Mr Paul Murphy (Torfaen)

I am grateful to you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to speak relatively early in the Session, thus giving me the opportunity to pay tribute at an early stage to my predecessor, Leo Abse. During his 30 years in Parliament, he spent most of his time representing Pontypool and not the new-named constituency of Torfaen. When I talk to hon. Members, they recognise the constituency by the Member who represented it for 30 years and not by its name.

There is no doubt that Les Abse was a colourful and effective Member of this place. There is no doubt also that he was a tourist—tourism is the theme of the debate—of the psychic if not of places. The psycho-analysis that he made of individual Members could be teasing or serious and the trick was to discover its nature.

The most important contribution that Leo Abse made to the House and to the country was his sponsorship of many private Members' Bills. These Bills covered many subjects, including adoption and illegitimacy. By this means he made his impact on the country generally and on those who benefited from it, and there were many hundreds of thousands who did. He made it possible for the House to enact legislation without Bills being sponsored by the Executive.

There is no doubt that Leo Abse will be remembered as a good constituency Member in the best sense of that term. Those of us who lived in the constituency when he was its Member will recall things that will not be remembered by right hon and hon. Members. He brought many industries to the eastern valley of Gwent and many jobs as well. Leo Abse will undoubtedly be remembered by his colleagues in this place and by the many thousands of people in Torfaen.

I understand that in a maiden speech it is customary to describe one's constituency. I am the only Member of this new Parliament from the south Wales valleys who will be making a maiden speech. My constituency lies in the most eastern of the south Wales valleys. Tourists from all over England pass through it on their way to other parts of Wales. The character of the northern and middle parts of the valley is the same as that of all the other south Wales valleys. Where else could towns and villages like Blaenavon, Abersychan, Pontnewynydd and Pontypool be but in the south of Wales?

However, in the south of the constituency lies the only new town in the Primcipality. Many people from the valleys have gone to live there but during the past 40 years it has developed a separate identity. The political ideas that are prevalent in the valleys are as much a part of the new town as they are of the upper and middle parts of my constituency.

South Wales is thought to be the place where one can hear good choirs, or watch good rugby or see the Welsh life of the chapels, but the valleys are also committed to democratic Socialism. It was firmly based on the belief that the only way in which working men and women in south Wales could emancipate themselves from the constraints of earlier days—when they lived in houses for which they had to pay a rack rent, when young, talented men had to go down the pits instead of to university, when health care, for what it was worth, had to be bought and when old people lingered on without dignity or pride—was by taking collective action through the ballot box so that their Members of Parliament could change the law and society, with the result that the lot of those who lived in south Wales and elsewhere could be improved.

That is why the achievements of the 1945 to 1951 Government are precious to south Wales. They are particularly precious to the new Members of Parliament who were born between 1945 and 1949. In those years the National Health Service was established and the education system was developed. People such as me, the son of a miner, were able to develop their talents as fully as possible because of the opportunities that were granted to us by that Government.

During the last few years my new colleagues and I have found that the commitment to the welfare state and equal opportunities—a commitment that has developed in all parties during the last 40 years—has fast been eroded. The proposals in the Gracious Speech will erode them even further. In my constituency, 2,000 people are homeless and waiting for houses. The housing proposals in the Gracious Speech hold out no hope for them. The problems for the schools will not be lessened, either.

Thirty years ago my predecessor made his maiden speech on comprehensive education. Unquestionably there have been improvements since then. However, he said then that there were not enough books, that classes were too large and that opportunities did not exist. The opportunities for education that will be offered by the proposals in the Gracious Speech will not help the people of my constituency.

My constituency will not be helped by the curiously misnamed community charge because that will put an immense financial burden upon people in areas such as mine. Of course, worst of all is the fact there are 6,000 people out of work in Torfaen, 2,000 of whom are under 25, and the only hope that they have been given—it is hope that they want as much as jobs—is schemes, more schemes and nothing but schemes.

A week ago today my right hon. Friend the Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Foot) said that the problems of the south Wales valleys were the same as those of the great cities. Of that there can be no doubt. The poverty and hopelessness that we can see in the cities and the valleys is the same wherever one travels around the country. We have lost rate support grant in the valleys the same as the cities. However, one of the worst things that we can see is that the present Administration have no conception of how ordinary people live, whether it be in the cities or in the valleys of south Wales. That is the greatest problem that we have seen in the past and will see over the next four years.

Britain is great, but one does not define greatness by waving flags. A country's greatness can be seen when one looks at the way in which it treats its citizens. It can be seen in the way in which it recognises that there is a richness and diversity among the regions. My fear is that the different regions will be ignored, just as we have seen over the past few years and since the general election. If regions such as mine are ignored, they are ignored at the Government's peril because there is no doubt that the people in my valley, throughout south Wales and in other areas that loyally supported my party in the election will regard it as an insult if they are ignored in the way in which they have been over the past eight years. I hope that they are not because if they are, the politics of this country will be less than wholesome and the Government will be less than truly effective.

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