§ 32. Mr. P. Williamsasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will give a report on the progress being made with the development plan in the Seychelles.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodIn general a reasonable rate of progress is being maintained 1173 in carrying out the projects listed in "A Plan for Seychelles" and a considerable number of schemes are under way. There are, however, some important aspects of the programme, such as the improvement of overseas communications, the establishment of a technical secondary school and the improvement of water supplies, on which it has not been possible to make as early a start as the Seychelles Government would have wished.
§ Mr. WilliamsIs my right hon. Friend aware that the last matter he mentioned, namely, improvement of the water supplies, is perhaps one of the most important affecting this small but very pleasurable Colony? If the health and vitality of the Colony is to be improved, something must be done immediately to improve the water supply.
§ Mr. MacleodYes, I quite agree. The water supply is one of the most important points. The difficulty here in the end is the allocation of money. This is quite an expensive scheme and already a substantial Colonial Development and Welfare contribution has been made to it.
§ Mr. G. ThomasWill the Secretary of State put in the OFFICIAL REPORT a list of the development activities which have been undertaken within the last eighteen months?
§ Mr. MacleodCopies of "A Plan for Seychelles" are in the Library. I could circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT a progress report on the work done, if that is what the hon. Member means.