asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations whether he will state the policy of Her Majesty's Government regarding the future of the Mandate for South-West Africa.

The attitude of Her Majesty's Govern-men' on this question was fully explained to the House by the then Minister of State on 15th December.

But does not the right hon. Gentleman recollect that on that occasion the Government accepted a Motion, which was unanimously passed by the House, calling on the Government to take action, either at the United Nations or at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference, to ensure that either South Africa would carry out its obligations under the Mandate, or would surrender the Mandate? In view of the terms of that Resolution, what action do the Government propose to take at the Prime Ministers' Conference?

I am not aware that this subject will necessarily be raised at the Prime Ministers' Conference.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether any other action has been taken, Or is to be taken, by Her Majesty's Government?

Are we to understand from the right hon. Gentleman's reply that, in spite of the Government's acceptance of the Motion on 15th December, they propose to take no action whatsoever?

When the hon. and learned Gentleman talks about acceptance of the Motion, I think the Minister of State made it very clear what the attitude of the Government was on this whole question. I would refer him to the speech made on that occasion.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations when the Government of the Union of South Africa last communicated with Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom regarding the transfer to South Africa of the High Commission Territories; and if he will state the nature of such communication, and of the reply.

The last request from the Government of South Africa for the transfer of these territories was received in July 1956. The reply given was on the lines to the statement made to the House on the 13th April, 1954, by the then Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Woodford (Sir W. Churchill), of which for easy reference I am circulating a copy in HANSARD.

Arising out of that reply, is the right hon. Gentleman not aware that the Schedule to the South Africa Act, 1909, which provides the machinery of transfer, clearly contemplates a continuing relationship with the Crown? If such a request is received again, will Her Majesty's Government make it clear to the South African Government that when South Africa becomes a Republic there can no longer be even the faintest possibility of the transfer of these territories?

Yes. The answer to which I referred made it quite clear that we were not contemplating any transfer. I should like to make it clear that the South Africa Act, 1909, does not place on us any obligation to transfer these territories, and therefore the fact that the Union has decided to become a Republic does not affect the position.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations how many qualified lawyers, employed in his office in London or on the staff of the United Kingdom High Commissioner in South Africa, are fluent speakers and readers of Afrikaans.

None, Sir.

If that is so, can the Joint Under-Secretary of State explain to the House how it was that he and his right hon. Friend were able to consider the significance of the contents of the report of the Commissioner on the Sharpeville shootings, a report of considerable importance to a large number of British-protected persons who were wounded in the shooting, and to the relatives of those who were killed there? If no one in either of these offices could read the report, how on earth was it decided to draw conclusions from it?

I was, of course, answering the Question on the Order Paper. The High Commissioner has on his staff officers who are adequately fluent in the reading and speaking of Afrikaans for normal work. The Question referred to qualified lawyers, however, and it happens that the lawyers do not have this fluency in Afrikaans. Other officials in the Commonwealth Relations Office are fluent in Afrikaans but are not lawyers. I must, of course, make it plain that this was a report to the South African Government and not to the Government in the United Kingdom, but we are concerned with it, and our very proper concern stems from the claims of the Basutos in the Sharpeville shooting, whose interests are adequately secured by the arrangement come to by the Basutoland Government with a firm of qualified lawyers in Ladybrand, who have a staff of qualified lawyers who can read and speak Afrikaans.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what plans the Government have for increasing the accommodation available for Commonwealth students in this country.

The Government wish to encourage the development of closer links between young people in the Commonwealth. We have accordingly decided to initiate a programme for providing some 5,000 additional places for overseas students in hostels where they will live and mix with British students. We propose also to provide a number of new or enlarged social and cultural centres to be run by the British Council.

Are we making full use of existing organisations? Also, have arrangements been made to make these plans reciprocal? Much as we welcome Commonwealth students here, should we not make it a two-way traffic and not leave it to President Kennedy alone to take the initiative? Will my hon. Friend take it that we welcome these ideas?

We certainly should welcome any reciprocal action in this sense among Commonwealth countries. As regards the other point made by my hon. Friend, the British Council has been authorised to consult voluntary organisations, the universities and other educational authorities and institutions about this whole programme.

We welcome very much the Minister's announcement. Can he say whether among the voluntary organisations to be assisted is included the Voluntary Service Overseas Organisation, which plays such an excellent part in sending people from this country to Commonwealth countries?

I am not sure which are the organisations included. I will communicate with the hon. Member.

Will the Secretary of State consult the Universities of Cape Town and Witwatersrand in order to see whether he can give an opportunity for university education in this country to Africans or Indians who have been denied university education as a result of action by the South African Government in those two universities?

I will see that the nature of the scheme is made widely known throughout the Commonwealth.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what is the total annual financial aid given to Basutoland through the Colonial Development Corporation and other agencies.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Annual Report of the Colonial Development Corporation which shows that possible ways of helping Basutoland are under active consideration. No figure is available of annual financial aid from other agencies, but during recent years the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund has made gifts of dried milk, vitamins and equipment for maternity and child welfare totalling nearly £19,000, and the World Health Organisation has conducted a nutrition survey costing about £40,000.

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that reply. I have read the Report, but is he aware that I have also read the Report of the Morse Mission and seen its recommendations? Is it not the case that that Report points out that 130,000 Africans in Basutoland are compelled to go for work in the Union of South Africa and that its proposals would make that unnecessary for a large number of these Africans? Has it not proposed a grant of £2,740,000? Have the Government reached any decision on that matter?

The recommendations of the Morse Report are receiving the active consideration of my right hon. Friend now. I may perhaps add that Basutoland has been granted an allocation of £825,000 under the 1959 Act, of which £430,000 has been spent on education in and the campaign for conservation of the soil and the proper use of land which must be precedent to any proper development of the Territory's resources.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what financial help he proposes to give to Pius XII University College at Roma in Basutoland in the light of the recommendation made to him in the Report of the Morse Mission.

A small annual grant is already made by the High Commissioner to the College in respect of the maintenance of students from the High Commission Territories. Any further Government assistance has to be considered in relation to the financial resources available for the Territories and the other claims upon those resources. As was stated in this House on 2nd February in reply to the right hon. Gentleman, the Member for Middlesbrough, East (Mr. Marquand), we are still considering the recommendations of the Morse Report.

Has not this matter concerning Roma College been dragging on for a very long time? Does the hon. Gentleman not appreciate that, apart from the importance of higher education in the High Commission Territories, as a result of the regrettable educational developments in the Union of South Africa it is now impossible for students to go from the High Commission Territories to the Union? Will he look at the matter very seriously indeed and try to inject some urgency into the consideration of the matter?

The good work undertaken by the College is fully appreciated by my right hon. Friend, but the question of providing the money recommended in the Morse Mission's Report will have to be studied in the light of other pressing demands for development funds and the fact that the College is an institution which at the moment draws the bulk of its students from outside the High Commission Territories. I fully appreciate the sense of urgency behind the hon. Gentleman's Question, and I assure him that we are considering the matter expeditiously; but it should be realised, especially by those who have read it, that this enormous Report covers a very wide field indeed.

It is almost a year since we debated this subject in the House of Commons. How can the Minister say that he is studying it urgently? All this time has passed since we gave him information about Roma College and put the case forward. He still says that he is studying it. When shall we have some action?

I hesitate to give a complete answer to that question here and now, but I assure the right hon. Gentleman that we are considering the matter as expeditiously as possible. As he well knows, there are very many difficulties which are not easily resolved.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what plans have been authorised for economic development in Swaziland through private capital investment and the Colonial Development Corporation, respectively.

I would refer the hon. Member to the Annual Report of the Colonial Development Corporation, which gives details of the economic development projects in Swaziland in which the Corporation have invested. The major projects financed by private capital concern the forestry, pulp, sugar and fruit-canning industries, and the investigation of mineral resources.

May I again ask the hon. Gentleman if he has looked at the recommendations of the Morse Report in connection with Swaziland? Is it not the case that that Report points out that there are very great agricultural and mineral resources capable of development in Swaziland and that a grant of £2,667,260 would enable these to be realised? Have the Government reached a decision on that recommendation?

The answer is that of course I have read the recommendations and that these are being considered, but I would not wish the House to believe that nothing is being done. I mentioned a number of instances, and steps are being taken, the hon. Member may care to know, to secure Swazi participation in some of these major projects. Two forestry companies have planted certain areas of Swazi-owned land with conifers, and they are managing the estates till they mature, when the Swazis will be able to sell the timber to local mills. The Swazi nation also has seats on the board of directors of one large irrigation scheme.

With reference to both of my hon. Friend's Questions, is the hon. Gentleman not aware that it is six months since the Morse Mission reported? How soon will he be able to come to the House and make a studied statement on the whole of the recommendations of the Morse Mission in regard to all three Territories?

If the right hon. Gentleman cares to put that question down I shall perhaps be able to give him some information, but I should not like to give an answer off the cuff.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what progress is being made towards representative government in Swaziland.

The consultations about constitutional development in Swaziland, initiated last year, are making progress.

As this is making very slow progress, will the right hon. Gentleman consider introducing democracy in a small way there as a start by having proper elections for the town council, say at the two principal towns, Mbabane and Bremersdorp? The last time the question was raised one of his predecessors said that it would be done very shortly.

I am very sorry but I am afraid that I was not aware of that particular point. On the matter generally, all I would say is that things of this kind do take time.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations how many posts in Commonwealth universities have been taken up in accordance with the undertakings given in paragraph 13 of the White Paper on Commonwealth Educational Co-operation, Command Paper No. 1032, May, 1960.

The candidate selected for appointment to the first post to be filled under the scheme is expected to take up his duties at the beginning of the academic year 1961–62. Recruitment for five other posts which have been approved is proceeding.

Can the Under-Secretary of State say whether any steps are being taken to facilitate the re-entry of university teachers into the English university world when they return from overseas? Is not difficulty about that re-entry one of the factors limiting the success of this attempted recruitment campaign?

That, of course, is another question. I do appreciate that it is an important one, and I will undertake to have that looked into.

Is the hon. Gentleman trying to arrange with the university authorities in this country a code of secondment similar to the one he is recommending to local education authorities?

I would rather not give an answer to that question right now, but, as I say, I will bear that one very much in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the improvement of relations with the Government of Rhodesia and Nyasaland; and if he will make a statement.

It is, naturally, the policy of Her Majesty's Government to maintain the closest possible relations with the Federal Government.

Does my right hon. Friend really think that, having been warned by the Colonial Secretary at the beginning of the Rhodesian debate that it was important to choose his words very carefully, his later violent attack upon Sir Roy Welensky, a British Commonwealth Prime Minister, contributed in any way to furthering friendly relations with the Federation, and will he, if he must tilt at windmills, at least do it at the expense of our enemies rather than of our friends?

I think my hon. Friend has been reading the headlines in the newspapers rather than what I said. It was more in pain than in anger that I spoke, and I am not at all sure that those remarks I made were not very opportune.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations what steps he is taking to ensure that the new constitution proposed for Southern Rhodesia has the support of the African population who now enjoy the protection of the United Kingdom Government.

As the hon. Member is aware, the new constitutional proposals for Southern Rhodesia are the outcome of a conference at which the Africans were fully represented.

Is the right hon. Gentleman not aware that the National Democratic Party has now rejected the conclusions of the conference? Is he aware that a rederendum is being held in the mainly white electorate? If this referendum is being held in the mainly white electorate, could not a referendum be arranged for the African population who look upon Britain as the protecting Power and who have most to lose by these new proposals?

I am quite sure that they have most to gain by the new proposals.

Will not the entry of black African members into the Southern Rhodesian Parliament be a most welcome and, indeed, overdue reform, and is not my right hon. Friend to be congratulated upon it? Is it not regrettable that certain African leaders should have resiled from the agreement made?

The effect of these proposals so far as representation is concerned is almost certain to be that the Africans who at present have no members of Parliament will have something approaching one-quarter of the seats in the new Parliament.

Has the right hon. Gentleman had any further negotiations with the National Democratic Party since? Have they had the opportunity together to consider the results of the conference? Has the party made any new representations to him, and is he endeavouring to try to reassure that party about his intentions?

I do not think we should be too worried about the attitude of the National Democratic Party. It has made it clear on more than one occasion since the conference that it warmly welcomes the new safeguards against discrimination. It described them as a halfway house towards the ideals towards which that party is working. On the question of representation and the franchise, it would naturally have liked to have got more, but that is a common feature in all negotiations. As I said, the new proposals will give the Africans probably about one-quarter of the new seats, and I am quite sure that the Africans as a whole would be extremely disappointed if the new proposals were dropped.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations if he will give details of the number of students from the High Commission Territories who are at present participating in the schemes arising out of the Commonwealth Education Conference.

In 1960, under the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan, three students from the High Commission Territories won scholarships offered by the United Kingdom. No applications from students in the Territories were made in 1960 under the United Kingdom Government's Scheme of Bursaries for students from the Commonwealth taking courses of training as teachers in this country, but so far this year two applications have been received.

Are not these numbers very small? Has not the time arrived for a really big educational drive in the High Commission Territories to increase the number of candidates for positions of this kind?

The numbers are small, but we should recognise that this is the beginning of what one hopes will be an ever-growing venture in Commonwealth co-operation. I should say that full information has not yet been received in this country about awards made by all the other Commonwealth countries participating in the plan, but it is known that one student from Basutoland obtained one of the scholarships offered by Canada in 1960.

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations if he will publish all the communications which have passed between the British Government and the Government of the Central African Federation with regard to the constitutional proposals for Northern Rhodesia.

I would refer the hon. Lady to the reply which the Prime Minister gave on 27th February to my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Arundel and Shoreham (Captain Kerby).

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that Sir Roy Welensky has complained that during the course of the conference no fewer than five different plans were produced and the final one contained a last-minute change which he and others had not sufficient time to consider? Can he confirm or deny the story in the Daily Telegraph last week that, in the middle of January, a communication was sent from the British Government to the Federal Government—

Order. The last part of the hon. Lady's supplementary is out of order.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware of the widely held belief that, in the middle of January, a communication was sent from the British Government to the Federal Government which Sir Roy described as so outrageous that he decided, on the basis of it, to boycott the conference? Does the Secretary of State agree with the Daily Telegraph that it is important to clear the air on this matter?

It is not my business to agree or disagree with the Daily Telegraph. There are many beliefs which are widely held.

Does not the Secretary of State's reply show that in this very delicate matter, when there is confusion about what actually happened and when we want to be fair to all the parties concerned, we should know the facts so that we may judge on what basis Sir Roy is taking the stand he is?

I know that the hon. Lady always looks very objectively at all questions. All I am trying to indicate is that confidential communications should remain confidential.

asked the Minister of Education whether married women returning to the teaching profession are included in a local education authority's quota for women teachers.

During 1961, authorities may recruit outside the quota married women returning to full-time teaching in excess of a fixed target figure. This arrangement gives an incentive to authorities to increase their recruitment.

Does the right hon. Gentleman mean that this will apply only during 1961? Will there not be a hardship, perhaps, put on new students coming out of college because they may enter into the quota also and, therefore, a local authority will have to reduce the number of students that it takes on?

Not at all. This is a continuing campaign. It is necessary to see how the various authorities get on in order to determine the conditions for future years.

asked the Minister of Education whether he will now make a statement on the result of his advertising campaign for increasing the number of teachers in the country.

Interest in this campaign shall shortly ask local education authorities for information about the position reached by the end of this month.

Will the right hon. Gentleman consider the difficulties arising in consequence of the pensions of teachers being counted as part of their salaries in the event of their being re-employed in this way? Does he not think it important that teachers who have acquired pensions should be allowed to keep them irrespective of any salary they may get?

I have sent a memorandum to local authorities on the pensions question, and I will send the hon. Member a copy.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the House appreciates both his campaign and that which local authorities are undertaking to recruit teachers, but will he look into the anomalies which act as a disincentive to people coming back, particularly the anomaly that if a retired teacher comes back to help the Minister in time of crisis he is unable to get any benefit from any rise in salary in the profession which has taken place since he left it?

This is a difficult question applying to all public servants. I will look into it, although it has always proved very hard to solve.

asked the Minister of Education what he has done to implement the undertaking given last June that he would offer inducements in competition with Imperial Chemical Industries and Shell to university students who are prepared to enter the teaching profession

I have sought the help of the 'teachers, and the campaign is going well, as is shown by the number of graduates entering the teaching profession.

Can the Minister not be a little more explicit? In the undertaking to which I am referring and which he gave to the Conservative and Unionist Teachers Association, he suggested that he was to make some extraordinary payment to graduates in competition with these industrial firms, saying that they went around with their recruiting sergeants offering so much more than a bob a nob and that he was proposing to do the same. Can he tell us what he meant by that?

I am glad that the hon. Lady has asked that question, because I never said that. I have taken great trouble to look up what I said. I said that we would compete with the recruiting campaign of the big firms in the universities and we are now competing by sending teachers as our recruiting sergeants, and I think the figures prove that they are doing a good job.

asked the Minister of Education if he will make grants to those students who are recommended, as part of their training, to go abroad during their vacation.

State Scholars reading for degrees in modern langauges are eligible for additional grant if they are required by the university to attend a course in the country of the main language which they are studying. Local education authorities generally extend the same arrangements to their own university award holders.

Is the Minister aware that at certain teacher training colleges students taking a foreign language have been informed that they must spend two periods abroad at their own expense if they wish to obtain the advanced course certificate?

I am not aware of that. I know that if students in teacher training colleges are chosen to take a course abroad, when French is their main subject, a grant is made.

asked the Minister of Education if he will raise the personal grants made to students during their period at college in view of the proposed increase in their National Insurance contributions.

No, Sir. National Insurance contributions are not compulsory for students, and grants were never intended to cover them. Arrangements already exist for students if they wish to make up, during their first six years in employment, contributions which they did not pay while at college.

asked the Minister of Education what progress has been made with the establishment of a committee for negotiating the salary scales of full-time youth leaders.

A committee has now been established and held its first meeting on 28th February. The committee will deal with conditions of service as well as salaries, and will advise me on the qualifications that should be required for the status of qualified youth leader. I will, with permission, circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT the composition of the Committee.

Are the findings of this committee to be binding in the sense that the Burnham Committee findings are binding?

No. I hope that all local authorities will follow the recommendations, but I am advised that, if necessary, the terms of Section 8 of the Terms and Conditions of Employment Act, 1959, would apply.

I thank my right hon. Friend for his Answer. Does he agree that it is desirable that these salaries should bear some relation to or be comparable with the Burnham scale so as to facilitate opportunities for transfer between this new career and the teaching profession?

From the composition of the committee, my hon. Friend will see that it is likely that its recommendations will follow very closely the Burnham scale.

asked the Minister of Education whether he is now able to make a statement about the introduction of legislation to reduce the school-leaving dates to two per annum, at Easter and in July, as recommended by the Crowther Committee.

asked the Minister of Education what progress he has made in negotiations on reducing the number of leaving dates in secondary schools.

The Government have decided to accept the Crowther recommendation that the number of school-leaving dates should be reduced to two. The effect of this will be that pupils born in the months September to January inclusive will be free to leave at Easter and the remainder in July. In view of the serious teacher shortage expected in 1962–63, the change will not be made until September, 1963, before which date legislation will be introduced.

I welcome that statement, but will the Minister make it clear that, although it is probably necessary to do it in two stages, educationally one leaving date would be much more satisfactory, and he has not closed his mind entirely to that possibility?

That is my view. I regret that it has not been possible to take just one bite at the cherry.

asked the Minister of Education whether he will extend the terms of reference of the working party to be appointed by him to consider the basic requirements for an efficient public library service, to include the problem of duplication by privately-owned tape recorders of gramophone records in circulation from pubic libraries, and to make recommendations; and if he will make a statement.

No, Sir. This is essentially a copyright problem and not suitable for consideration by this committee.

Will my right hon. Friend say what protection composers and producers of gramophone records can have in view of the fact that public libraries now let records out entirely free? Does not this make complete nonsense of the matter?

This is a question for my right bon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade.

asked the Minister of Education what response he has had from local education authorities to his official pamphlet, No. 40, entitled, "Schools and the Commonwealth": and what steps local authorities are taking to ensure its circulation throughout schools.

This pamphlet has been widely welcomed, but it is too early to make an assessment of the local education authorities' response.

I understand my right hon. Friend's difficulty. Would it be possible for him in, say, six or twelve months' time to call for a return from the local authorities to report their action so that we can have some definite idea of what action they have taken?

Yes, Sir and I shall hope to be able to include the response from overseas as well.

asked the Minister of Education what estimates for school building were presented by the Lancashire Education Authority for the years 1961–62 and 1962–63; and what amounts he authorised for those years.

Proposals for the years 1960–61 and 1961–62 were submitted together; the amount asked for was about £.6½ million and that authorised was about £5¾ million. Proposals for an additional £500,000 were authorised later. For the 1962–63 programme proposals amounting to £4¼ million were received and those authorised amounted to about £2¾ million.

While I do not want to pursue the matter, in view of the recent delegation to the Minister, when he can screw some more money out of the Treasury will he bear in mind the special needs of Lancashire, particularly the need to renovate and bring up to date some of the old dilapidated schools where they cannot be completely replaced?

As I told the hon. Member and his friends, when the school building reorganisation is complete, as it shortly will be, replacement will have a larger share.

asked the Minister of Education what is the reason for the delay in completion of the investigation undertaken, on the request of the hon. Member for Erith and Crayford in a letter dated 21st December, 1960, into the allegations concerning the treatment of boys at the Widdicombe House School.

One of Her Majesty's Inspectors and two of the Ministry's Medical Officers visited the school a week after the beginning of the present term and have made a report which has today been sent to the proprietor for his comments.

Surely Parliament is to be told something about this. Is the hon. Gentleman aware that many parents have been worried and distressed by the allegations made and widely publicised, and can we take it that the result of this investigation will be made available to Members of Parliament?

If the hon. Member puts down a Question, we will do our best to answer it for him.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is yet in a position to make a detailed statement on the constitution of Malta.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement on the present political and economic situation in Malta; and how soon it is proposed to restore to the Maltese people the rights which they enjoyed until the suspension of the constitution.

I shall publish the report of the Blood Commission and make a statement to the House next week,

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement on the outcome of the general election in Kenya and the powers which the Governor will continue to exercise.

The strength of the major parties after the elections for constituency members is as follows:

Will my right hon. Friend agree that it is to the credit of all parties—and perhaps I may include the police—that what might have been a riotous election has passed off so extraordinarily quietly? May we take it that it will be the purpose of the Governor now to proceed to form a government to which he will invite all elected representatives, regardless of race, who are prepared to join in non-racial government? Will we treat Jomo Kenyatta in such a way that he is reduced to man size while the new Ministers are playing themselves in?

I am sure that everybody is very happy that, contrary to many gloomy prophecies, the elections in Kenya went off so quietly and so well. The Governor will proceed to invite people to serve on the Council of Ministers, using the proportions of unofficials which were laid down in the Lancaster House Constitution. He may wish to wait for the election of the national members which, as I have said, is on 16th March. The full reasons both for not releasing Jomo Kenyatta from restriction and for removing him from Lodwar to Maralal were given yesterday by the Governor in a statement which, of course, had the full approval of Her Majesty's Government.

Is the Colonial Secretary aware that the successful and peaceful outcome of the elections in Kenya is a compliment to his skilful handling of the constitutional talks? Will he let the significance of that be known in Northern Rhodesia? Is he aware that there is widely held regret in Kenya that Jomo Kenyatta is to continue to be held in detention, and will he give his personal attention to this matter so that the continued detention of Jomo Kenyata will not prejudice the formation of a successful administration?

I am grateful for what the hon. Member has said, but the credit belongs to the people in Kenya. I hope that everybody who is invited to serve in this Government, whether African. European, or Asian, will realise that the question of whether a man is or is not released from restriction is in no circumstances a matter on which the Governor can bargain?

My right hon. Friend mentioned the constitutional position and the powers of the Governor. Will not he encourage the Governor to make a public statement spelling out those powers in Kenya, as that might go a long way towards rebuilding confidence and perhaps to bring about a resumption of investment in Kenya?

I am sure the Governor has that in mind and that at the proper time will make such a statement.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent representations he has received from the employers and trade unions in the fishing industry as to the consequences of the Icelandic dispute; and whether he will make a statement.

Representatives of both sides of the, industry recently expressed their grave concern about the delay in reaching a settlement. They have since informed my right hon. Friend that they are ready to support the Government in accepting the proposals now before the Icelandic Parliament of which my right hon. Friend the Lord Privy Seal informed the House on Tuesday.

I doubt whether that accurately reflects the views of one side of the industry in practice. In any event, in view of the nature of this settlement, which was very much worse than the industry was expecting and which has dealt it a heavy blow, will the hon. Gentleman now expedite a decision on the Fleck Report recommendation that Government aid should be extended to the distant-water section of the fleet?

My right hon. Friend is fully cognisant of the need to expedite a decision on the Fleck Report, but the hon. Gentleman will realise that it is a complicated and comprehensive report and that before one can be definite one must appreciate the full implications to the fishing industry.

Have the representations which the Minister has received referred in any way to the inconclusive and unsatisfactory nature of the so-called settlement announced the other day?

My right hon. Friend was in close touch with representatives of the owners, skippers and mates and crews over the weekend, and he has consulted them recently about the terms of the settlement which my right hon. Friend the Lord Privy Seal announced in the House.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to what sources of infection he attributes the primary outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Shropshire and Warwickshire which necessitated movement restrictions covering 18 counties.

The primary outbreaks in Shropshire and Warwickshire were among pigs believed to have been fed with inadequately treated swill which may have contained infected meat imported from South America.

I congratulate my hon. Friend on being a little less coy about attributing the cause in this instance. Does he realise that this is a matter of very grave concern, not only to farmers in the 18 counties already subject to control of movement orders, but to the other three areas reported today—Cornwall, Devon and Somerset? Does he appreciate that this is a serious matter and that we must pin the blame where it properly belongs so that whatever faults there may be can be remedied.

In view of what has been said, will my hon. Friend ban the importation—at any rate, for the time being—of pork and pig meat from South America?

The proposed ban on the import of pork and pig meat from South America became effective recently.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why oil, gas and electrical domestic space and water heating appliances are required to pay Purchase Tax at 25 per cent. whereas solid fuel space and water heating appliances pay no Purchase Tax.

My right hon. and learned Friend's predecessor explained on 21st May, 1958, in Committee on the Finance Bill of that year the considerations that led him to impose tax at the same rate on oil, gas and electric heaters. Solid fuel heaters have been exempt for many years and the withdrawal of that exemption was not thought to be justified.

Will my hon. Friend represent to the Chancellor of the Exchequer that this illogicality has now persisted for 15 years? As the policy of Her Majesty's Government is free competition among all forms of fuel in the domestic market, why is an onerous burden placed on three out of four of the alternatives and the fourth exempted?

I assume that my hon. Friend is not seeking to correct the disparity by imposing Purchase Tax on grates, fireplaces and solid fuel stoves and that he is, therefore, seeking a reduction of Purchase Tax on the other appliances. He will understand that this is not a matter on which I can comment at this time.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has given further consideration to the additional information about the case of George Riley given to him by the hon. Member for Ladywood; and whether he will arrange for an inquiry to be held, in order to ascertain whether there has been a miscarriage of justice.

Before reaching my decision, I gave the fullest consideration to the representations made to me by the hon. Member and others, as well as to all the information available to me from many sources. I am satisfied that there has been no miscarriage of justice, and that there is no ground for an inquiry.

As the chief prosecution witness at the Riley trial, the police officer, was subjected to a disciplinary investigation by the Chief Constable of Shropshire and a complaint about the manner of the proceedings and the way they were carried out was made to the Law Society, does not the right hon. Gentleman think that there should be an inquiry in the interests of justice? Would he be willing to place a transcript of the trial in the Library?

In view of the precedents, I would like to have notice of that last question, which I will consider. answered the earlier part of the question in the debate initiated by the hon. Member for Nelson and Colne (Mr. S. Silverman), and it was also answered by my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General. I pointed out then that the police officer had been cleared of the charges which were laid at his door, and I have nothing to add to what I said on that occasion.

Will my right hon. Friend agree that in the meantime it would be a good thing to make it an invariable rule that confessions obtained in a police station should be repeated under oath in open court?

I should like to say in relation to that general question that in answering questions from the hon. Member for Islington, East (Mr. Fletcher) and others I said that I would look into these matters. I have been looking into them and when I am ready I will, if I may, make a statement, because it is quite reasonable that there should be an investigation.

While the last answer of the right hon. Gentleman will be welcome, because very important questions are raised here which go beyond the particular case, referring to the point raised by my hon. Friend, would not the right hon. Gentleman agree that in this case it would be of great use to have a transcript available? If we put down a Question next week, could the right hon. Gentleman give us an answer?

I should like to look with impartiality in relation to what I described as the precedents. We must be sure we are following what is normal in this case, and, within reason, I should like to consider what has been put to me.

asked the Prime Minister what approaches he has had from the President of the United States of America with regard to the cancellation of the Polaris missile base at Holy Loch.

I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Don Valley (Mr. Kelley) on 23rd February.

Is not the truth of this matter that President Kennedy is perfectly willing to cancel this base which is a matter of convenience and not necessity to the United States forces, but that the Prime Minister will not allow him because he asked for it in the first place and is now afraid that its withdrawal would be a blow to his prestige? Is not the right hon. Gentleman aware that we are all getting tired of Government by "MacVanity"?

No, Sir. I understand the submarine is on its way and will make use of these facilities.

In view of the unsatisfactory nature of that reply, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the question on the Adjournment.

asked the Prime Minister if he will appoint a committee of British experts to prepare a detailed plan for general disarmament under international control to be submitted to the Prime Ministers of the Commonwealth Governments and thereafter to the competent organ of the United Nations,

No, Sir. I would refer the right hon. Gentleman to the replies I gave to Questions by the hon. Member for Dundee, East (Mr. G. M. Thomson) on 23rd February.

Does the Prime Minister recall that in September, 1959, before the General Election, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, then the Foreign Secretary, proposed the objective of drastic disarmament to the United Nations Assembly, which endorsed it? Does not he think that a British committee of experts might turn the Chancellor's generalities into a concrete, practical and realistic plan?

The proposal which I made last autumn is still before the United Nations. The proposal was that it should be a multilateral committee, because, after all, it was that system which led to the start of the nuclear test discussions; that was the parallel I had in mind.

I quite realise that the Prime Minister proposed an international committee, but would not it help that committee if it had before it a plan prepared by British experts covering both disarmament and control?

If an international committee came into being, certainly the British experts would prepare their contribution.

May we take it that it is the desire of the Prime Minister that the British plan for disarmament, plus any modification which may be thought necessary, will be discussed at the Prime Ministers' Conference and an effort be made to secure the unanimous support of the Commonwealth for it?

What we would hope to do would be to try to get what I might call a common approach. As the right hon. Gentleman knows, it is not the practice for the Prime Ministers' Conference to commit itself to a precise or detailed plan, but I hope that as a result of our discussions we may get a common approach to this problem, which would certainly be of the greatest help when next we take it up at the United Nations.

asked the Prime Minister if he will take the opportunity afforded by Mr. Nehru's forthcoming visit to London to discuss with him the situation in Laos.

I have no doubt that there will be opportunities for discussing this important subject with Mr. Nehru and other Commonwealth Prime Ministers.

Will the Prime Minister please listen to Mr. Nehru's advice on this occasion instead of ignoring it, as he did throughout the whole of last year, when the situation was less acute than it is now? In particular, will he take Mr. Nehru's advice on one point, namely, that the situation in Laos is so serious that it can be resolved only by recalling the Geneva Convention to give a fresh mandate to the International Commission?

These are very large subjects. We have had great benefit from interchanges with Mr. Nehru and other Commonwealth Prime Ministers. That is a practice which is of great value to us, and we shall continue to try to work out these problems together.

Can the Prime Minister say whether the Foreign Secretary discussed this question with Mr. Nehru during his recent visit to India—or was he too busy missing tigers?

asked the Prime Minister whether the speech made by the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations about the structure of the Commonwealth at the Young Conservatives Conference represents the policy of Her Majesty's Government.

My right hon. Friend's speech contained no statement of policy.

Did the Prime Minister note the statement:

"Let us take the broad view that here are countries that basically want the same sort of thing in the world, though they may show marked differences one from another"?

I think that as a general proposition, regarding the Commonwealth as a whole, what my right hon. Friend said was very wise and very true.

asked the Prime Minister What steps the Government took to inform the Prime Minister of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland of the contents of the constitutional proposals for Northern Rhodesia, outlined in Command Paper No. 1295, and to obtain his opinions thereon.

Her Majesty's Government undertook in 1953 to seek the views of the Federal Government on amendments to the territorial constitutions. This undertaking was discharged in the case of these proposals for Northern Rhodesia.

Her Majesty's Government undertook in 1953 to seek the views of the Federal Government on amendments to the territorial constitutions. This undertaking was discharged in the case of these proposals for Northern Rhodesia

In view of the tension between London and Salisbury, was it not unwise not to give the Federal Prime Minister little more than a weekend to consider proposals which seemed to him to depart from the non-racial policy of the 1958 White Paper? Since the Government were responsible for the Federation, with its great success and greater hopes, will my right hon. Friend now do everything possible to restore cordial co-operation between Her Majesty's Government and the Federal Government?

Of course, we want that. We want to try to make arrangements which will get the maximum of support. I think the House as a whole is conscious that when one is trying to take a fair course, with perhaps extremes of view on either side, it is difficult, but it is a thing which we must not abandon. We must go on trying and I hope that we shall succeed.

Sir Roy Welensky in his recent speech indicated that he would be prepared, or rather the Federal Party would be prepared, to take part in discussions with the Governor of Northern Rhodesia if other solutions were not barred. Have the Government made any reply to Sir Roy Welensky on this point and answered the other allegations made in that speech?

I thought that particular passage in the speech was very helpful. He will be here in a day or two and perhaps we had better wait to consult with him.

asked the Prime Minister whether, as a result of his discussions with Dr. Adenauer, he proposes to announce Great Britain's readiness to join the European Common Market, subject to satisfactory negotiation of a number of detailed points.

No, Sir. But Her Majesty's Government have repeatedly emphasised that we are resolved to find a solution to the economic split in Europe. We think that progress is being made through the bilateral talks we have been conducting with the Germans, Italians and the French. We hope that these useful exchanges of views may lead in time to formal negotiations. But, of course, there are many interests both here and abroad to be reconciled.

Is not it clear that the latest moves of the Lord Privy Seal in his Paris proposals, while they might have been useful if made two years ago, will not now solve the problem of our relations with the Six? Would not it be better to change our strategy and announce our readiness to become full participants and then negotiate in the much more favourable climate which would be created?

These are matters of approach. As I have said before, I am anxious not to have formal negotiations which fail. That would be a great blow to Europe. I think that these discussions of an informal character, as a prelude to formal negotiations, are wise.

As the Lord Privy Seal described his speech as showing a fundamental change of principle in the Government's attitude, and as it recognised that we now accept a harmonious tariff, and went on to say that no arrangements would be satisfactory to us which did not involve political as well as economic collusion with the Six, does not it mean that the Government are to make some approach to the Six with a view to being associated with them not only economically but politically?

The hon. Gentleman must make his own interpretation of what the Lord Privy Seal said, though I agree that what he has said is roughly right. I may be wrong, but I have a little experience in these things, and I am still very anxious that we should not have formal negotiations which break down. But, whatever may be said about accepting this principle or that, it is obvious that there are a great number of difficulties to be overcome and it is wiser to see how far we can get with this before embarking on any formal negotiations.

Will the Prime Minister bear in mind the importance to the United Kingdom of preserving tariff-free entry of food and raw material imports from the Commonwealth to this country?

That is one of the reasons why we cannot just simply join without discussion of conditions.

When the Prime Minister says that we should not have formal negotiation which breaks down, does he mean that we should keep the field open for what Sir Roy Welensky understands by "doing a Macmillan"?

The right hon. Member is making a great bid for the leadership, but I do not think that will get him very far.