HC Deb 01 December 1949 vol 470 cc1329-30
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Town and Country Planning (Mr. King)

On 22nd November the hon. and gallant Member for Worthing (Brigadier Prior-Palmer) asked my right hon. Friend a Question concerning the Shoreham and Lancing Beaches development plan. In a supplementary question he asked further: Is there any truth in the suggestion that the file was lost between the right hon. Gentleman's Department and the Ministry of Health for something like seven months? "—[OFFICIAL REPORT, 22nd November, 1949; Vol. 470, c. 178.] My right hon. Friend replied: None whatever. This file was not sent to the Ministry of Health. That reply was, I think, heard by the hon. and gallant Gentleman but was not reported in HANSARD. The hon. and gallant Member for Worthing has asked that this statement should be made in order that the matter may be clarified.

Brigadier Prior-Palmer

In view of that reply, does not the hon. Gentleman consider it a little unfortunate—although I have since heard that the reference was to a letter I sent—that his Secretary should have written to me stating on the morning of the 27th that the papers had been lost between the Ministry of Health and his Department?

Mr. King

No, Sir, I do not consider that letter unfortunate. The hon. and gallant Gentleman has misread the letter. If he had read it more carefully he would have seen that the mislaying to which reference was made was the mislaying of a letter sent by him wrongly to the Ministry of Health and forwarded by the Ministry of Health to the Ministry of Town and Country Planning, and had nothing at all to do with the main Shoreham file which my right hon. Friend correctly pointed out had not been mislaid or delayed.

Earl Winterton

As this affects my constituency as well, would it be in Order—I am not quite sure what the procedure is—to ask the hon. Gentleman whether he would now withdraw the reply he made in answer to my question in which I said that there must be some mystery about this matter? The right hon. Gentleman said that there was no mystery at all; everything was as clear as possible.

Mr. King

If I may say so, Mr. Speaker, everything is perfectly clear. If there has been a muddle, it is the confusion in the mind of the hon. and gallant Gentleman between a file and his letter. Once that point is clarified, everything falls into place.

Mr. Eden

Is the new doctrine now that the letters of hon. Members can be lost for months but that Ministerial files do not matter?

Mr. King

The point is perfectly clear. The hon. and gallant Gentleman asked whether a file was lost. The reply given was that it was not lost. That reply was perfectly accurate and had no connection whatever with this letter, which is an altogether different matter.

Brigadier Prior-Palmer

Just to clear up this matter, Mr. Speaker, may I be permitted to read the relevant paragraph out of the letter: I am sorry that you should not have had an earlier reply to your letter of 27th September about the Shoreham Beach Plan, but the papers went astray on the way from the Ministry of Health and never reached us.

Mr. King

If the hon. and gallant Member wants to give a quotation, it would have been better if he had continued reading the letter, which goes on to gay: The plan is on the point of being submitted to the Minister, and he hopes to reach a decision on the main issues involved in the very near future. It is quite apparent that that last sentence could not have been written if the word "papers" referred to the complete plan and file.

Mr. Eden

Does not the Prime Minister think it would be more generous, if a Minister occasionally makes a mistake, to apologise for doing so?

Mr. King

I should like to make it perfectly clear that we did write to the hon. and gallant Member and apologise for the delay which had occurred.

Earl Winterton

Are we to understand that the hon. Gentleman's Department now apologises to the two constituencies concerned, which have been put to great inconvenience in this matter? Thousands of pounds have been lost to people through the incompetence of the Government.