Blacklisting

Alan Meale Excerpts

Wednesday 16th October 2013 Westminster Hall

[Sir Alan Meale (in the Chair)]

The next speaker is Glenda Jackson. Before you begin, Glenda, I need to advise Members that there is a court case in progress at the moment—the GMB trade union is claiming that 70 of its members have been denied work as a result of being named on a list of construction workers drawn up by an organisation.

The matter is sub judice, and Members should be aware of the rules of the House on such issues: I will not permit any direct reference to that particular case. The Member in charge of the debate has written separately, with the advice of the Principal Clerk of the Table Office. I hesitate to cause difficulty for the debate, but I will not allow direct reference to that particular case.

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[Several hon. Members]

rose—

[Sir Alan Meale (in the Chair)]

Order. Before we proceed, I remind Members not to link into the case that is taking place for the GMB and its 70 members. That is sub judice, and we should not debate it.

Twelve Members have indicated that they want to speak, and there is about an hour to go; I would be grateful if Members worked it out together, so that everyone gets the opportunity.

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[Mr Meacher]

That is absolutely correct. As my hon. Friends suggest, this is not necessarily about the passage of information; it could involve photographs, often taken covertly.

I think that I am right in saying that only some 800 of the 3,200 people have been informed, as a result of making an application themselves. Three quarters of all those people still have no idea what ruined their livelihood for so many years. I would like the Minister to respond to this question: why should the Government not instruct the ICO to inform all the other three quarters that they were blacklisted?

My final point relates to where the issue is leading. The 44 construction companies now face a High Court battle about their alleged involvement in blacklisting. I will not pursue that point. However, significantly, eight of them have now decided to compensate some of the 3,200 workers, which might suggest that they believe that the evidence being revealed is now sufficient to prove their involvement—

[Sir Alan Meale (in the Chair)]

Order. I am in a dilemma here. The sub judice rule applies because the case is still ongoing, so the right hon. Gentleman cannot refer to it. As I understand it, the companies have not yet accepted liability, even though they have agreed to pay some compensation; they are figuring out the amounts. They have not accepted liability, so the issue remains sub judice. Do not refer to the case, if possible.

[Mr Meacher]

I take your point entirely, Sir Alan. I was not intending to pursue the issue in that way. I am prepared to come to an end. I have made the point, which I think is a strong one, and I hope that the Minister will respond to it. The ICO has a role to play. I can think of at least 10 grounds for a public inquiry, which I do not have time to go into. An inquiry is crucial. Will the Government commit to a full public inquiry?

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[Jo Swinson]

My final point was about procurement. The Welsh guidance has been referred to, although that guidance just restates how existing legal provisions already apply, and we look forward to the procurement Bill in the Scottish Parliament, which I understand we may see more details of next week. Of course, the Cabinet Office has general guidance, covering a range of issues affecting procurement, which of course means checking that contractors are adhering to practices that comply with the law—

[Sir Alan Meale (in the Chair)]

Order.