§ 2. Mr. Win GriffithsTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many visits he has made to Wales since becoming Deputy Prime Minister to co-ordinate the work of his Department with the Welsh Office. [32604]
§ The Deputy Prime MinisterMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I work closely together to ensure that Wales gains full benefit from the Government's policies.
§ Mr. GriffithsI assume from that answer that the Deputy Prime Minister has not visited the Welsh Office once. Is that reluctance to visit Wales due to the Government's disastrous handling of bovine spongiform encephalopathy and its impact on the rural economy, to their pathetic response to the Sea Empress disaster or to his painful experience in Wales when he baled out of the Army to fight a by-election? Does he think that a visit would improve or worsen the fourth-party, lunatic fringe standing of his party in Wales?
§ The Deputy Prime MinisterOn balance, I think that a visit by me to Wales would be a wholly desirable event. To show the ignorance upon which the hon. Gentleman's question is based, I might say that I visited Cardiff Arms park on 23 February to announce on behalf of the Millennium Commission the rebuilding of the stadium. On 15 March, I was back again in Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil and Llandrindod Wells to spread the good news of the transformation that the Government have made in the Welsh economy.