§ 29. Mr. Gwynfor Evansasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government why, in the Conclusion in the White Paper on Leisure in the Countryside, he speaks of England and Wales as one nation.
§ Mr. WilleyThe White Paper was presented by the Minister of Land and Natural Resources and the Secretary of State for Wales. Neither my right hon. Friend nor I thought the paragraph in question was likely to be misunderstood.
§ Mr. EvansDoes the Minister realise that this typical blindness in the face of the fact of Welsh tradition lies at the root of the atrocious Government from which Wales suffers under the English system, which explains why the Welsh nearly won the Rhondda? Is he aware that if he recognised Wales as a nation he could not deny Wales a separate Countryside Commission?
§ Mr. WilleyWhat the hon. Member fails to recognise is that the sentence of which he complains makes it clear that the primary responsibility for countryside policy will rest on local elected authorities. It was this Government which established the Secretary of State for Wales as responsible for the national parks in Wales.