§ 11. Mr. Anthony Grantasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total cost to public funds of the community development project both as regards the field projects and the central co-ordinating research and information elements.
§ Mr. JohnExpenditure up to 31st March 1977 on both the local community development projects in England and Wales and the central information and intelligence unit is estimated at about £2.13 million.
§ Mr. GrantAfter spending that £2.1 million, if I heard the Minister aright, what steps are he and his Department taking to implement the recommendations of these teams? Is it not rather strange that the Government's recent announcement about inner cities largely chose to disregard the recommendations of the professionals set up by the hon. Gentleman's Department? Does he disagree with them?
§ Mr. JohnThere are reports and reports. I do not believe that the setting up of bodies to consider these matters, or even to administer local experiments, takes away the Government's duty to make up their own mind. The final reports on each of the projects will be considered and disseminated among Government Departments, so that the lesson of the CDP projects will be learnt and applied in future.