HC Deb 02 July 1957 vol 572 cc875-6
27. Mr. J. Harrison

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government if he will arrange for a Government scientific investigation into the possibilities of devising a formula to release the congealed filth floating on waterways in the form of scum from the growing use of synthetic detergents.

The Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs (Mr. Henry Brooke)

Scum formation on rivers, like the foaming associated with it, is part of a much wider problem which is already being considered by the Standing Technical Committee on Synthetic Detergents.

Mr. Harrison

If the Minister does accept the fact that this nuisance is a matter of substantial importance in dealing with the pollution of our rivers, will he treat this part of the problem as a separate issue and proceed faster with his investigations in finding a cure than would be the case if he were to deal with it in conjunction with a lot of other matters?

Mr. Brooke

If the hon. Member will consider the matter, he will see that it is probably better to concentrate on a radical cure than to try to treat the symptoms. But, of course, all that is within the discretion of the technical committee to judge, and there is nothing to debar it from producing an interim report.

39. Mr. J. Johnson

asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what scientific evidence he possesses upon which is based the statement that the amount of pollution of the rivers of England and Wales is decreasing.

Mr. H. Brooke

The statement was based on the information coming to my Department from a variety of sources, and, in particular, from the annual reports of river boards.

Mr. Johnson

Is the Minister aware that his statement made last week that pollution has been declining has been laughed to scorn by every local government man I have met, particularly in the Midlands, and does he appreciate that his view is certainly not the view of the Severn Catchment Board, and that a leading local authority, a public health authority, in the Midlands, has advised Warwickshire school teachers not to allow children to bathe in the River Avon? Does the Minister realise that that is the position in the country?

Mr. Brooke

I founded my statement partly on the annual reports of the river boards which are laid before this House. It is quite true that four of the river boards, including the Severn River Board, reported a worsening condition; but sixteen river boards reported an improvement.