§ 63. Mr. James Davidsonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will now set up an authority or board to stimulate development in North-East Scotland.
§ Mr. RossNo. But I hope very shortly to establish a local consultative group for the area with whose help I am confident we shall be able to stimulate the development of North East Scotland on the lines already set out in the recent White Paper on the Scottish Economy.
§ 64. Mr. James Davidsonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware that the North-East Conservancy of the Forestry Commission has already used virtually all its reserves of land 29W suitable for afforestation; and what steps he proposes to take to acquire land for this purpose, in view of its importance in stemming rural depopulation.
§ Mr. RossThe Forestry Commission has a reserve of 24,000 acres of land for planting in their East Scotland Conservancy. It is concerned about the extent of this reserve and is considering with my Departments what can be done to improve the situation.