§ Mrs. BrowningTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what decisions have been taken about strengthening the presence of the Government office for the south-west in Devon and Cornwall.
§ Mr. GummerMy right hon. Friends the President of the Board of Trade, the Secretaries of State for Employment and for Transport and I have been listening carefully to the many representations that we have received over recent months about Government office resources in Devon and Cornwall. We are persuaded that there should be a new office in Devon and Cornwall.
We have decided to set up a new office in Plymouth which, together with the existing office in Bristol will operate as a single office on two sites for the south-west 169W region. Local authorities, businesses and the many other organisations in Devon and Cornwall which need to deal with the Government office and who are served and represented by it, will be able to deal with and through the new Plymouth office. It will establish close links with local organisations, especially in relation to the promotion of economic development. The offices in Plymouth and Bristol will work together in a mutually supportive way to advance the interests of the whole South West Region. They will be linked closely by sophisticated electronics called Office 2000. These will provide strengthened links with Whitehall and other outside interests.
The new office will be led by a new director for Devon and Cornwall and the regional director for the whole south-west region will also be based partly in Plymouth.
The arrangements for setting up the new office will start immediately and the new director of the Devon and Cornwall office will be appointed very soon. Full details will be settled taking account of local views.
This measure will make a major contribution to the range of initiatives being taken within the new integrated Government office for the south-west so as better to serve the needs of the whole region.