Ministerial statement on Tuesday, 20 October 2009, in the House of Commons, led by Pat McFadden.

Royal Mail

Statement on the Royal Mail industrial dispute.

Secondary information

Type: Parliamentary proceeding
Reference: 497 c784-95
Session: 2008-09
Department: Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Chamber / Committee: House of Commons chamber
Proceeding contributions: Pat McFadden | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) That is what it does every year.; Mark Durkan | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) The Minister must know that parts of the statement that he has made today, and the one that has been...; Pat McFadden | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) Royal Mail does not have a monopoly, and that is the point that I am making. It operates in a compet...; Emily Thornberry | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) Is the Minister aware that in Islington an agreement was reached under which there would be cuts in ...; Pat McFadden | 497 c793-4 (Link to this contribution) The allegation in London by the union is that management have gone beyond the agreement reached in 2...; Peter Bone | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) Earlier, the Minister skilfully dodged one of the questions asked by my right hon. and learned Frien...; Pat McFadden | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) The frustration of the situation is that everyone says that they are up for change in the face of th...; Dennis Skinner | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) Is the Minister aware that it takes two sides to cause a dispute? Is he aware that the ballot result...; Pat McFadden | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) My understanding is that the 30,000 people recruited are not agency workers, but that they are direc...; Mark Field | 497 c793 (Link to this contribution) I was disappointed by how little the Minister had to say about the protection of the everyday consum...; David Anderson | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) I am sure that the Minister will agree that everyone should do what they can to cool this down. If t...; Pat McFadden | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) I am not aware of the announcement to which my hon. Friend refers. I agree that cool heads are proba...; Speaker | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) Order. May I just gently say to the hon. Gentleman, who is an experienced Member, that one question ...; Pat McFadden | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) There is no question of our not being in touch with those involved in the dispute. As I said, we hav...; Pat McFadden | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is absolutely right to say that there has been a history of poor industrial relations...; Bob Spink | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) Will the Minister give an undertaking that any mail that moves to the private sector during the disp...; Pat McFadden | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) I am afraid that I cannot agree with the hon. Gentleman that we should put the issue of mail centres...; John Robertson | 497 c791-2 (Link to this contribution) I declare an interest: as somebody who was a CWU member for 21 years, I am perhaps not as unbiased a...; Edward Timpson | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) The Minister is, I know, aware that the closure of the Crewe mail centre would result in significant...; Jim Cunningham | 497 c795 (Link to this contribution) It is not clear to me, from what the Minister has said, whether Royal Mail is prepared to go to ACAS...; Pat McFadden | 497 c795 (Link to this contribution) I believe that Royal Mail is prepared to involve ACAS in the dispute, but obviously it feels that th...; Pat McFadden | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) As I said, we have remained in constant touch with both sides and we have urged them to focus on the...; Lindsay Hoyle | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) Is it not fair to say that businesses are being put at risk if the strike continues? Families of pos...; Pat McFadden | 497 c794-5 (Link to this contribution) They are round the table. There has been nothing lacking in the volume of meetings between Royal Mai...; Tony Lloyd | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) Morale among postal workers is at a very low ebb; that is why there was such a strong vote in favour...; Viscount Thurso | 497 c787 (Link to this contribution) I am grateful to the Minister for the courtesy of an advance copy of his statement. As the Minister...; Pat McFadden | 497 c788 (Link to this contribution) I shall try to go through the issues that the hon. Gentleman raises. He is absolutely right that the...; Pat McFadden | 497 c787 (Link to this contribution) There is, of course, nothing new about the Royal Mail hiring temporary staff at this time of year. I...; Lord Clarke of Nottingham | 497 c786 (Link to this contribution) First, I join the Minister in hoping that management and trade unions find some way of resolving the...; Pat McFadden | 497 c784-6 (Link to this contribution) With permission, Mr. Speaker, I wish to repeat a statement made by my noble Friend the Secretary of ...; Pat McFadden | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) Discussions about phase four of the agreement are continuing. That is absolutely essential, because ...; Colin Burgon | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) The Minister, in his disappointingly one-sided statement, talked about the need for productive indus...; Pat McFadden | 497 c790-1 (Link to this contribution) The dismay and anger will be on the part of the public, who cannot understand why a strike should pr...; Joan Walley | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) Everyone listening to the statement will have greeted it with dismay and anger. As long as the Royal...; Pat McFadden | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) Competition exists in the postal service, and it will not go away and cannot be wished away. I want ...; Alistair Carmichael | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) Even without yet having had the impact of strike action we have had the alarming news in Scotland th...; Pat McFadden | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) The best way to allay the fears of the work force is to have a secure agreement about the modernisat...; Chris Mullin | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) Further to that point, I am glad to note what the Minister says about the Government's intentions, b...; Pat McFadden | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) We have been clear throughout that we will keep Royal Mail in the public sector, and there is no hid...; Brian Binley | 497 c791 (Link to this contribution) Concern is growing that the Secretary of State is deliberately antagonising the union to commit suic...; Pat McFadden | 497 c790 (Link to this contribution) It is certainly true that one of the changes agreed in the 2007 agreement is that, instead of the pr...; Ian McCartney | 497 c788 (Link to this contribution) As a former postal services Minister, I must say that we have been 12 years in coming to this point,...; Speaker | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) Order. About 20 Members are seeking to catch my eye. There is important business to follow in the fo...; Pat McFadden | 497 c788 (Link to this contribution) My right hon. Friend makes his point very effectively. On third party involvement, ACAS is engaged, ...; Pat McFadden | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) During discussions on the Hooper package we were told time and again that there was no need for some...; Peter Luff | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) Does not the Minister see that the uncertain note that the Government have sounded about the future ...; Pat McFadden | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) It is absolutely not the case that the Government are washing their hands of this dispute. We remain...; Geraldine Smith | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) If Royal Mail's case is so strong, why is it not prepared to go to arbitration? Why is it saying tha...; Peter Atkinson | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) Does the Minister have any idea how many postal workers, particularly in London, have second jobs? I...; Pat McFadden | 497 c794 (Link to this contribution) There has been a history of third party involvement in Royal Mail. Some years ago, Lord Sawyer carri...; Viscount Hailsham | 497 c792 (Link to this contribution) Will the right hon. Gentleman take every opportunity to impress upon trade union leaders that in vie...; Speaker | 497 c789 (Link to this contribution) Order.
Subjects: Conditions of employment Finance Greater London Industrial disputes Workplace pensions Postal services Modernisation Royal Mail Strikes Communication Workers Union Postal workers
Contains statistics: Yes
Link: View this Parliamentary proceeding on www.publications.parliament.uk

Royal Mail

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