§ 58. Sir G. de Freitasasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what are his plans to alleviate the shortage of water in the East Midlands and East Anglia and to make less necessary the use of agricultural land for reservoirs; and whether he will place in the Library of the House of Commons the report of the Water Resources Board on the feasibility of the Wash Barrage as soon as he receives it.
§ Mr. Denis Howell:The steps which are being taken in general compliance with the recommendations of the Water Resources Board in its 1966 Report on " Water Supplies in South-East England " provide sufficient safeguard against shortages in East Anglia and the part of the East Midlands covered by that report until further measures can be put into effect following the board's reassessment of the situation in the early 1970s. The desirability of minimising encroachment on agricultural land was a factor in shaping the board's recommendations.
The remainder of the East Midlands will be covered by the Water Resources Board's study of Wales and the Midlands which it hopes to complete in 1971. The study will give special consideration to the need for and siting of reservoirs.
A copy of the Water Resources Board's report on the desk study of the Wash will be placed in the Library as soon as it is published.