friend confirm that, subject to satisfactory feasibility studies, the Government will look favourably upon the construction of a cross-Channel gas pipeline link?
Mr Timothy Eggar: But does not my hon. Friend agree that the remit of the Monopolies Commission simply does not go far enough, and that we need a broader look at the balance between public and private transport?
Mr Timothy Eggar: I welcome the chance to initiate this important debate on the costs and standards of British Rail's commuter services. Tonight, I shall restrict myself to the problems faced by London commuters. Last week's announcement of a 20 per cent. increase in fares was the biggest ever demanded by British Rail from the long-suffering public and it came at a time when, by common consent, the standard...
Mr Timothy Eggar: Unlike those who have spoken so far in the debate, I am unique in having no constituency interest to represent. I seek to put the point of view of the British consumer. After all, it is the consumer who has to pay the price of protectionist measures. I propose to restrict my remarks to the multi-fibre arrangement. The arrangement is designed deliberately to benefit the developed countries at...
Mr Timothy Eggar: As a result, there is a danger that the developing countries will be unable to reinvest in new textile machinery and up-to-date equipment. That is one reason why the British textile machinery business is in such a poor state. I find it extraordinary that Labour Members, who normally express such concern for the Third world, are now banging the protectionist drum, a drum that is hurting the...
Mr Timothy Eggar: It would be possible to understand their argument if they were able to prove that the consequences for the British textile industry outweighed other considerations.
Mr Timothy Eggar: I hope that the hon Gentleman will not continue to interrupt from a sedentary position.
Mr Timothy Eggar: I am not giving way. I promised the Chair that I would speak for only five minutes. There is no proof that the benefits to the British textile industry have outweighed the harm that is being done to the Third world. There has been a fall in textile imports from developing countries. At the same time there has been a corresponding increase in imports from OECD countries. The United Kingdom...
Mr Timothy Eggar: Will my right hon. Friend take time during her busy day to contact the governors of the BBC to express extreme concern about the way in which the "Panorama" team seems to have encouraged the IRA to break the law in Northern. Ireland?
Mr Timothy Eggar: If I have taken rather longer than most hon. Members to seek to catch your eye, Mr. Deputy Speaker, it is because I wish to take time to try to understand the workings of the House, though even with the impetuousness of youth I would not claim to have done in six months what others have said they could not do in a lifetime. In making my first speech in the House, I am deeply conscious of the...
Mr Timothy Eggar: Is my right hon. Friend aware that many hon. Members on this side of the House deplore the Little Englander attitude adopted by those on the Labour side over the AGR? We would welcome a decision by the CEGB to make a series order for PWR reactors.
Mr Timothy Eggar: Is my hon. Friend aware of the dangerously large number of licences held by the BNOC, which has undoubtedly held up the development of North Sea fields, particularly because the limited number of extremely dedicated employees who have the necessary expertise within the BNOC have been unable to give to each operating committee the amount of time that would be correct and justifiable?
Mr Timothy Eggar: asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many job vacancies for skilled men are currently notified to the Ponders End jobcentre.
Mr Timothy Eggar: Is my hon. Friend aware that as a direct result of the previous Government's policies, which caused high taxation and a narrowing of wage differentials, there is a severe shortage of skilled workers in my constituency? Is he further aware that there is a great deal of support among skilled workers for the Government's trade union reforms?
Mr Timothy Eggar: asked the Secretary of State for Energy when next he will meet the chairman of the British National Oil Corporation.
Mr Timothy Eggar: When my right hon. Friend next meets the chairman of BNOC, will he point out to him that there is no justification whatsoever for BNOC's role as a Government adviser, nor for its role as a major crude oil marketer? When he makes his statement, will he make that clear?
