HC Deb 28 July 1989 vol 157 cc1448-59 11.37 am
Mr. Archy Kirkwood (Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

Let me take the House away from the dusty highways and byways of the traffic problems in central London to a wonderland north of the border—to my constituency, where we nevertheless have problems of our own. I would not wish London's congestion problems on anywhere, but we have different problems, and I am grateful for the opportunity to raise them in the House. I hope that I have not detained the Minister too late and kept him from his holidays. In any case, if he were flying from Gatwick he would have transport problems, which I hope to avoid when I go on holiday later next week.

I seek to raise the matter of rural development in my constituency. I should like to make one or two general points, but the main thrust of my speech today is that there is a need to develop an overall coherent strategy for rural planning in south-east and south-west Scotland. Over the past 10 years, rural areas have been neglected. They have not been in the forefront of the minds of Government policymakers. The needs of rural areas are different, but they are nonetheless just as great and deserve just as much attention as the needs of places in inner London suffering from traffic congestion.

I accept that, in the past, the neglect of rural policy making has been defensible to some extent. In the past 20 years, a large amount of agricultural support was guaranteed from the Exchequer and, subsequently, from European Community funds. I know that the Minister has a deep interest in matters relating to the countryside and I pay credit to him for that. All of us with experience of rural areas recognise that agriculture has been an effective mechanism to allow resources devoted from the Exchequer or the EC to trickle down through the many support and ancillary industries. Although agriculture has never provided any local luxury as far as I have been able to discover, it has been the floor of local economies in rural areas.

In the past, therefore, the needs of those rural areas have not been as great. By and large, the Ministry of Agriculture, supported by the Scottish Development Agency and the local authorities, has managed to support a tolerable standard of living in our landward areas. I do not believe that that is necessarily so now, and it will not be the case automatically in the future. The Minister will appreciate that there have been substantial changes in the type of EC farm support and on the quantity of money that we can expect from support mechanisms aimed at maintaining agricultural life in the future. The Government must recognise that.

We know that, now, the Commission has plans that are much more concerned to support income via diversification and other schemes than to subsidise primary farm produce as in the past. That significant change will have a substantial impact on the countryside. The Minister will also appreciate that, increasingly, our countryside is being fought over by competing conservation and development interests. The casualties tend to be local people. Young local people, for example, trying to enter the local housing market for the first time are unable to compete with incoming commuters. The shift inwards to the towns from villages and peripheral valleys is accelerating at an alarming rate in my area. Such problems are not unique to the Borders, but there are special circumstances in south-east and south-west Scotland. In the Borders, in particular, we have a very narrow range of employment opportunities provided by the existing economic base. That narrow range, taken together with the changes to agricultural funding, means that the future could be bleak for the Borders.

A great deal of effort has gone into supporting and stimulating social and economic activity to provide jobs and housing for people in the inner cities. I do not criticise that, as it is necessary and such Government work as has been undertaken is welcome. A great deal of work has gone into stimulating economic and social activity to provide jobs and other facilities for those who live in the Highlands and Islands Development Board area. I do not want to criticise the excellent development work undertaken by that board, but nothing has been done in south-east or south-west Scotland and that situation cannot be allowed to continue any longer. Those areas, that are outside the remit of the HIDB and outside the central industrial belt, are areas whose time has come for some attention.

In the Borders, textiles, together with farming, forestry, fishing and tourism will continue to be the main elements in the local economic mix. If Lord Plumb's recent statements are to be believed—he should know, as a former President of the European Parliament—the EC expects to save some £2.8 billion on agriculture in the next four years. My constituents want to know how much of that saving will be devoted to other developments outside agriculture in the rural areas.

In the next two or three years, the multi-fibre arrangement will be renegotiated in Europe. That will largely determine the continued future viability of a large section of the local textile industry—45 per cent. of employment in Hawick in my constituency is directly or indirectly derived from that industry. Those workers believe that they are under a potential threat from a renegotiated or an abandoned multi-fibre arrangement.

My hon. Friend the Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Wallace) is present. He would agree with me that the fishing industry provides a substantial proportion of jobs in our constituencies, in towns such as Eyemouth in Berwickshire. Quota restrictions, the lack of any sensible long-term policy for restructuring the fleet, and high interest rates are putting the catching sector under severe short-term and middle-term financial strain. Worse than that, the onshore processing industry in my area is suffering great financial difficulties and possible closure because of the lack of raw material being landed by the fleets as a result of restrictions on total allowable catches and the quotas.

Forestry is also passing through a troubled period. Of my constituency, 15 per cent. is already dedicated to afforestation and, increasingly, contractors are being used who do not follow the old-style practices of the Forestry Commission. That change is causing problems and distress, because such forests are replacing viable farming, particularly sheep units, in some of the remote valleys of my constituency.

Tourism is underdeveloped because of the lack of resources available to local authorities and to private contractors to renovate and to keep in good repair the buildings and environment of some of the local border towns. In the Borders, the inescapable signs of potential financial distress are there for all to see. The emergent feeling is that the economic base is extremely fragile, and that is a cause of concern. I have reached the inescapable conclusion that the Government must now develop a coherent policy to enable some of the deep-seated structural problems to be tackled. There is no shortage of ideas or methods for tackling them. The precondition of everything is for the Government to recognise the need for a coherent strategy to approach some of those problems.

I believe that the Borders should be designated a rural development area—I have put that argument at great length in the past. Since 1983, when I was elected, I have been arguing that case on the basis that the funding need not be enormous sums from the Exchequer. I believe that modest amounts of central Government finance could unlock and seed-fund development in the Borders. Such investment would repay handsome dividends at every level.

During the past few years, we in the Borders have been discriminated against by a series of Government decisions that have excluded the region from any access to external funding sources. That is now causing us increasing problems, and our region is at a consistent disadvantage in comparison with others, such as Tayside, west Scotland and the central industrial belt. This is also prejudicial to us compared with some rural areas south of the border, which have been earmarked for rural development assistance status.

The Government withdrew assisted area status from the region in August 1982, so that the Border area was no longer eligible for EEC regional development funds. That was a considerable blow, and we still feel its force. In April 1985, the Borders lost priority status for European social fund assistance, thereby limiting the finance available for, for example, vocational training. Recently, the Commission has reviewed the structural funds provided under the European regional development fund, the social fund and FEOGA—the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund—and brought them together under five objectives.

In May 1987, the Borders regional council made an urgent plea to the Scottish Office to set up a rural development fund in the region. The request was considered, but no action was taken, so we lost by default. The area gets no help through urban aid. Lynwood in Hawick has been designated for urban aid, which it certainly needs. However, I believe that the Government could make a case for urban aid to be a substantial contributor in more than just one street.

Our battle with the Scottish Office has recently focused on the question whether the Borders should be included in, or excluded from, the list of areas that are to receive help under the Commission's five new objectives. I am aware that there is an opportunity under objective 3 to get money for the region for vocational training for the long-term unemployed, although it is a restricted category. The potential exists also to help people between 18 and 25 under objective 4. The Government must understand that it is essential that we have access to objective 5b funds. I understand that the areas eligible for those funds are regularly reviewed and that the Government argued the case for the inclusion of the Borders. Although we were refused last time, I hope that the Government will give a fair wind to everything that the regional authority and others are doing in the Borders to sustain their case so that we are eligible next time for objective 5b funds.

There are a number of different ways in which a rural development agency or rural development fund could underpin the economy of the Borders. A number of obvious things could be done on the economic development front. On the rural housing front, there is a crying need for housing associations agencies and local authorities to stimulate much more activity. On the transport and community project fronts, there are many proposed methods of making progress that could be adopted if they were co-ordinated by a local planning authority that had access to rural development fund money. A rural development agency could select from a shopping list of issues that need attention.

I should like to consider some specific matters of urgent concern in the Borders. I hope that the Minister will comment on the status of the Borders in terms of the crucial matter of objective 5b eligibility. I hope also that he will say something about the progress made on the application by the Eyemouth harbour trustees for the expansion of Eyemouth harbour. The fishing industry is in a state of flux. I have referred to the short-term difficulties which are causing some distress in the area. Unemployment in the Eyemouth area is marginally higher than the Scottish national average. The fishing industry is important in providing jobs. If the industry is not underpinned in the long-term, the employment prospects will be bleak.

Much work has gone into putting together the expansion plan for Eyemouth harbour. This work has brought together, uniquely, the regional authority, the Scottish Development Agency and the trustees, and the proposal has the support of everyone with any part to play in the economic life of the Borders. We are 100 per cent. behind it. A substantial sum is involved, but the trustees will make a major contribution. However, the local feeling is that the Government are going slightly cold on the application. What is the Government's view on the proposed expansion of Eyemouth harbour?

Although this matter does not come within the departmental responsibilities of the Minister, I hope that Scottish Office Ministers will take a keen and continuing interest in the multi-fibre arrangement negotiations, because the textile industry is important to the employment base in Roxburghshire. I understand that, in the current Uruguay round of talks on the general agreement on tariffs and trade, the Government are prepared to accept some linkage between expanded access by developing countries to our markets if we can get liberalisation of our export trade in some other parts of the world.

My local textile industry is prepared to contemplate that kind of protection, as opposed to continuation of the MFA, only if it gets cast-iron guarantees that, if it yields its markets to the textile industries in developing countries, in return other countries must yield when we try to sell our goods in the developing markets of the middle east and far east. The Scottish Office must play a role in the negotiations.

I am worried about the stance taken by the European Commission in terms of its mandate for Ministers in the GATT talks. This gives away too much too soon. The guarantees in the recently published document on this matter are not sufficient to satisfy my local textile industry that its interests will be protected. It is important to the textile industry and to my constituency that the Government should put up a strenuous fight to get either cast-iron guarantees under GATT or a renegotiated MFA that protects the local industry. It is not that I favour protectionism, but we want to establish a system of fair trade whereby we have the same opportunities to make inroads into export markets in developing countries as they have into ours.

Another major anxiety facing the Borders is the maintenance of our road network. I know that the Minister is about to give birth to a policy review of trunk roads south of Edinburgh; it is expected at the end of this month or early next. He will recognise the importance of that study to the Borders region. I should like an assurance from him that the regional authority will be fully consulted and be given every opportunity to make its views known before administrative or ministerial decisions are taken.

As for subsidiary and minor roads, the Minister will know that, in the process of extracting timber from the forests, an inordinate amount of damage can be done to rural side roads. Formerly, the local authority had access to European assistance to make good the damage, but that is no longer so, and the result is a high cost. I know that the Department has made some concessions in terms of environmental improvement schemes and has managed to channel extra capital allocations in the direction of the regional council. Will that level of funding continue and increase?

We in the Borders are prepared to give the new Government initiative on Scottish Enterprise a fair wind—I understand that an agency is due to be set up in the Borders. Local people are prepared to give it their best shot and try to make it a vehicle of development, both under the amalgamated SDA and under the new powers that Scottish Homes has. It presents an opportunity to use the new framework of Scottish Enterprise to help to develop the Borders in future.

I hope that the Government will look carefully at the DRAW initiative which ended in 1987—a system which developed rural area workshops. The initiative was a great success, but unfortunately funding was withdrawn in 1987, so it produced no continuing benefits. The PRIDE scheme unfortunately had a poor response, but both short-lived projects contained the germ of an idea which could in future provide great benefits for the region—if it is given a little finance to speed it on its way.

I know that the local authority is worried about the provision of green field industrial sites on which to put up factories for incoming industry. Much puzzlement followed the Secretary of State's recent decision on the planning application for the Appletree Hall site in Hawilck. Against the background of the problems that I have explained—the narrow base of manufacturing industry in the Borders—the local authority thought that it had identified a place that was ripe for development as a major green field site for incoming industry.

After a local inquiry, the Secretary of State saw fit to refuse a compulsory purchase provision for the local authority, which left it with an area earmarked for development under its local plan but with no major greenfield site within the precincts of Hawick or other major Borders towns. That has stymied many of the authority's best efforts to provide locations for incoming industry and, on the face of it, it looks like the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. I hope that if the local authority identifies sites which it perceives as right for development in future, the Government will look more sympathetically on its applications.

There is also scope for town centre regeneration. Many outstanding buildings in the Border towns—in Kelso, Jedburgh, Chirnside and Hawick—are not being used to the full. Redevelopment is expensive and difficult and it is hard for the local authority to persuade private owners of these buildings to undertake large-scale redevelopment when it has no inducements or incentives to offer them. A small amount of money through a rural development fund or agency could give the local authority something with which to go to private owners or commercial businesses in key areas such as Kelso square and Jedburgh market square so that some of these buildings can be tastefully redeveloped. The local authority would like to do that, but the planning authority is restrained by the financial limits placed on it by central Government.

A rural development fund or agency could also co-ordinate trade and industrial promotions. The Minister knows that "Fashion 88", a project mounted in conjunction with the local authority and the chamber of commerce in the Borders last year, was a considerable success. It had a triumphant impact, and many internationally known designers attended. Its consequences are only now beginning to flow through the system, and many valuable economic and commercial contacts were made during the time that it lasted. I congratulate everyone involved in it and I hope that it will be repeated in the future. With good will and the right people doing the right things at the right time, local authorities have a great deal of scope to engage in industrial and trade promotions such as "Fashion 88".

Environmental improvements organised by the SDA in the recent past have been a conspicuous success in many Borders towns and have brought in their train economic development which would not have taken place under other circumstances. There is much scope for rural development agencies in the hands of local authorities or similar bodies to make considerable improvements to the Borders. The list of possibilities is inexhaustible, and the potential is great.

A quarter of the population of the borders live outwith settlements of more than 500 people. Even since I was elected in 1983, and certainly in the past last few decades, I have noticed a difference as I travel up the Craik and the Borthwick valleys, or up to Westruther or Longformacus. Rural areas have been suffering from the fragmentation of Government policy and from the competing interests of pressure groups. The local authority has a role to play in this too. I congratulate Borders regional council, which is a progressive and forward-looking body, doing the best it can subject to central Government restraints.

Other areas, such as the Highlands and Islands, which has its development board, and England and Wales, which have a rural development commission, are in a better position than we are to look after their interests. I know that COSLA is working through the rural affairs committee, and I know that a rural development programme is in place in Berwickshire, and that the local rural area development opportunities study will provide valuable ideas. But we have been here before: we have done pilot projects and examined ideas, and we know what needs to be done, but we enjoy no coherent assistance from central Government. In the past we have been able to live with that, relying on the continued prosperity of agriculture to support our rural area. I do not believe that we can do that with any confidence indefinitely into the future. I warn the Government that, if they do not take steps in that direction, I shall return year after year to the House to argue the case until Ministers see some sense and develop a rational, coherent and over-arching strategy for rural development, not just in the Borders, but throughout the United Kingdom.

12.9 pm

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Lord James Douglas-Hamilton)

I congratulate the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire (Mr. Kirkwood) on his comprehensive and good speech. I will provide a slightly more optimistic note than he revealed in his speech. I have good news for the hon. Member, and for the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Wallace). The House of Commons Library has revealed that the unemployment rates in their constituencies are among the lowest in Scotland. Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale has the lowest level of unemployment, followed by Orkney and Shetland, which is followed by Roxburgh and Berwickshire. The two Borders constituencies are in the top three and that is a very encouraging sign for the future.

I want to elaborate on the point made by the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire about the comprehensive strategy. I am very sympathetic to his theme of revitalising the villages. I should stress that building on local government initiatives is something which the Scottish Office will be pursuing in consultation with the development agencies and other interested bodies in the months to come. The hon. Member is aware that there is evidence of activity on that front within his constituency.

The Scottish Development Agency is working with local authorities and the local communities in the villages of Creetown and Newcastleton to implement projects to improve the environment and regenerate the local economies. In Newcastleton, the agency has undertaken a scheme in partnership with a local traders' group to renovate the frontages of retail premises and to improve external display signs. The agency has also supported the promotional activities of the traders' group and similar initiatives are progressing in Creetown. The agency is also currently involved in a study of the Berwickshire area which aims to identify ways of stimulating the development of the rural economy.

I visited Roxburgh and Berwickshire district council last year and last Friday I visited Tweeddale and Ettrick and Lauderdale with the right hon. Member who represents that constituency. I should stress that Scottish Homes will complete a rural housing strategy by mid-1990 and it has special teams set up to look specifically at the needs of housing in rural areas. After visiting Ettrick and Lauderdale, representations were passed to Scottish Homes that there should be more Housing Association activity there. I take the point raised by the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire about town centre regeneration, and improvement grants have an important part to play in that.

I congratulate the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire on covering this subject, which he pursues with commendable vigour on behalf of his constituents. In a period when there are many changes under way and in prospect for Scotland as a whole, it is entirely appropriate that we should take this opportunity of considering how these affect developments in the Borders.

The hon. Gentleman was right to call attention to some of the problems of rural communities. I do not wish to underestimate those for a moment, but I would suggest that they should be kept in proper perspective. Rural areas of Scotland, including the Borders, have performed relatively better in terms of population growth and employment than other parts of Scotland in recent years. Over the period 1971 to 1987, when the overall population of Scotland fell by 2.4 per cent., the population of the Borders rose by 4.3 per cent. I know that the increase in the Borders reflects in part a rise in the numbers in the retirement age groups, but that in itself is surely a tribute to the fact that many people find the Borders an attractive place to live and are no doubt making their own contribution to the life of the local communities in which they have settled.

The Borders, too, have been relatively insulated from the radical changes which have affected the rest of the Scottish economy in recent years. This is largely due to the fact that the region's manufacturing base is founded on distinctive local industries—particularly wool, textiles and knitwear—rather than on the traditional heavy manufacturing industries which are now in decline. That is not, of course, to say that the local manufacturing sector has not had to work equally hard to keep up with the process of change. Indeed, it is a tribute to the effort and initiative of the local industrial community that these industries on which the Borders have depended for generations are still continuing to show their strength and resilience in an increasingly competitive world. This is, of course, largely due to the readiness with which Borders industries have adapted to technological change, and have sought to harness the new technologies to the task of remaining competitive. In that respect they have set an example which Scottish industry as a whole would do well to follow.

The strength of the Borders economy is well reflected in the latest economic indicators. Next to Grampian, unemployment in the Borders is the lowest in mainland Scotland. Since January 1987, the numbers unemployed have fallen by almost 2,000—or 46 per cent.—and the current regional rate of unemployment is 3.6 per cent. below the Scottish average, which itself is at its lowest for over eight years. Clearly, therefore, the region's economic base is sound, despite the problems which may persist in particular communities. At the same time, it is very much in the region's interest to broaden its industrial base so far as possible, and I welcome the efforts which are being made to diversify into new industries such as electronics. Important as the traditional industries continue to be, I believe it is through such diversification that the region's economy—like that of Scotland as a whole—can look forward to an increasingly assured future.

Any debate on rural development must take into account the impact of agriculture. It underpins the economic and social well-being of all our rural areas, not only through direct employment but in related industries. In Scottish terms, agriculture contributes around £1.3 billion a year to Scotland's national output.

At a general level, agriculture, which is of the considerable importance to the Borders, is having to face up to change as we continue to reform the common agricultural policy. Change is never easy, but farmers themselves recognise that the process must continue if the long-term future of our agriculture is to be secured. The days are gone when commodities could be produced without regard to what the markets could absorb or the cost of production. Such inefficiencies did not benefit the farmer, the consumer, or the taxpayer. We have paid a high price for over-production encouraged by the common agricultural policy—£11.5 billion is spent every year on storage and disposal. Action was, and continues to be, necessary to tackle these problems.

In this context, we welcome the recent agreement on the reform of the sheepmeat regime because it removes uncertainty and will create, by 1993, a level playing field for our producers so that they can compete in Europe on equal terms. I am confident that the sheep industry in the Borders, with its natural advantages and long tradition of experience and efficiency, will be able to capitalise on the emerging opportunities in these European markets and that it can prosper under the new sheepmeat regime of the 1990s.

In recognition of the need to seek out opportunities beyond traditional agriculture, the Government have pursued a number of measures designed to pro vide farmers with the opportunity to develop alternative sources of income. The range of possibility for diversification is wide indeed—for example, adding value to conventional farm produce, developing leisure, craft or tourism-related initiatives. It has to be recognised that diversification will not suit everyone, and each farmer has to consider carefully his own circumstances and make his commercial judgments accordingly.

There are other possibilities. The set-aside scheme, which provides for payments to farmers who take land out of production, will help to curb surplus production, reduce dependence on cereal and oilseed production, and provide land for alternative uses such as farm woodland or non-farming enterprise.

We also have the environmentally sensitive areas scheme, which encourages environment-friendly farming. Farmers who enter this scheme in the Whitlaw and Eildon ESA can receive payments based on the amount and type of land on the farm. The scheme thus provides an additional source of income for farmers and also has the potential to generate demand for traditional skills such as dyking or hedge work.

Those changes will not undermine the continuing importance of traditional agricultural production in the Borders. The mixed nature of agriculture in the Borders means that there is no particular reliance on any one crop or agricultural sector, and this year promises to be a better one for Borders' farmers. The mild open winter, excellent lambing conditions and buoyant sheep and cattle prices have all contributed to a promising outlook. The good early summer weather resulted in good quality cuts and yields of hay and silage and although the lack of rain has affected summer grazing, crops are standing well and harvesting conditions look good. With the dairy sector also benefiting, the position of farmers in the Borders this year looks sound. However, the extent to which farmers can bolster their income and security through alternative forms of self-financing activities has to be encouraged. The Government continue to make available significant support to agriculture in itself, but are also providing additional opportunities to promote new developments.

I should answer a few of the hon. Gentleman's questions. I share his disappointment that the European Commission has not included the Borders region in its initial list of rural areas eligible for objective 5b of the structural funds. The Government felt that the Borders had a good case in terms of the criteria for objective 5b, and put the case to the Commission as forcefully as it could. But funds for objective 5b are at present limited, and in Scotland only the Highlands and Islands and Western Dumfries and Galloway were selected at this stage. We shall continue to press for the inclusion of the Borders region in any subsequent list, although it is not possible at present to predict when the Commission will consider further areas. I should, however, like to make it clear to the hon. Gentleman that the case remains on the table in Brussels.

The hon. Gentleman has referred to Eyemouth harbour. I am well aware of the importance of Eyemouth harbour not only to the local fishing industry but to the wider community which suffers from higher than average unemployment. The scale and cost of the proposed development has, however, acted as a deterrent and the proposals have had to be examined carefully. We are certainly not cold on the application.

It has been suggested to the Eyemouth harbour trust and to Borders regional council that they should consider whether a less ambitious scheme would be possible and then discuss any proposals they may have with the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland.

No formal approach has been made to the Scottish Development Agency for assistance towards the costs of any redevelopment of Eyemouth harbour. The agency will, of course, give all due consideration to any proposal which may be forthcoming.

The hon. Gentleman mentioned trunk roads. As he recognised, an additional allocation was given to the Borders and Dumfries regions. In regard to routes south of Edinburgh, a consultation paper will be published on the study report's findings fairly soon, and we will be particularly interested to hear the views of the hon. Gentleman and the Borders regional council on the best way forward in the light of the representations that he made today.

We also recognise the importance of tourism in the Borders. Tourists obviously purchase a wide range of goods and services from the local community, and, in doing so, help to support the rural community in the broadest sense possible. This year we gave the Scottish tourist board £1 million extra. That should be of considerable benefit in helping to expand tourism. I realise that the Scottish tourist board does an excellent job for tourism in the area and recognises that there remains considerable potential for improving the area as a visitor destination, and development activity in the area has been at a fairly low level recently.

There are undoubtedly gaps in what is on offer. I understand that several exciting proposals are emerging, including major golf complexes, and that is encouraging news. Government agencies exist to help local authorities and the private sector, and the STB is well aware of the area's needs. The board's current development strategy is to assist the creation and improvement of visitor attractions. Accommodation projects are of considerably less importance, but the STB will consider applications where there are local shortages, and that strategy fits in well with the particular requirements of the Borders.

The hon. Gentleman has argued in the past for a range of powers for the Borders comparable to those available to the HIDB. I appreciate his wish to see the maximum stimulus being available to Borders development, but we must bear in mind the fact that the HIDB was created by a set of unique circumstances in the United Kingdom. The HIDB's area presents problems of remoteness and economic difficulty which call for very special solutions. I do not think that the hon. Gentleman would argue that the economic problems of the Borders match those of the Highlands and Islands, or that they justify the same distinctive approach. As I have said, the SDA has an extremely wide range of powers which it is already using to good effect, and its economic development projects bring benefits across the whole range of community life. On the social development side, there is much that can be done both by local authorities, central Government and the voluntary organisations.

Mr. Kirkwood

I understand what the Minister says—I have been at pains to endorse and recognise what work has been done—but the burden of my remarks is that there is no overall coherence to the plans. There is no overall strategy. If there were a rural development agency that could work with the local authority it would be much easier to co-ordinate all the various approaches, but they could be much more effective if there were some coherence and an overall strategy.

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

It is important that that should take place in the housing sector. That is why the rural housing strategy of Scottish Homes will be important. Scottish Homes will work closely with the SDA, but I stress that the entire range of the agency's services is available in rural areas. The agency can provide factory buildings for sale or let; it can offer a range of advice on such matters as marketing and finance; and it can provide finance in the form of loans or equity to help new businesses and to enable existing companies to develop and expand.

I note what the hon. Gentleman said about the programme for rural initiatives and developments. It is designed to stimulate private sector involvement in projects suited to the rural economy. PRIDE has already proved its worth in stimulating a range of developments in rural areas, and last year alone an agency commitment of just over £150,000 succeeded in attracting private sector investment of over £1 million.

The Government remain firmly committed to the work of the agency. The advent of Scottish Enterprise will enhance the value of that work and give it a whole new dimension. I believe that the agency's work in the Borders and other rural areas will provide Scottish Enterprise and its local enterprise companies with a firm base on which to build for the future.

The hon. Gentleman wanted me to say a word about the textile industry. The Borders textile industry continues to play an important role in the economy of the region and provides an important source of quality employment. Certain sections of the industry are experiencing difficulties because of factors such as external economic conditions and changing fashion trends. The industry as a whole is in a healthy state. I have every confidence in those in the industry to react positively to the market changes that lie ahead.

The multi-fibre arrangement is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. The Government are committed in the current round of the GATT multilateral trade negotiations to look for a way of reintegrating the textile industry into GATT, but the Government are equally clear that that needs to be done on the basis of strengthened GATT rules to ensure that there is fairer international trade, and are pressing developing countries, particularly the more advanced, to open their markets to United Kingdom exports. That would create new opportunities for the textile industry in Scotland. I do not underestimate the employment provided by the textile industry.

We have taken two steps on the natural environment that will interest the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire. First, Lord Sanderson has assumed a special responsibility for co-ordinating Scottish Office rural policies. I attribute much significance to his new responsibility, and I have no doubt that he will carry out his duties extremely successfully.

The second initiative is the Government's announcement of proposals for reorganising the agencies responsible for nature conservation and countryside matters in Great Britain. That will provide an opportunity to achieve the right organisational structure for conservation and the countryside in Scotland.

I assure the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire that the Government are firmly committed to the welfare of rural communities. We have already given firm proof of our commitment to the various measures of assistance that I have outlined. The aim of all the measures must he to stimulate rural communities to work out their future for themselves. The spirit of enterprise is no less active in rural communities than throughout the rest of society. Given the necessary encouragement, those communities will rise to the challenge and seize the opportunities that are available.

Many of our rural communities in the Borders and throughout Scotland are as vigorous as they have been for many years. It will be the Government's aim to promote the welfare of those communities, so that rural Scotland can continue to play its part in a strong and vibrant Scottish economy.

I thank the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire for giving us an opportunity to discuss these matters today.

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