TNAG-0303-FCO40-339-Effects-of-tariffs-on-imports-of-cotton-textiles-to-UK-from--1971 — Page 56

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Cotton Textile Industry

29 NOVEMBER 1971 Cotton Textile Industry

the percentage which we allow without making any great effort to keep the figure in check.

I assure hon. Members that the Lan- cashire newspapers contain many articles suggesting that they feel that the Govern- ment have let down or even abandoned Lancashire textiles. For example, the Lancashire Evening Telegraph talks of four mills closing and speaks of an S.O.S. being sent to the Prime Minister from employers and employees in the area ask- ing for action, apparently in vain. There is a special supplement, "Challenge to Textiles", dealing with the very issue of whether the British housewife should be allowed to know where the goods she buys were made.

I know that the Government's view is that marking the country of origin would be a protection not of the consumer but of the manufacturer, but that is unusual logic, because anyone purchasing goods is surely entitled to know as much as possible about their manufacture and quality. Any foreign manufacturer giving good value for money should be un- ashamed of labelling his goods. feels that he is giving British housewives a bargain, he should be proud of telling them that the goods are made abroad and may be expected to give good value. But I do not believe that housewives accept that. I think that they would prefer to buy British, and it is our duty

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as Members of Parliament to label the country of origin, particularly of textiles, but of other goods, too.

There is a regulation within the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade permit- ting a country to take action contrary to the Agreement when the domestic indus- try is seriously disrupted by excessive textile imports. The Government should consider that provision and taking such action, because nothing could be clearer than that the textile industry is facing its greatest crisis.

In 1921, there were 250,000 weavers and winders employed in Lancashire. To- day, there are only 30,000-one-eighth of the labour force of 50 years ago. The industry is on the way out unless the Government take action to save it. To end I can do no better than quote the closing paragraphs of the article in the Oldham Chronicle that I have mentioned. It says:

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.. The textile industry is not asking for financial assitance. It is asking for positive quantitative control of imports similar to that being adopted by the Governments of other developed countries. Against such a background, the industry would quickly prove more than capable of looking after itself. It is of course no longer possible to see Lanca- shire's problems in isolation. The long-term answer to the problems now affecting all textile producing nations depends on the nego- tiation of a global all-fibre textile agreement. But if the degree of protection now asked for is not given, Britain will be prematurely released from even the preliminaries to such negotiations".

The feeling of employers and workers in Lancashire is that the Government do not care about the industry and are pre- pared to write off textiles in Lancashire. I hope that the Government will take action which will prove that feeling to be wrong.

11.55 p.m.

Mr. Tom Normanton (Cheadle): The views expressed by the hon. Member for Oldham, East (Mr. Lamond) genuinely reflect the widespread distress and concern of the industry, not only in Lancashire but in Yorkshire, too. It is no coinci- dence that today we have

have debated Northern Ireland, since that is an area of considerable importance to the textile industry.

It is appropriate that the hon. Gentle- man should have referred to the need for

urgent legislation in markings of origin. I have pleasure in informing him that I shall seek to introduce a Private Member's Bill on Wednesday afternoon, the sole purpose of which is to achieve what he wants, and what I know the industry wants, whether it be cotton, man-made fibre or textiles. It may not be adequate to meet all that the hon. Gentleman wishes to achieve, but I assure him that it is one step along the road to meeting the requirements of a major section of the industry.

Mr. Dan Jones (Burnley): We shall support the hon. Gentleman.

11.56 p.m.

Mr. John McCann (Rochdale): I raise only two points. First, will the Minister explain how the textile industry can invoke the conditions of the G.A.T.T. regarding the disruption of an industry? Secondly, will the hon. Gentleman make it clear that the textile industry did not