| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Local Government Finance
9. Mr. McMaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he next plans to meet representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to discuss local government funding. [5203]
Mr. Michael Forsyth: On 19 January.
Mr. McMaster: Does the Secretary of State recall that, last Christmas, hundreds of my constituents in Paisley and Johnstone were flooded out of their homes and that some of them have been unable to return to those homes? When I recently met the Secretary of State, he promised to introduce a new flood prevention Act for Scotland. When will he introduce that Act and, when he does, will he ensure that resources are available to the new unitary authorities so that they can put flood prevention schemes in place?
Mr. Forsyth: I gave the hon. Gentleman those undertakings, and we shall deliver them. He knows that I promised to consult about the matter in the new year, and I shall do that. It will then be a matter of finding a slot in the legislative programme.
Is it not a terrible condemnation of Labour councils that they must be forced by statute to do something about the flooding of people's homes? We shall place a duty upon them to ensure that the present discretion that they enjoy is replaced by a requirement to take action when people are flooded out of their homes. Strathclyde has singularly failed to take such action.
As to the legislative opportunities, I am sure that Labour Members will be delighted that the new procedures in the Scottish Grand Committee and the
opportunities for introducing new legislation mean that we may be able to take more action in respect of flood prevention than would have been possible otherwise.
Mr. Bill Walker:
Is my right hon. Friend aware that the people of Perth and those living in the Tay valley are very grateful to the Government for their prompt action during the flooding of the Tay last year? We welcome the pledge that my right hon. Friend has given at the Dispatch Box, that he will impose a statutory requirement on the new authorities following consultation. It is absolutely essential that local authorities are made aware of their duties and responsibilities with regard to flooding.
Mr. Forsyth:
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for those comments. However, I do not wish to misrepresent the position in respect of the Tayside region. I think that I am correct in saying that the Tayside region is taking forward a flood prevention scheme using the discretionary powers that I have mentioned. Unlike some Labour authorities, such as Strathclyde or Central region, Tayside has chosen that course of action and the Scottish Office is providing resources through the capital allocation to assist it in that process.
My hon. Friend is right to acknowledge the progress that has been made, but I do not see why that cannot be achieved using the existing discretionary powers. In response to the representations from the hon. Member for Paisley, South (Mr. McMaster) and the concerns that were expressed not only in his constituency but in Kilmarnock, we have said that we shall consult on the issue of imposing a specific mandatory duty upon local authorities.
Mr. Wallace:
Will the Secretary of State confirm that his Department announced earlier today a cut of
£400 million in real terms in investment in council housing over the next three years--which is equivalent to some 9,000 houses? How can the Secretary of State justify that decision against a background of too many of our fellow Scots sleeping rough and of overcrowding? When there will be no room at the inn for many thousands of Scots this Christmas, why does he assume the mantle of Scrooge so enthusiastically?
Mr. Forsyth:
I am surprised at the hon. Gentleman. I am sure that he knows that the figures released recently show a welcome reduction in the number of homeless people. He also knows that we have spent £2 billion on housing and that we have been responsible for refurbishing about 750,000 council houses. He knows the figures for the increase in home ownership. I do not know whether he travels through Scotland on his way to Orkney and Shetland, but, if he does, he must see the transformation that has occurred under the Government, and I would have thought that he would welcome it.
The hon. Gentleman puts the worst possible interpretation on the figures. Given that he is a prudent and an honest man who argues for higher taxation in order to provide higher expenditure, I am amazed that he has anything to do with the policies of the Labour party, which seems to want to see Scotland and Scottish local authorities disappear under a sea of debt. It wants to fritter away the resources that we make available for housing by paying interest charges and by reducing opportunities for the future.
Several hon. Members rose--
Madam Speaker:
The pretty one--Rachel Squire.
Ms Rachel Squire:
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Does the Secretary of State agree that, although the Budget announcement raising Department of Social Security thresholds in respect of means testing for residential and nursing care is welcome, it will place severe additional funding pressure on local authorities? Will he further agree to pursue additional funds for that purpose so that local authorities can ensure that no one in need of residential or nursing care is denied it or is forced into accepting a second-best standard of care?
Mr. Forsyth:
I am delighted, Madam Speaker, that political correctness has not found its way into the Chamber.
I should have thought that the hon. Lady would have welcomed the changes introduced by my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor, as they benefit elderly people who have scrimped and saved throughout their lives yet are placed at a disadvantage compared with those who have not. As for giving local authorities more money, if local authorities such as Edinburgh were not abandoning projects to spend £400,000 on corporate identities and painting their vans, and other Scottish local authorities were not receiving 45 per cent. more per head in grant than equivalent authorities in England, there might be a case for considering allocating more money to local government in Scotland. Local government in Scotland has grown at a rate of 6 per cent. while in England it has declined by 6 per cent. over the same period. Its expenditure and its borrowing have grown and it is out of control because it is mainly under the control of the Labour party.
10. Mr. Pawsey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into tree diseases; and what part he takes in its targeting. [5204]
Mr. Kynoch:
The Forestry Commission carries out a wide range of research on tree diseases. Its work is summarised in the commission's report on forest research, a copy of which is in the Library. My right hon. Friend approves the commission's expenditure plans for research.
Mr. Pawsey:
My hon. Friend's expertise in these matters is well known. Can he tell the House whether fungus diseases are on the increase? I am particularly concerned about honey fungus and the way in which it attacks a wide variety of trees and shrubs. What discussions are taking place with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to produce a cure for fungus diseases?
Mr. Kynoch:
I was not aware that my hon. Friend had appreciated that I had branched out into new areas.
Mr. Pawsey:
Not barking up the wrong tree.
Mr. Kynoch:
I am certainly not barking up the wrong tree. As it is Christmas time, I have taken a great interest in what could be wrong with my Christmas tree.
The only completely effective way of dealing with an outbreak of honey fungus is to remove as much as possible of the infected plant, including the root system, and to replant a more resistant species. I understand that
there are some chemical treatments on the market, but none is completely effective. My hon. Friend can be assured that we are trying to attack the problem. He will be happy to hear that many of our native broadleaved species such as oak are relatively resistant to honey fungus.
11. Mr. David Marshall:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of reported violent crimes in Scotland in each of the last five years. [5205]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
Some 19,700, 23,200, 24,900, 21,000 and 21,400 respectively.
Mr. Marshall:
Is the Minister not ashamed and horrified by those figures? Can he explain why some old-age pensioners freeze to death because of VAT on fuel and why thousands of youngsters are homeless and refused benefits by the Government, yet violent crime continues to increase and is at an all-time high? Does one have to be a thug or a criminal to prosper in today's Tory Britain?
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
The hon. Gentleman should be perfectly well aware that we are spending about
£86 million on urban aid in deprived areas; that should be of considerable assistance to his constituents and to many others in Glasgow.
Violent crime has fallen; serious assaults are down by 13 per cent. since 1992. Offences of handling offensive weapons are down by 19 per cent., as are robberies by 22 per cent.--a substantial step in the right direction. I am glad that we are bringing closed circuit television to more town centres, to quell crime levels still further. The experiment in Airdrie, for instance, was a complete success. We are allocating £4 million more for that purpose.
We are also bringing in proposals which mean that prisoners can expect to spend the whole of their sentences in custody, apart from a small amount of earned remission. We believe that that will be a deterrent. Of course there are appeals against too lenient sentences. When some criminals were recently caught on television, their sentence of four years was increased to seven as a result of the appeal by the Lord Advocate.
Lady Olga Maitland:
Does my hon. Friend agree that the passage of the Carrying of Knives etc. (Scotland) Act 1993 over two years ago made an enormous difference to controlling the circulation of knives? Since then, there have been 500 convictions and 300 people have been gaoled. That is an example of the Conservatives in Scotland leading and England eventually following-- in the shape of my private Member's Bill. Would my hon. Friend consider an amnesty for knives along the lines of what was done in Scotland? In 1993, 4,500 knives were thrown away in bins--the only place for them to be.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
I wish my hon. Friend every success with her knives Bill for England. The Bill introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Ayr (Mr. Gallie) to control knife assaults has been remarkably successful. As my hon. Friend says, there have been a great many arrests--[Hon. Members: "Oh!"] It is all very well for Opposition Members to grumble,
We shall give top priority to ensuring that those who carry knives are caught through the necessary operations, and brought to justice.
Mr. Connarty:
The Minister will be aware of the success of Operation Blade in Strathclyde and Operation Combat in Tayside. One hundred and ninety-seven knives were found on the 1,011 people who were stopped-- almost a 20 per cent. success rate--in the Tayside operation. Is the Minister concerned, as I am, by the fact that some police authorities which I have contacted have said that they do not have a knife problem in their areas and do not intend to carry out such operations? Will he assure me that the Scottish Office will encourage police authorities to run operations such as Blade and Combat in their areas, so as to cut out knife carrying in Scotland?
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
The answer is yes. The key piece of evidence is the fact that the number of homicides fell substantially as a result of the operation in the west of Scotland. Operation Combat led to many arrests and also to a fall in knife crime rates over a comparable period in the year concerned.
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |