Mr Reginald Freeson: Minor hardships may come to speculator firms who have to suspend an operation for a period up to seven years. If it is not a question of planning permission being refused indefinitely and cancelled, I do not believe that this question of compensation should arise. If it is a question of suspending actual work which would have been done on the site, and that work takes place at a later stage...
Mr Reginald Freeson: That is a fair point, but are we then to have a series of Bills for each town and city as the problem may or not arise? This would be a rather inadequate way of handling it when it is a major policy matter which will become increasingly important with regional development. As has been said, this is one shot in the armoury of replanning our cities and refurbishing other parts of the country....
Mr Reginald Freeson: May we be informed when those principles of control were outlined by the last Administration?
Mr Reginald Freeson: The hon. Member is misinterpreting what I said. I said that in 1952, with my local authority, I urged the introduction of the industrial development certificate procedure for offices—that is, control of offices. In 1963, when the situation was getting out of hand, we urged what the Government now propose.
Mr Reginald Freeson: I said, in Greater London—the offices standing empty.
Mr Reginald Freeson: asked the Prime Minister when he expects the United Nations Expert Committee on Sanctions to make its report; and what proposals have been put before it by Her Majesty's Government.
Mr Reginald Freeson: Would not my right hon. Friend agree that the time is coming when an initiative in this matter must be taken by the Government if we are to avoid a serious blood bath in Southern Africa?
Mr Reginald Freeson: Mr. Reginald Freeson (Willesden, East) indicated dissent.
Mr Reginald Freeson: I can assure the hon. Gentleman from my experience in the Youth Service in my own local authority that for years there has been a consistent demand from the Youth Service for assistance, but that demand has been rejected. The hon. Gentleman spoke about the rise in expenditure on the building programme from under £1 million to £4½ million. I think he will agree that we now have an annual...
Mr Reginald Freeson: I hope that the House will bear with me if I make one or two points which have not yet been dealt with along the lines which I have particularly in mind on the specific aspects of education and youth service in terms of the building problem and the like. These are particular suggestions which I should like to put to my right hon. Friends as ways in which we might speed up and improve upon...
Mr Reginald Freeson: asked the Prime Minister whether he will initiate through the United Nations an international embargo on the shipment of oil to South Africa.
Mr Reginald Freeson: Would not my right hon. Friend agree that drastic action is necessary to avoid a near-war situation developing in South Africa which could engulf Commonwealth countries and the African Continent as a whole and that the embargo on oil internationally would be a speedy way of getting the South African Government to negotiate an end to apartheid, which creates this situation?
Mr Reginald Freeson: Would the hon. Gentleman agree that houses and flats are being built in London at a cost to the builders of about £4,700, and being sold at £6,000, £7,000 and £8,000, which means that the figure of £100 being thrown around the Chamber could easily be absorbed in the profit margin?
Mr Reginald Freeson: I would like to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr. Atkinson) in some of the matters that he raised, but before doing so I would like to make some reference to the illogical points that were put forward earlier this morning in regard to alleged inconsistent anomalies in legislation. Most of them were based, as far as I could make out, on the distinction between the kind of...
Mr Reginald Freeson: Some of us would like to see much greater cash benefits for the aged. We welcome the support of hon. Members opposite, but doubt whether they would have carried through their campaigning had they again been on this side of the House. Hon. Members opposite should cease logic chopping. I question the sincerity of arguing against this kind of concession on the basis of anomalies that they...
Mr Reginald Freeson: Like many other hon. Members, I have received a considerable amount of advice about how I should make my maiden speech. Some of it I propose to follow. One thing that I have been told I must introduce into my speech is an expression of humility due from a new Member. Who could fail to express humbleness in view of the great ones who have passed before in this House, not to speak of the galaxy...