asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the British Embassy in Pretoria is handling the visas of the South African rugby team's visit to New Zealand and, if so, whether this action will be reconsidered in view of the opposition of the New Zealand Government and the Commonwealth to the tour.

The British Consulate-General, Johannesburg, issued visas to the team in question on 13th July after receiving authority to do so from the New Zealand Government. This was in accordance with a long-standing tradition by which British missions in foreign countries issue visas as their agent on behalf of unrepresented independent Commonwealth countries. Acting in this capacity, the consulate-general at Johannesburg received instructions on the issue of the visas in question directly and solely from the Government of New Zealand.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, since discontinuance of BBC External Services on Somalia, any other indication of continuing United Kingdom interest in Somalia is being substituted.

The BBC Somali Service has not yet been discontinued. When it is, the BBC's World Service in English and the Arabic Service, which are understood by some inhabitants of Somalia, will continue and their audibility will be improved. We are determined to continue to maintain our cordial relations with Somalia. One example of this is our aid programme under which bilateral disbursements to Somalia in 1981–82 are expected to reach £1·75 million and a further £1 million will be donated through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether its Home Defence college plans envisage that persons suffering from radiation sickness should not be treated but allowed to die and whether there is any provision for rendering dying easier than would be the case for totally untreated persons numbering thousands or millions.

Current advice is that persons suffering from radiation sickness should, wherever possible, receive supportive care, but should not be given high priority for admission to hospital. This advice is based on the unfortunate fact that at present there is no specific cure for radiation sickness and on the assumption that in the event of nuclear attack many hospitals and staff would be put out of action and that, as a result, the number of casualties could far exceed the resources available to treat them. Priority would, therefore, need to be given to treating those casualties whose prospect of survival would be increased by admission to hospital. Where circumstances allowed, patients in other priority groups would also be admitted and the health professions would, in any case, do all in their power to care for all those in need.House adjourned at twenty-three minutes before ten o'clock.