§ 3. Mr. Nicholas Edwardsasked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the index of industrial production in Wales in the second quarter of 1975.
§ Mr. John MorrisThe provisional estimate of the Index of Industrial Production for Wales in the second quarter of 1975, based on a figure of 100 in 1970, is 94.
§ Mr. EdwardsDoes the Secretary of State recall that when I asked a similar Question on 14th April he gave me a reply like the one he gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Flint, West (Sir A. Meyer) and said that it was all the fault of the Conservative Government? Now that the Government have been in office for about 20 months, now that industrial production has plunged to a level far below that of 1970, and certainly way below that in the three-day working week, whom will he now blame? Will he for the first time acknowledge that the prime responsibility lies on the policies of the Government, and in particular, their reckless use of expenditure before corresponding increased production has been obtained?
§ Mr. MorrisThe hon. Gentleman presents a very strange picture, because although in this House he advocates cuts in public expenditure, on any matters affecting his constituency he is a major advocate of public expenditure. I find his arguments remarkable in the extreme.