Welsh Affairs

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 3:47 pm on 25 February 1999.

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Photo of Desmond Swayne Desmond Swayne Conservative, New Forest West 3:47, 25 February 1999

I apologised to Madam Speaker earlier, and I now apologise to the House, for not having been present at the opening of the debate. My plans were made before we adopted the extraordinary arrangements for Thursdays in this part-time Parliament. The Speaker is well aware of my views on that, and I have been ruled out of order more than once for having drawn attention to them, so I shall not go down that road again today.

Several Labour Members have referred to the parlous state of the Welsh economy—or at least to the relatively less-well-off state of its economy. I want to draw attention to the regional trends survey published by the Confederation of British Industry on 9 February, which states: General business optimism has declined more rapidly in Wales than anywhere else in the United Kingdom … Output has fallen markedly, with similar falls expected in the next four months, in addition to 1,000 further job cuts forecast between the final quarter of last year and the first quarter of 1999.