§ Mr. SweeneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how he intends to achieve his aim of generating £1 billion of private sector investment in the south Wales valleys.
§ Mr. RedwoodI have met the local authorities covering the Valleys area together with the Welsh Development Agency, the Land Authority for Wales and the training and enterprise councils. I have discussed in detail the land availability, communication needs and development plans of each local authority area.
On 13 December, at a lunch in the QEII centre with representatives of the business community, I will be issuing a brochure containing a selection of the development sites identified at the meetings that present excellent opportunities for attracting private sector investment.
Copies, will be sent to Members whose constituencies fall within the Valleys' area and will also be placed in the Library of the House. From 13 December copies of the brochure will be available from the urban affairs division of the Welsh Office.
The document will be incorporated in a new Government private finance initiative prospectus that I intend publishing shortly.
In the new year I will be conducting a series of meetings with local authorities outside the Valleys to discuss their development plans and identify sites with good potential for attracting private sector investment elsewhere in Wales.