§ 37. Mr. S. O. Daviesasked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will state the rateable value per acre for the proposed new counties of Powys, Dyfed, Gwynedd, and also the county borough of Merthyr Tydvil, respectively.
§ The Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Mr. Ifor Davies)As at 1st April, 1966, the rateable values per acre were £2 2s.5d., £6 3s. 7d., £11 19s. 6d. and £74 15s. 0d. respectively.
§ Mr. S. O. DaviesWill my hon. Friend tell me, having regard to the figures. what were the grounds that drove the Secretary of State for Wales to recommend that Merthyr Tydvil should be deprived of its county borough status while, on the other hand, impoverished counties have been linked together which have far less resources than Merthyr Tydvil has?
§ Mr. Ifor DaviesAs regards the figures, I must point out that they reflect the differences in density of development between urban and rural areas. They do not provide a proper measure of the resources of the authorities and they are not, therefore, the basis of the reorganisation proposals.