HC Deb 03 November 1983 vol 47 cc983-4
1. Mr. Squires

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he intends to issue a revised edition of "Domestic Nuclear Shelters".

The Minister of State, Home Office (Mr. Douglas Hurd)

No, Sir, but the material, updated as necessary, will be included in a new publication which we are planning for issue next year.

Mr. Squire

Will my right hon. Friend bear in mind the need for a greater provision of public nuclear shelters so that this country, like so many others—many of them behind the iron curtain — has an adequate defence against possible attack, however remote that appears?

Mr. Hurd

We do not believe that the low risk of war would justify our spending millions of pounds on purpose-built public shelters. The regulations that Parliament has now approved require local authorities to make plans for using existing buildings and other features as shelters for the public, and I believe that that is a step forward.

Mr. Alex Carlile

Is the right hon. Gentleman saying that the Government do not intend to provide shelters for the protection of the public in the event of war?

Mr. Hurd

I have already answered that question.

Mr. Neil Thorne

Will my right hon. Friend bear in mind the possibility of including a provision for underground shelters in new buildings? Will he consider laying down some standards to incorporate this so that if such an emergency occurred these areas could be converted quickly and we would not have to start from scratch?

Mr. Hurd

My hon. Friend's suggestion would add considerably to construction costs, increasing the cost of a typical three-bedroomed house by about 25 per cent. We would have to weigh the idea against the risk of war, which we believe to be low.

Mrs. Kellett-Bowman

Much as I respect the Minister, I regard his first answer as wholly lacking in urgency. It is not good enough. [Interruption.] Perhaps those baying hounds among the Opposition would be better off outside the Chamber. A number of my constituents who have been in touch with me—they are by no means supporters of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament—want up-to-date advice on how best they can look after themselves and their families, and my right hon. Friend's answer is not good enough.

Mr. Hurd

We are working on this matter. We want to get it right. I assure my hon. Friend that next year we shall be doing something which I hope she will find worth while and useful.