Welsh Affairs

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 6:27 pm on 28 February 1991.

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Photo of Mr Ian Grist Mr Ian Grist , Cardiff Central 6:27, 28 February 1991

The hon. Gentleman would be reassured if he appreciated that people will not be released from mental hospitals or homes unless they are capable of dealing with their new environment, in which they will need strong support and help. I hope that they will be close to their homes so that relatives and friends will be able easily to meet them. Because of the distances, that has a real meaning in places such as north Wales. They will be released only if funds are available to make that possible.

Joint planning is essential. One of the advantages of the Welsh Office is that it is able to co-ordinate housing, social services and the health service. In that context, we were disappointed by the postponement of the community care proposals. We in Wales are a little more advanced than the people in England and more capable of putting such proposals into operation. However, the speed with which we could have put them into operation would have tripped us, even in Wales, and the breathing space may have given us a good chance to put matters in order before the whistle is blown for the start. It was essential for England to have a delay.

The slogan that our intent is to add years to life and, more important, life to years is a good one. It is not just a matter of lengthening life, which is a problem that western countries now enjoy and endure. It has two sides to it, because it is essential to add life to years. We can all agree on that.

Because the Welsh Office is multi-functional, it can operate effectively in a co-ordinated way. For instance, the last Welsh house condition survey was extremely encouraging and showed the improvement in the aged housing stock compared to similar property in most of the United Kingdom. At last, we are getting on top of the problems of those rows of dilapidated former coal board houses. Although enormous sums have been spent—some £900 million—on repair and improvement of council and private housing, some people, sadly, still did not receive grants, largely because certain local authorities were less efficient than others in ensuring that their citizens knew their rights and that the money flowed where it was most needed.

When I was first in the Welsh Office, I was invited to look at housing in Islwyn. I agreed, firmly believing, in my ignorance, that I would be shown all the problems of that area, and told myself, "Steel yourself for a difficult day." In fact, it was the reverse: I was taken to see what the local authority was doing with the various Government schemes and what a tremendous fist it was making of those schemes. When the house condition survey was published, only 3 per cent. of its housing was shown to be unfit. That is the lowest percentage of all the local authorities in Wales.