No.lO EUROPE82 In this issue ... Published by the Commission ofthe Re-making history in the North-East. By Roy Stemman 3 European Communities, 20 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QQ. A helping hand for Sheffield's school-le avers 6 Te1: 01-727 8090 Gaston Thorn calls for a 'second generation' Europe 7 Editor-in-Chief: George Scott Editor: John Greenwood How can we safeguard Europe's minority tongues? 8 Associate Editor: Den.is Thomas London locks out the North Sea 8 Design: Lawrence Edwards Printed by Lawrence-ADen Ltd, Eyeball to eyeball with Uncle Sam 10 Weston-super-Mare, Avon Bookshelf 10 Europe 82 does not necessarily reflect, in all particulars, the opinions of the Community T ugendhat hits back at anti-Market MPs 11 institutions. Unsigned material may be Banking on a better environment. By Chris Lom 12 quoted or reprinted without payment, subject to suitable acknowledgement. Strasbourg Notebook. By Christopher jackson, MEP 13 BtlfasrOffiu: Windsor House, 9/IS Bedford Street, Belfast BT2 7EG Community Reports 14 T ~1. (0232) 240708 Cardiff Office: 4 Cath~dral Road, Questions in the House 15 CardiffCFI 9SG Tel. (0222) 371631 John Sell Cotman in Normandy. By Joyce Betts 16 Edinburgh Office: 7 Alva Street, Europalia 82: the glory that is Greece 17 Edinburgh EH2 4PH Tei.{031)22S 20S8 Talking business 18 Associated editions: EW'Opt,llOOM Street, NW, Keep it moving-the message for Community transport 20 Suite707, Washington DC20037, USA Signalling on tomorrow's motorways Tel. 202 8629SOO 22 Europe, 350 Sparks Street, Suite 1110, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K I R 7SS. Letters 23 Tel. (613) 23S·6464 What's in the papers Ccm~muniryReporr, 39 Molesworth Street, 24 Dublin 2, Ireland EUROFORUMisinsetafter page 12 Tel. 712244 JOJound'Eurapt, 61 rue des Belles COVER: Bronze Zeus, c.460 BC, in the National Museum, Athens Feuilles, 75782 ParisCedex 16, France. Tel. 501 SS SS Ccm~unirll E uropee, Via Poli 29, 00187 Rome, Italy. Tel. 678 97 22 EF-aflisen Gammel Torv 4, PostBox 144,1004Copenhagen K, Denmark. Tel144140/14S5 32 EG Magazin, Zitelmannstrasse 22, 5300Bonn, W. Germany Tel. 238041 Ccm~unidad eurapea, Serrano, 41-Sa planta Madrid·!, Spain Tel.4741199 EuropaikiKoinotis, 2 VassiHssis Sofias, T.K.I602, Athensi34,Greece Tel. 743 982/3/4 Europa·bericlu,EUR infa, Archimedesstraat73, IO.W Brussel, Belgium Tel. 2354178 Ecltosdti'Europ~. Bltiment Jean Monnet, Luxembourg-Kirchberg Tel. 43011 AvrupaToplulugu, 13 Bo#azSokak Kavaklidere, Ankara, Turkey Tel. 276145 2 EUROPE82 Re-making history in the North-East The Industrial Revolution made the North-East of Now the traditional industries on which the England great and for close on two centuries its heavy North-East's wealth depends are in decline. The industries, such as coal-mining and shipbuilding, inhabitants of the area are drifting away. And the thrived. Glass-making and iron works also companies which have invested so much are either contributed to the area's prosperity, and the advent of having to close, slim down, or search desperately for steel created even greater opportunities for the new orders in order to employ their workers. The rapidly increasing population. industrial revolution has gone into reverse. In the Sunderland area, a major casualty ofth e recession, grants and loans from Europe are helping in the fight against unemployment. ROY STEMMAN reports ith a few notable exceptions, manufacturing industry in the North-East is struggling to stay Wlive. In its place, service industries and light engineering are appearing. But the recession has slowed their rate of growth. Sunderland, once the world's greatest ship­ building centre, epitomises the North-East's problems. There are only two shipyards now, and their workforce has dwindled. The Little­ woods Organisation mail order company is now a bigger employer than the larger of the two yards, Austin & Pickersgill. Sunderland has a population of about 300,000 and is one offivectistricts in Tyne and Wear county. It also has the highest male unemployment rate in the North-East: 25 per cent. On some of the town's housing estates which have a large number of unskilled peo­ ple, that rate doubles and every other man is out ofwork. The prospect for Sunderland's 7,000 school-leavers is bleak. 'There's not a job in sight,' Peter Kershaw, manager of Sunder­ land borough's programme planning depart­ ment, told me. It is for this reason that the borough has applied to the EEC for a grant to enable it to extend the scope of the present Youth Oppor­ tunitiesPrograrnme(YOP). It plans to set up a fund to encourage employers to take on youngsters, adctitional to their requirements, for three to four years. It hopes that the European Social Fund will agree to pay the same percentage as it does at present for YOP schemes, but over the extended period. Apprentice schemes have been on the de­ cline for a long time, and Sunderland sees its plan as an ideal solution to two problems: .... Only two of Sunderland's shipyards ore in operation, in a district with the highest unemployment rote in the North-East. 3 EUROPE82 youth unemployment and the very real risk ERDF for the construction and equipping ofa that when the recession ends industry will The Beam ish open-air new factory at Spennymoor- an area in which have no adequately trained youngsters to re­ museum is now the company has a number of other factories. cruit. among Britain'stop20 It also received a £22,760 grant from the Social For a long time the Silksworth Colliery Fund for training 226 Darlington workers. stood as a-gloomy reminder of Sunderland's tourist aHractions The biggest borrower from the European changing fortunes. Coal-mining was once a Investment Bank (EIB) for the area is the vital industry and its port saw the export of Stephenson's line - to Middlesbrough, in Central Electricity Generating Board, which vast amounts. The only legacy Sunderland 1830, so that coal could be carried from the has had loans in excess of £70 million for the received when Silksworth came to the end of South Durham field to its docks - totally building of a nuclear power station at Hartle­ its working life was a huge, unstable tip which transformed it. Within 40 years Middles­ pool. was still burning, causing air and water pollu­ brough grew from a village of 40 people to a A Darlington company, Cleveland Bridge tion. town with a population of 40,000. With the and Engineering, has had two Em loans, An enterprising scheme has now changed discovery of ore in the Cleveland hills it grew totalling £10 million, to build a new works aU that, and this depressing scar has been even bigger, becoming an important iron and which the Duke of Kent officially opened in transformed into a recreational area complete steel centre. 1uly this year. with ski slope, fishing and wildlife lake, sta­ This part of the North-East has received Cleveland Bridge and Engineering has been dium, cricket ground and ten sports pitches. considerable aid from the European Com­ in business for I OS years. The Humber Bridge One of Sunderland's more successful munity. Over £1 million has been paid by the was one ofits recent jobs. Another on a slightly businesses is the Coles Cranes works which smaller scale, was the new bridge which car­ make truck-mounted cranes. It has received a Sights from another age at the open-air ries the Metro railway over the Tyne. It is part £930,575 grant from the European Regional museum: on old-time collier and of the structural division of the Trafalgar Development Fund (ERD F) for expansion of (opposite) a classic locomotive. House Group. its production facilities. Another ERDF gram As a result of its new investment, the Darl­ recipient in Sunderland is Coming, famous as ington company now has what it claims are the manufacturers of heat resistant glassware. It world's most advanced fabrication facilities received £1 ,567,000 from Europe to help it for steelwork. It has the capacity for 33,000 modernise its Sunderland works, and former tonnesofheavy fabricated steelwork each year President Jirnmy Carter is among the VIPs on single shift working and has a workforce of who have toured the works. But the recession 500. has badly affected Coming's market- 500 of What is of interest from a national view­ its workforce were made redundant this sum­ point is that currently 90 per cent ofits work is mer. for export. Contracts in hand include the Carter's visit to the North-East is a remin­ Middle East, Hong Kong and Mexico. As well der of America's links with the region, though as producing the necessary steelwork the with a town named Washington it would be company provides a design and construction difficult to forget it. From 1183 to 1613 the service, with bridges and power stations a ancestors of George Washington lived at speciality. Washington, and the 17th-century Washing­ The North-East is changing more rapidly ton Old Hall has been restored with the help of than many people realise. But important American funds. ERDF to provide a link road to a trunk net­ aspects of its past are being preserved- with The village in which the Washington family work carrying heavy vehicles at Middles­ the help of EEC money. lived is now part of Washington New Town, brough. Teesside, too, has seen a lot of EEC Beamish North of England Open Air which is planned to have a population of support. Teesside Shipyard has received close Museum has been in existence for 10 years, 80,000.