§ Q8. Mr. Douglasasked the Prime Minister if he is satisfied with the degree of co-ordination between the Scottish Office, the Welsh Office, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of the Environment with regard to regional devolution.
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir. My right hon. Friends have co-operated closely in implementing the Government's policy that, within the framework of a united country, as much decision-making as possible should be devolved.
§ Mr. DouglasWill the Prime Minister accept that we are not content, particularly in Scotland, with his repeated bleatings about legislative devolution? Will he accept that his statements of his Government's policy would be, much more meaningful if they made a clear statement regarding the distribution of civil servants, in terms of offices, and the prevention of the expansion of the Maplin complex? If the right hon. Gentleman is really concerned about meaningful devolution, this is the type of governmental policy that ought to be followed.
§ The Prime MinisterThere is a complex of questions in what the hon. Gentleman has asked. First, legislative devolution is a matter that is being considered by the Commission on the Constitution. Its report is due in the fairly near future. We ought to await that report and see the recommendations in this respect.
865 Regarding administrative devolution, the previous Conservative Government carried this a long way, and we have carried still further in Scotland and Wales. Maplin is a matter that should be considered by the United Kingdom Government in the context of regional policy for the United Kingdom as a whole. It would not be affected by legislative devolution to Scotland or Wales.
§ Mr. David SteelDoes the Prime Minister regard the dispersal of civil servants a a legitimate instrument in regional policy? If so, does he regard the Hardman Report as coming anywhere near meeting that requirement?
§ The Prime MinisterI think that it is made clear in the Hardman Report that one of the essential matters to be considered is the regional situation in the country. I have constantly emphasised that I regard it has an essential element of regional policy. On the specific recommendations of the Hardman Report, the Government will listen to all the views expressed from different parts of the country, as I have already told the House, by staff associations and others concerned. Having heard them, we shall then be able to come to a conclusion on the report as a whole.