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Welsh Affairs

The fact of the matter is that in this country we had a tripartite system that did not work. There was no individual or body with overarching responsibility. [Interruption.] France, of course, was not immune from what happened. The recession has hit this country harder than any other developed country. We were the first into the recession; we are the last out of it; and our exit is a faltering one. Indeed, it may well be—God forbid—that we are about to have a double dip. We might see statistics in April that show that we have re-entered recession, such is the fragility of the economy. The Government cannot abdicate responsibility for that, as they seek to do. The right hon. Member for Torfaen also discussed transport. He pointed out that it now takes him one hour longer than it did 20 years ago to drive from his constituency to London. I agree entirely that there should be far more co-ordination between the Welsh Assembly Government and the Department for Transport on the development of transport policy. It is worth repeating what I have said before—it is ludicrous that the Welsh road freight transport policy takes no account of the DFT in London and that the DFT was not consulted about that policy given that most road freight journeys start or end in England. We heard from the hon. Member for Brecon and Radnorshire (Mr. Williams), who commented, perhaps otiosely, that it was clear from the comments of various Members that there is an election in the offing. I think that that is very clear from most of the speeches that we have heard. He also referred to rural issues. He, of course, represents a rural constituency, and he spoke about the price of fuel there. I am sure that he shares my concern that so many petrol stations in Wales are about to be adversely affected by the enormous hike in rates. If he were present, he would be interested to hear that 27 rural filling stations in Powys will be in danger if the rates increases go ahead without any mitigation. I urge the Welsh Assembly Government to look at that issue. The right hon. Member for Cynon Valley (Ann Clwyd) bemoaned her lack of a daffodil. I share her pain, but she will be pleased to note that I am wearing my special St. David's day tie. It has a pattern of leeks on a suitably blue background, and I hope that the number of leeks will be echoed by the number of Conservative Members of Parliament elected at the next general election. The right hon. Lady rightly spoke of the need for compassion towards the unemployed, but it is also true that Wales is more seriously affected by economic inactivity than any other part of the country. In Wales, more than 24 per cent. of the working age population is economically inactive. That is no good for the economy but, more particularly, it is no good for the people involved. I promise her that the next Conservative Government will introduce measures to do everything possible to put those people back to work. People cannot simply be written off all sorts of work just because they have one, particular medical condition. A truly caring and compassionate Government would look at each individual, assess what they can do and help them to find the work that suits them. I am sure that the right hon. Lady agrees with that. Among other things, my hon. Friend the Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire (Mr. Crabb) spoke about the recession's impact on young people. They are suffering doubly: they are finding it difficult to get work but, as my hon. Friend so rightly said, they are the ones who will pick up the bill for this recession—and probably their children will have to do so, too, such is the scale of the economic devastation that this country has experienced. Those young people must be intensely depressed by the fact that, having completed their education or training, they cannot find work. Above all else, we must ensure that they are given the opportunity as soon as possible to find the apprenticeships, or at least the work experience placements, that will equip them for the rest of their lives. We heard from the right hon. Member for Islwyn (Mr. Touhig) who, much to my personal distress, will be standing down at the next general election. He was again combative, berating the Conservative party for the way in which he claimed that it let down Wales in the 1980s and 1990s. However, may I remind him that the Government of whom he was a member inherited the best and most propitious economic legacy that any Government have ever inherited? What have the Government done with that legacy? They have frittered it away, and reduced this country to a basket case. The right hon. Member for Islwyn must face facts: I know that he is a fair-minded man, and I am sure that he will be as distressed as me at the parlous mess that this country now finds itself in. The hon. Member for Caernarfon (Hywel Williams) spoke about the war in Afghanistan. My hon. Friend the Member for Chesham and Amersham (Mrs. Gillan) paid tribute to the Royal Welch Fusiliers and the sterling service that they are undertaking out there, and I echo her words. I paid a visit to them at Dale barracks, Chester, before they were deployed, and I can tell the House that they were very eager to go there and do their duty. They were looking forward to it not with relish, but with the professionalism that marks out the Welsh military. I do not believe that it would be safe to pull out of Afghanistan immediately, as the hon. Gentleman suggested; I believe that we have a real and proper function to carry out there, and I am glad to see that Welsh servicemen are doing that job. I am sure that we all wish them safety in that important function. We heard from the hon. Member for Cardiff, North (Julie Morgan), who raised a constituency issue that she has raised on many previous occasions. We also heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Monmouth (David T. C. Davies), who rightly pointed out the one-sided view of history with which we were regaled by Labour Members. He also raised the issue of apprenticeships, which are absolutely vital. We have a dearth of them, and it must be a priority of the next Conservative Government to find apprenticeships. The hon. Member for Aberavon (Dr. Francis), the Chairman of the Welsh Affairs Committee, was next to speak, and I pay tribute to him for his chairmanship, which has been absolutely outstanding. I also pay tribute to my fellow Committee members for all the hard work that we have carried out. That may sound as if I am patting myself on the back, but after some 43 inquiries and innumerable LCOs, I think that I am entitled to do so. I must pay tribute to the Committee for the speed with which it has dealt with LCO applications. In passing, however, I have to say that over the past couple of years I have been dismayed by the attempts of certain individuals, particularly the Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly, to suggest that the Committee has tried to slow down the progress of LCOs. We have carried out our functions as expeditiously as possible, and we could not have done any better. We then had an entertaining contribution from the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire (Lembit Öpik), who clearly thinks that the Conservative party is in power, because he devoted most of his contribution to berating it. Indeed, one might even think that he was concerned about a Conservative challenge in his constituency. However, he made one point with which I agree: the planning framework is resulting in the proliferation of wind farms in parts of rural Wales. The TAN 8 policy document is an absolutely pernicious piece of work that needs urgent revision. We then heard from the hon. Member for Carmarthen, West and South Pembrokeshire (Nick Ainger), who spoke from a position of authority as a member of the Treasury Committee. He, like many Members, referred to the bank bonus culture. We must face the fact that bonuses have been part of the culture and remunerative package of bankers over the years. The issue must be looked at, but it is quite wrong to berate moderately paid bank employees for the fact that they are awarded bonuses. I am conscious of the time—although I would like to refer to other Members' contributions, I do not have the time to do so. On St. David's day it is clear that all Members, whatever their political background, want to do their best for Wales, but we cannot all come to the same conclusions. In the next few weeks, the people of Wales, like the people of the rest of the United Kingdom, will have to make a choice between five more years under Labour, repeating the failure that Wales and the rest of the United Kingdom has experienced, or a new optimism with a Conservative party that is prepared to take on the challenges that this country faces, and to make life better for the people of Wales, which I am sure is what everyone in this Chamber wants.