asked the Minister for Overseas Development whether he has now had discussions with the Government of Mozambique about aid to that country; and if he will make a statement.

No discussions have taken place since my predecessor met with President Samora Machel in Dar es Salaam earlier in the year. The new Mozambique Government will obviously need time to take stock of the country's economic situation, but I hope that they will be in a position to begin detailed negotiations in the near future.

Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that there are two questions concerning this matter? The first is the question of any bilateral aid we may give and the second is the question of any aid that may be given in the context of the imposition of sanctions. Will he give the House an assurance that if we give aid in the latter context it will be only as part of a general arrangement involving other countries and under the United Nations?

Certainly there are two aspects to this matter. On sanctions, Mozambique as a member of the United Nations will, we assume, carry out United Nations policy in this respect. Any aid that we give would not, of course, be conditional upon that but would be in support of Mozambique in its problems as a country applying sanctions along the lines which were described, for instance, in the communiqué on the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' conference at Kingston. We hope that other donor countries in the United Nations will also provide aid.

Is not the Mozambique economy deeply dependent upon port and rail traffic with and miners' remittances from Malawi, Swaziland, Rhodesia and South Africa? As the Government are rightly anxious to help the development of this territory, should they not do everything to encourage co-operation and conciliation—not confrontation—between the different parts of Southern Africa?

Of course we would encourage co-operation in general terms, but in the case of Rhodesia it is our policy and United Nations policy that sanctions should be applied.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development if he will publish a White Paper on the recent proceedings of the World Food Council.

No, Sir. The first session of the World Food Council was of short duration and mostly concerned with work of a preparatory and organisational nature. The Written Answer which my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary gave to a Question from the hon. Member for Rochdale (Mr. Smith) on 3rd July—[Vol. 894, c. 531.]—gives a brief account of the results of the first session.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that the British decision to contribute 100,000 tons of fertilisers at that meeting at a cost of £15 million is very welcome? Can he now take an initiative in the World Food Council to consider the consequences on world food supplies of the very large-scale purchases by the Soviet Union in the world grain market, which could produce a situation similar to that which occurred a year or two ago which disrupted the whole pattern of grain supplies throughout the world, especially to the developing countries?

On the first point, I thank my hon. Friend for his remarks. On the second point I should like notice, but I shall certainly consider what my hon. Friend has said.

Will the right hon. Gentleman confirm that it is the Government's policy to concentrate their aid overseas on helping countries to grow their own food and that they will concentrate on rural development schemes because that is the real long-term answer to helping the less-developed countries?

Yes, Sir. It is our policy to concentrate more of our aid on agriculture and, indeed, on rural development generally. I hope to present shortly a White Paper which will spell out our policy in more detail.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development whether he intends any adjustment of the policies of his Department, in view of Her Majesty's Government's anti-inflationary policy as outlined in the White Paper "The Attack on Inflation", Cmnd. 6151.

No, Sir.

Bearing in mind that it is usually the poorest countries which suffer most from the effect of world inflation and that it is the philosophy of the Labour Party to give most help to those who are most in need, will my right hon. Friend enlarge on his answer and state clearly and categorically that, despite the savage cuts in public expenditure outlined in the White Paper, there is no intention on the part of the Government of further decreasing the percentage of our gross national product which we spend on overseas aid?

A reduction was announced in April of £10 million in what would have been the programme for 1975–76 and for 1976–77. Beyond that, public expenditure in general is under review and I cannot anticipate the result.

It is our stated intention as a Government to move as quickly as we can to the fulfilment of the United Nations target of 0·7 per cent. of gross national product. Meanwhile, within our aid programme we shall give greater priority than hitherto to the very poorest countries—those with a per capita income of $200 per year or less—and to the poorest groups within developing countries.

Does not the right hon. Gentleman agree that some adjustment is necessary in the case of India, which has been able to construct and explode a nuclear bomb? If the Indians can divert resources of that kind to such activities, surely India should not get any hand-out from the United Kingdom in present circumstances.

I do not think that Member of the House should describe development aid programmes as hand-outs. They are a contribution which the more affluent countries make and should make to the development plans of the developing countries. India is the biggest single aid recipient from this country, but in view of her size she is certainly not treated over-generously. Indeed, she gets a great deal less per capita than many other countries and has used that development aid very intelligently and very successfully over the years.

Does the Minister agree that although overseas aid can play a vital and indispensable rôle in the development of poorer countries, some of the poorer countries have far greater inequalities of wealth than are to be found in the aid-giving countries and that the time has come when the countries which give generously should make clear to some of the recipient countries that they should bring about such changes in the structure of their own society and government as would enable development to take place rather faster than has been the case hitherto?

I would go part of the way with that, but not all the way. We are dealing with independent countries. We are not in a paternalistic situation where we can dictate to them the political and social policies they should follow. One of the considerations that we have to bear carefully in mind is that where we are providing aid it will be used effectively. We have to judge the ability of a country to make effective use of our aid as well as judging its need for it.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development by what percentage his overseas aid programme in the current year and in 1976–77, respectively, is greater or less in real terms than the programme for 1974–75.

The net aid programme in 1975–76 expressed in 1974 constant prices is lower by 1·3 per cent. than in 1974–75. In cash terms, however, it shows an increase of some £100 million. The net aid programme for 1976–77 is 1·1 per cent. higher than for 1974–75.

In view of those disappointing figures and of the many demands on very limited resources, will the Minister consider whether it is wise to continue giving aid to India in view of the recent political developments there? Is it fair to ask British taxpayers to give a great deal of money to help to finance the programmes of a country which is at present destroying democracy and freedom and making nonsense of the rule of law?

In a sense I answered that when I replied on the previous Question. I want to repeat from this Dispatch Box that it is not my business or that of Her Majesty's Government to determine the policy of other independent countries. There are within the world about 100 countries that receive aid from a number of sources, not only from Britain but from other aid donor countries and from international agencies. Many are not democracies. Some have internal practices of which we might disapprove. We have to ask two basic questions: do they need assistance, and can they make effective use of that assistance?

Although it would not be right or practical to investigate the political purity of all the countries which are aid recipients, and although many of us who are anti-Common Market regarded the Lomé Agreement as wholly inadequate because it did not provide for the poorest nations of South-East Asia, is my right hon. Friend nevertheless aware that some of us have misgivings about what is happening in India and are bound to share in some measure the sentiments expressed rather surprisingly from the other side of the House?

I appreciate that my hon. Friend has reservations about what is happening in India. However, I hope he will not suggest that we should cut off aid to India or to other countries which may be pursuing policies of which hon. Members may not approve.

As for the extension of the Lomé Agreement, it is the policy of the Government to see the aid programme of the Community extended to non-associates. We shall be arguing for that policy within all the machinery of the Community.

The right hon. Gentleman has twice sought refuge in the word "effectively" or "effective use". As that word is, on the face of it, imprecise since any expenditure is bound to produce some effect and to that extent be effective, will he essay a more precise definition and in particular say whether any qualitative criterion is involved?

No; without giving a very long lecture I will not attempt it. I suggest to the House that a study both of the British aid programme and of the aid programmes of other donors, of the United Nations agencies, of the World Bank and other similar bodies, shows that over the years we have become very much more expert in assessing development projects. So also have the developing countries themselves in many cases become much more effective in their development projects and avoided earlier mistakes. On the whole, the experience of recent years has been more successful than was the experience 15 to 20 years ago.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development whether the Government are making any contribution towards the teaching of the English language in the Third World.

Yes, Sir. We attach great importance to this. In collaboration with the British Council, my Department supports the provision of skilled manpower from this country to fill teaching, advisory and other specialist posts; arranges training for teachers and teacher trainees; and supplies books and other equipment for educational and training institutions in developing countries.

As about one-third of the world can neither read nor write, and as English is a second language in so many underdeveloped countries, does not the Minister agree that it is a British interest to promote the teaching of English in the Third World? Therefore, will he do his best to encourage English teachers, or teachers of English, to go out to the Third World and work there, particularly at a time when there is growing unemployment in this country?

Yes. My original reply indicated that my predecessors have been giving priority to our programmes. I wish to continue it. The House may like to know that there are at present about 800 English teachers in specialised posts abroad involved in the teaching of English.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that despite his encouraging reply the comparative figures for France indicate that we are not doing nearly as well as we should be and that in the year for which I have been able to obtain figures—incidentally, not from his Department—the French had over 7,300 people abroad teaching French and the comparative figure obtained from the British Council for the same year was 506 posts for the teaching of English?

In the light of those comparative figures, will my right hon. Friend undertake a thorough review of his Department's programme for teaching English abroad and undertake to devote to this purpose a higher proportion of his admittedly limited funds?

I will certainly study that comparison. The House will know that there are other aid donors which provide English teachers abroad. The United States, Australia, and New Zealand all have aid programmes which involve people going abroad to teach English. This is in addition to the British programme to which I referred.

asked the Minister for Overseas Development what recent discussions he has had with the EEC Commission on the disposal of surplus food to the underdeveloped and undernourished nations of the world.

I have had no such discussions but my right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food informed the House on 24th July—[Vol. 896, c. 793.]—of the revised arrangements for the sale of EEC skimmed milk powder to developing countries. The selling price is being reduced to about half the current commercial price and the scheme has been extended to include direct sales to the Governments of developing countries. Apart from such specific measures to dispose of surplus food, the EEC is also providing substantial quantities of food aid to the developing countries.

In thanking my right hon. Friend, may I ask him to go a little further and make representations himself within the Community to make sure that these surpluses, if they are to be produced—they are indefensible in any event—will be allocated by the EEC to those who need them most? Will he take it upon himself to ensure that they go to the undernourished world rather than leave this task to his right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture?

The subject matter overlaps the food aid question. Inasmuch as we are concerned with the disposal of agricultural surpluses and the interests of the farming community in Europe, it is a matter for my right hon. Friend. To the extent that we are concerned with food aid, it is clearly a matter for me. Certainly the Government have indicated that we support the proposals of the EEC for a larger food aid programme from the Community to the developing world.

Does not the Minister agree that it would be a good idea if Her Majesty's Government took steps to try to bring about a co-ordinated food aid programme between the European Economic Community and the food-producing parts of the Commonwealth, such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand, which have food surpluses?

These matters are discussed between Governments. The Development Assistance Committee of the OECD is a forum in which donors from the non-Communist world generally come together, compare notes and exchange information on matters of this kind. I am not sure that a joint programme under a separate organisation would necessarily be helpful in this respect.

Concerning the skimmed milk aspect of food aid, to which my right hon. Friend referred, is he now satisfied with the arrangements made in the EEC in regard to the commercial sale of these foods, particularly for commercial baby food?

My hon. Friend has asked a supplementary question which touches on the subject matter of Question No. 36, which has not been reached. This matter has been followed up since he received an answer on 16th May from my right hon. Friend who preceded me in this office. The position is that it has not been found necessary to produce a standard form of guarantee, but in the few cases where guarantees are needed against unreasonable commercial exploitation this is discussed with the recipient countries and guarantees are obtained against the sort of thing my hon. Friend has in mind.