---

Royal Mail: Industrial Dispute

I offer my sympathy to my noble friend, as no one has done more to try to improve the prospects of Royal Mail. I also say to him that the sanctimonious Schadenfreude that we have heard from the Benches opposite is no comfort or support to anyone on this side of the House. The case for reform remains. The point about pensions is equally valid now as it was then. Given the current climate, were there to be a change of government, I do not think that there would be anything like the support for the pensioners and potential pensioners of Royal Mail that this Government are offering. Can I just say this to my noble friend? While many of us support him in his endeavours, it would be stretching our loyalty further than many want to go if we were prepared to support and sanction the strike-breaking on the massive scale that is envisaged by the recruitment processes that have been indicated. I know that this is an industrial union and as a consequence it is often very blinkered, but let us not abuse it. The union has been a friend of the Labour Party and the Labour movement in the past. These are our people and we have to give them a chance to come to a deal. I hope that ACAS will be seen as an opportunity and not an obstacle in the resolution of this dispute. I like to think that my noble friend will support me and others who want change and want it quickly at this time.