§ 10. Mr. Foulkesasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether there are proposals for extending the Ministry of Defence activities at Prestwick airport.
§ Mr. WigginWe are considering an extension to HMS Gannet, the Royal Navy helicopter unit at Prestwick to replace facilities which date from the second world war.
§ Mr. FoulkesQuite apart from that, how does the Minister explain the contradiction between his statement to me in a written answer that there had been no discussions with the Americans about the setting up of a strategic distribution centre at Prestwick, and the statement a week later by the Secretary of State for Scotland that there had been discussions but the proposals were abandoned? What guarantee do we have that such proposals will not be resurrected by Congress without any consultation with us?
§ Mr. WigginI understand that the United States Air Force had an internal plan to build a warehouse at Prestwick—
§ Mr. FoulkesWhy did the hon. Gentleman not know that?
§ Mr. WigginThe plan was not funded by Congress and therefore no formal application was put to the Government.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonWill my hon. Friend bear in mind that there is a strong case for restoring a flying role to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force at Prestwick, in view of the excellent facilities there?
§ Mr. WigginAs the White Paper stated last year, that matter is under consideration. I cannot say whether such a flying unit will be based at Prestwick, but I shall bear my hon. Friend's remarks in mind.