§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give a detailed explanation of his reasons for proposing to detach Musselburgh from the East Lothian local authority area, citing the specific representations or evidence of public opinion which supported that plan.
§ Mr. Stewart[holding answer 30 November 1993]In reaching the decision to include Musselburgh in the proposed Lothians authority, particular attention was paid to the petition of 8,000 names from the "Hands Off Musselburgh" campaign which expressed opposition to Musselburgh's inclusion within an expanded Edinburgh authority. The fact that Musselburgh traditionally formed part of Midlothian, and became part of East Lothian as recently as 1975, was also taken into account.