asked the Minister of Health why it has been found necessary to associate the Ministry's general inspector for Wales with the engineering inspector appointed to hold the inquiry on the 12th March next into the scheme for a water supply for the village of Chwilog, Carnarvonshire?

This arrangement has been made to meet the wishes of the local authority for a Welsh-speaking inspector, and will no doubt commend itself to the hon. and gallant Member.

Is it not a fact that out of 18 engineering inspectors employed by the Ministry not one of them has any knowledge of the Welsh language and that in consequence an unofficial inspector, a highly paid individual, has had to be employed for the whole day on this particular work, spend two days travelling there and back, thus involving the country in a much larger expenditure than is actually necessary?

It is quite exceptional for the Ministry to have a demand for a Welsh speaking engineering inspector. In the last few years we have tried to find engineering inspectors who can speak Welsh wherever a vacancy has occurred, but not one with the suitable technical experience has so far been found.

I can find the hon. Member a dozen engineering inspectors with a knowledge of the Welsh language who are quite fit to carry on this work. Is it not a fact that it is part and parcel of the policy of the departments in London to ignore the wishes of the Welsh people, with the result that in every case additional expenditure is placed on the taxpayers of this country?

I never said that there were no engineering inspectors with suitable qualifications. All I said was that engineering inspectors have not applied when vacancies occur. We are anxious to appoint one if the hon. and gallant Member can find one.

Will the Parliamentary Secretary give me instances where vacancies have been made public and where no applications have been received from Welsh speaking inspectors?

There were six occasions last year.