asked the Minister for Labour, in light of the proposed merger of the two largest unions, the ITGWU and the FWUI, if he will outline the number of trade unions with negotiating licences in this country at the end of January 1989; if he will list them by name and respective membership, the sectors or industries in which they operate; and the approximate number of unions per sector.

60.

asked the Minister for Labour the total number of trade unions licensed to operate in each member state of the EC: and if he will list them country by country.

I propose to answer Questions Nos. 29 and 60 together.

There are at present 67 trade unions of workers which hold negotiation licences with a total membership of 481,000. These are listed together with their membership in the tabular statement which I am circulating. The unions are grouped into the following categories: General Unions (4), White-Collar Unions (36) and Craft and other Unions (27). As many unions and in particular the general unions operate in a large number of sectors, it is not possible to say how many unions operate in each sector or industry.

Figures on the number of unions are not available for all EC countries. The position in each member state is outlined in a separate statement which I am also circulating.

Number of Unions in EC Countries

A report entitled: "Trade Union Membership — methods and measurement in the European Community" by Kenneth Walsh and published by Eurostat concluded that, because not all of the nine countries examined had strict definitions for what constituted a trade union, simple comparison of international figures on the number of unions was not possible. The Irish system of licensing is not the norm in Europe. A number of other European countries have a strong confederated structure with affiliated organisations that by themselves would not be considered separate unions in the context used in other countries. Extreme caution is advisable in drawing precise conclusions from the information which follows as it was gleaned from a wide range of published sources with different publication dates.

In Belgium, there are three major confederations. The two larger federations between them are organised into 31 national trade unions. Figures are not available for the number of trade unions in the third federation.

In West Germany there are four confederations of unions. The two largest confederations have 17 unions each. There are also two smaller confederations — one for white collar workers and one for public service workers.

In Denmark, there are 115 unions with over 500 members each, affiliated to six confederations. There are also a number of unions which are not affliated to any confederation.

In Spain, there are five confederations of unions and two main unions. Three of the federations for which information on structures is available are organised into about 50 national industrial federations.

There are five representative trade union confederations in France which have special legal status. There are four other trade union confederations.

In Greece, the trade union system is organised into three tiers. The first tier is comprised of 3,500 associations, the next tier of 108 worker centres and 120 federations. The third tier is comprised of confederations of worker centres. Confederations of worker centres are bodies which can conclude national collective agreements.

In Italy, there are three confederations with 104 affiliated organisations.

There are at present 67 licensed workers, trade unions in Ireland. These are listed in a separate tabular statement.

In Luxembourg, there are three main confederations. Eight trade unions account for the bulk of trade union members.

In the Netherlands there are three confederations with 48 affiliated unions and there are a further 243 trade unions which are not affiliated to any of these confederations, giving a total of 281 unions.

There are 360 registered trade unions in Portugal.

In the United Kingdom 367 trade unions were on the list of trade unions held by the British Certification Officer on 31 December 1987. There are at present seven trade unions registered in Northern Ireland, giving a total of 374 unions.

Trade Unions Holding Negotiation Licences as at 31 January 1989.

General Unions

A total of four unions with 223,888 members.

White Collar Unions

A total of 36 unions with 169,089 members

Craft and Other Unions

A total of 27 unions with 87,683 members.