HC Deb 06 December 1972 vol 847 cc1271-2
1. Mr. William Price

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many letters he has received about the proposed reorganisation of water supplies.

The Under-Secretary of State for the Environment (Mr. Eldon Griffiths)

In the last year we have received about 4,000 letters, of which roughly one-third have been comments on consultation papers, and one third have been about canals.

Mr. Price

Is the Minister aware that there is widespread dismay in the Midlands about a water undertaking which will stretch from Bristol to Grimsby, and is this not centralisation finally gone mad? Will the Minister confirm rumours that the Secretary of State is not as committed to these huge units of administration as some of his predecessors on both sides of the House in the past?

Mr. Griffiths

My right hon. Friend, like his predecessor, is committed to sensible reorganisation in the interests of the nation as a whole. I am not clear what the hon. Member has in mind when he speaks of an authority stretching from Bristol to Grimsby, but the House will have an opportunity to debate this at the appropriate time.

Mr. John Wells

Will the Minister say which of the letters sent to my hon. Friend merely forwarded letters from the Inland Waterways Association?

Mr. Griffiths

I think that we had about 750 letters from Members of Par- liament, of which about 700 enclosed literature from the Inland Waterways Association.

Mr. Denis Howell

This large number of letters shows a welcome interest in the subject of water reorganisation, although many of them were from bodies which are perturbed about it. Will the Minister undertake to issue a White Paper setting out the Government's conclusions about these representations as well as the nature of the representations, and enable the House to debate the matter before the Bill is introduced either here or in the House of Lords?

Mr. Griffiths

We are at the moment preparing a document which will provide hon. Members with the fullest information about the consultations that have taken place and the representations that have been received. I am sure that the Secretary of State will consider the hon. Member's suggestion.

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