§ Q4. Mr. DalyellTo ask the Prime Minister on approximately how many occasions since January 1986 Mr. Bernard Ingham has given briefings to the press on the unauthorised disclosure of letters between Ministers; and if she will make a statement.
§ The Prime MinisterAs the hon. Gentleman knows, it is not the practice to comment on Lobby briefings.
§ Mr. DalyellWhy is it that in the course of many, many speeches, many, many broadcasts and many, many press statements, not once has the truthfulness of the Prime Minister and of Mr. Ingham about the events of January 1986 been endorsed either by the right hon. and learned Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Brittan) or the giant from Henley (Mr. Heseltine)?
§ The Prime MinisterThe details have been given many, many times in the House. I have nothing further to add to them.
§ Mr. SpeakerOrder. The hon. Gentleman has not looked at the Order Paper. This is a definitive question.
§ Q5. Mr. WinnickTo ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 12 May.
§ The Prime MinisterI refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.
§ Mr. WinnickIs the reason why no replacement was made when Lord Whitelaw resigned as Deputy Prime Minister that the right hon. Lady already has a Deputy Prime Minister, her chief press secretary, Mr. Ingham? Although the right hon. Lady clearly has many difficulties in getting on with her Foreign Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer, is it desirable that a chief press secretary should have more influence in policy matters than any of her Cabinet colleagues?
§ The Prime MinisterThe hon. Member must he hard put to it for a question to ask that one. I note that he cannot find a single thing to criticise about the economy or about the way in which the country is run. How very revealing.
§ Mr. Maxwell-HyslopIf my right hon. Friend today, as First Lord of the Treasury, receives a request that the Bank of England Export Credits Guarantee Department should underwrite any deposits required by aspirants for the job of leader of the Social and Liberal Democrats, will she please resist it as firmly as she can?
§ The Prime MinisterI take note of my hon. Friend's sentiments.
§ Q6. Mr. A. J. BeithTo ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 12 May.
§ The Prime MinisterI refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.
§ Mr. BeithHow long will it be before the pensioners who are now paying increased rents but hope to benefit from the Government's about-turn on the social security changes know for certain that they will benefit, and how long will it be before they receive the money?
§ The Prime MinisterI think that the hon. Gentleman, who I hope has an interesting week ahead, will already have received a letter from the Department of Health and Social Security giving details of a freepost and freephone service, where any inquiries can be made. He will know that a special unit has been set up in Glasgow to deal with each of those matters, and he will also know the place to which people can apply if they have any queries.
§ Mr. SquireFollowing my right hon. Friend's visit to Docklands this week, will she underline from the Dispatch 468 Box the outstanding achievements in terms of jobs, housing and transport systems that the combination of private and public funding has achieved?
§ The Prime MinisterYes. I went to Docklands yesterday. The result of the work of the London Docklands Development Corporation is quite outstanding. It is outstanding in the amount of investment that has been made there. About £4 billion of private sector investments have been secured. It is outstanding in the number of jobs that the area is providing. There are now 36,000 jobs in Docklands and the number unemployed has fallen by 15 per cent. It is outstanding in community support. About £17 million has been spent on that. It is outstanding in increased road and rail improvements. It is outstanding in housing in the private sector, and one notes that a quarter of purchasers of new homes on LDDC sites were former local council tenants. It is an outstanding achievement in every way for private enterprise, the imagination of the Government and the way in which the whole scheme has been administered by the first two chairmen and their deputies.