§ Q29. Mr. John Huntasked the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his visit to London's dockland on 14th January.
§ The Prime MinisterI visited the London docklands on 14th January. My visit greatly helped me to understand the problems of the area. In particular, the discussions I had while I was there brought out two matters of major concern—relatively high unemployment and the need for extensive physical renewal The retention and revitalisation of industry in docklands is fundamental to the regeneration of the area, and I was impressed by the determination of the local authorities and other organisations and individuals facing this challenge. The Government commend the efforts being made to implement the docklands strategy which was endorsed last August by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. In many ways the problems of the docklands area reflect, on a particularly large scale, those of other inner urban areas in the major cities, which are being considered by a ministerial committee under the Chairmanship of my right hon. Friend.