asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement as to the present position concerning negotiations for the payment of Roumania's, Bulgaria's and Hungary's bonded debts; what progress he has made in discussions and in drafting a Bill concerning the Baltic bonds and gold; and when he intends to reopen the question of the Tsarist debts to citizens of this country.

As regards the first part of the Question, I have nothing to add to the replies my hon. Friend the then Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs gave to the right hon. and learned Gentleman the Member for Hertfordshire, East (Sir D. Walker-Smith) on 15th March, and to the hon. Gentleman the Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Sir. W. Teeling) on 24th July, 1967 and 29th April, 1968.A Bill concerning the distribution of the assets which were the subject of the recent Anglo-Soviet claims agreement is ready for introduction but I regret that time cannot be found for it in this Session.I cannot yet say when it may be possible to re-open discussions of pre-1939 Anglo-Soviet claims with the Soviet authorities, but my right hon. Friend is considering this matter now that we have reached an agreement with them on the post-1939 claims.—[Vol. 760, c.