Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill
2:30 pm
Mr David Wilshire (Spelthorne, Conservative)
Further to that point of order, Mr. Pike. I am grateful for your reply, but you will have noticed, if you have looked at Hansard for our proceedings thus far, that the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy (Mr. Llwyd) has not actually been here. I suppose that that is reasonable in one way, as we have reached discussion of Wales only this afternoon. I exempt the Under-Secretary of State for Wales from attending when he has other ministerial duties to perform, but we Back Benchers ought to be here and I had assumed that the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy would appear this afternoon. However, I am told that you may have had a message saying that he is not going to bother to come, Mr. Pike. Perhaps you can confirm that.
Not only is the hon. Gentleman not bothering to come, but no one else from Plaid Cymru can be bothered to come either. They are far too busy worrying about party politics and electioneering. Is it or is it not an abuse of the House for someone to be given a place on a Committee but not to bother to use it?