"Investing for Our Future" (Hansard, 7 July 1993)

§ 13. Mr. Welsh
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many of the submissions he received to the Scottish Office consultation paper "Investing for our Future" favoured a system of franchising; and if he will make a statement.

§ Sir Hector Monro
An analysis of responses to the consultation paper will be made available once a decision on the future structure of water and sewerage services is announced.

§ Mr. Welsh
The majority of Scots, including leading Conservatives, are totally opposed to any form of water privatisation. It is strange that not one Scottish Minister has defended any privatisation policy in Scotland. Will the privatisation of water simply be bundled in with equally unacceptable gerrymandering and destruction of Scotland's local government system? Will there be separate announcements or will the Minister simply present a single large insult to the Scottish people?

§ Sir Hector Monro
The hon. Gentleman will have to wait and see and contain himself for a few days, or even a week or two longer. He is a glutton for punishment on water. Month by month, he asked questions about water at the same time as his party and his leader made totally irresponsible statements aboout civil disobedience relative to water, and he' should be ashamed of himself.

§ Mr. Raymond S. Robertson
The hon. Gentleman is undoubtedly anxious to find out about the number of submissions to make a political point. Will my hon. Friend share with the House the number of submissions that he has received that support the option of the hon. Member for Angus, East (Mr. Welsh), which is for wilful acts of sabotage and violence throughout Scotland?

§ Sir Hector Monro
I have not had one letter supporting violence, so the SNP is on its own.

§ Mr. Donohoe
Will the Minister return to the original question and tell the House how many submissions he has received?

§ Sir Hector Monro
As I indicated in my original answer, once all the submissions have been analysed and the announcement has been made, they will be available in the Library.

§ Mr. McLeish
Is the Minister aware that top water analyst Robert Miller-Bakewell of Natwest Securities is advising his corporate clients that they can buy franchises in Scottish Water in early 1995? Is it not a scandal that financiers in the City are informed of these matters before either Parliament or the people concerned? Will he confirm that up to 20 per cent. of jobs will go; that 10 English companies, three Spanish companies and one American company will bid and that—[Interruption.] The Minister may not like what is being said but it is factual.
Will the Minister confirm that the Government have selected four business units as the model for reform? Is it not contempt of the House for the Government to behave in such a way? Can we have an apology for the mess that has been created? Will the Minister say when a statement will be made in the House?

§ Sir Hector Monro
I thought that the hon. Gentleman was going to apologise to Conservative Members for the irresponsible statements that he has made recently and a mass of statistics that mean nothing at all. I am not especially interested in the report from Natwest Securities. We will wait and see what happens when my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announces what we intend to do.