Question
The Minister is a genial sort of fellow, and I want to believe him when he says that he wants to proceed by consensus. Will he accept that there is no consensus at all on splitting the New Forest and putting the Waterside under the control of Labour-dominated Southampton? Well over 30,000 people signed the petition to keep the forest together, and it was handed in at Downing Street on the very day that the Government rightly withdrew the plan for Hampshire.
Answer
Hampshire is an area that we will look at afresh, just as we will look afresh at other decisions. I have not predetermined what might happen, but the right hon. Gentleman makes a fair point. This is an imperfect process, but ensuring that the decision reflects community identity is definitely at the back of my mind.17% vibes
Verdict: AMBER (30/100)
The minister responded to the question about splitting the New Forest with hedged language. They called the Member's point 'a fair point', acknowledged the process is 'imperfect', and said Hampshire would be looked at afresh. However, the reply did not clearly confirm or deny whether there is a consensus on the split, and it offered no concrete mechanism or commitment on the Waterside. A member of the public would likely come away without a clear answer and might need to ask again.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does the Minister accept that there is no consensus on splitting the New Forest and placing the Waterside under the control of Southampton? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The minister calls the Member's point 'a fair point' and says the process is 'imperfect', which comes close to accepting the contention over the Waterside split, and says Hampshire will be looked at afresh. However, none of this explicitly confirms or denies that there is no consensus on splitting the New Forest, and the reply offers no concrete mechanism or commitment on the Waterside itself. |