HC Deb 07 April 1981 vol 2 c254W
Mr. D. E. Thomas

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what would be the income accruing to his Department from the sale of those potted plants in the Welsh Office referred to in his letter of 16 March to the hon. Member for Merioneth; what would be the saving from this sale; if he will publish in the Official Report the letter of 16 March sent to the hon. Member for Merioneth; and if he will review the £73,507 capital expenditure and £20,000 recurrent expenditure on these plants.

Mr. Geoffrey Finsberg

No estimate can be provided of the likely income that might be derived from selling the plants. My letter of 16 March to the hon. Member is appended. As I explained in that letter, the planting was to fulfil the design strategy for the building; an open plan design with plants was several million pounds cheaper than a comparable building with conventional partitioning would have been.

16 March 1981

Dear Dafydd,

I said in answering your recent priority written question about tropical plants at Cathays Park, Cardiff that I would write. The material was not readily available to enable me to answer you on the date you specified.

Indeed I understand, having consulted the experts at Kew, that it is not any easy task to distinguish separately those plants which are tropical. This involves detailed matters of botanical definition. What I can say is that none of the plants required the sort of hot or humid conditions that one associates with tropical climates.

The cost of the supply and installation of the plants that have been put into the building was £73,507. The design of the building was developed between 1971 and 1975 when the basement contract was let; the main contract was let, with Treasury approval, in April 1976. The sub-contracts for the plants were let in January 1980 and February 1981, but were not referred individually to Ministers as they were to fulfil the existing design strategy and were covered by already approved costs.

As you know the building was designed on the "open plan" concept which enables one to dispense with the need for partitioning and the high cost of altering the layout to meet changing requirements in later years. An element of internal planting is an integral part of the open plan or landscaped office, and the scheme was designed by specialist consultants.

You particularly asked whether some of the plants represent a health hazard. I am informed that the juice of the Dieffen bachia Sequina (Dumb Cane) plant can, if taken orally, cause painful temporary swelling of the tongue and throat, but that it is not a health hazard unless taken in quantity and by children. I understand, the plant is found widely in domestic use and indoor displays throughout the United Kingdom.

(Sgd) Geoffrey Finsberg

Dafydd Thomas Esq MP