HC Deb 18 August 1887 vol 319 cc938-40
MR. HENEAGE (Great Grimsby)

asked the Secretary to the Board of Trade, Whether the Government have ever inquired into any of the circumstances connected with the seizure of the Lady Godiva, on the 13th of May, and the arrest of the skipper Funnell, in the North Sea, in direct contravention of the North Seas Fisheries Convention, or under what authority Funnell was re-arrested, on the 16th of May, at Wilhelmshaven, after his release on the 14th, and on what charge, or why Funnell was detained in Flensburg Prison for six weeks, after being brought before and acquitted by Judicial Court at Flensburg, on the 30th of May, when he was promised his release in a few days, or on what charges he was afterwards brought before another Judicial Court, on the 21st of July, when he was again acquitted, and his gear ordered to be restored to him; and, what action the Board of Trade have taken during the last three months to call the attention of the German Government to the conduct of the Commander of the German cruiser, the Mayor of Wilhelmshaven, and other Local Authorities in this case, and to the prolonged confinement and harsh treatment of Funnell in prison, or to obtain any information with regard to the various judicial inquiries or trials, and the evidence and Judgments given in the Courts on the 13th of May, 30th of May, and 21st of July respectively?

MR. HENEAGE (for Sir EDWARD BIRKBECK) (Norfolk, E.)

also asked, Whether Her Majesty's Government have now received the "Judgment," in the Lady Godivacase; and, if not, whether they will at once urge the German Government to forward the same without further delay; whether the Board of Trade have received any further official communication relative to the facts of the German cruiser firing into, and running down, the Lady Godiva; and, what steps the Fishery Department have taken to inquire into the allegations made en behalf of the master and crew of the Lady Godiva?

THE SECRETARY (Baron HENRY DE WORMS) (Liverpool, East Toxteth)

As early as the 20th of May Her Majesty's Consul General at Hamburg made to the Foreign Office a Report in relation to the case of the fishing vessel Lady Godiva. In consequence of particulars afterwards communicated to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs by the right hon. Member (Mr. Heneage), the Consul General was directed to proceed to Wilhelmshaven and inquire into and report as fully as possible on the case, and also to watch the proceedings and afford the master such assistance as he properly could. Subsequently, the Foreign Office, on the suggestion of the Board of Trade, urged upon the German Government the propriety of expediting the trial of the master. In the interval the case had, however, been dealt with. Several Reports have been made to the Foreign Office by Consul General Dundas; but for their due consideration exact particulars of the judicial proceedings are needful. He has been instructed, at the request of the Board of Trade, to obtain and forward as soon as possible a full and reliable Report of the proceedings in the German Courts. Further action has, meanwhile, necessarily been deferred. The right hon. Member must, of course, be aware that any representations to a Foreign Government must be made exclusively through the Foreign Office. With regard to the question of the hon. Baronet, the Report of the proceedings in the German Courts with respect to the case of the fishing vessel Lady Godiva has not yet been received; but steps have been taken with a view of obtaining the Report as speedily as possible. The only further particulars which have reached the Board of Trade are statements forwarded by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Great Grimsby on the part of the master of this vessel; and this day the Foreign Office have sent a despatch from the Consul General at Hamburg, stating that the Public Prosecutor at Flensburg, being dissatisfied with the judgment of the Court, has appealed against it to Leipsic. As regards the concluding portion of the Question of the hon. Baronet, I would refer to the reply which I have just made to a similar inquiry by the right hon. Member for Great Grimsby.

MR. HENEAGE

asked, whether the Department had made an inquiry with regard to the sentence of the 13th of May, the release of Funnell, and why he was re-arrested; and why the man was detained for six weeks without any change of clothing, after being told that he would be immediately released?

BARON HENRY DE WORMS

Yes, Sir; Reports have been called for on all those subjects.