HC Deb 09 February 1893 vol 8 cc861-2
MR. DAVID THOMAS (Merthyr Tydvil)

I beg to ask die Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that the present system of taking pratique and landing firmans at the Dardanelles has in a number of instances involved the loss of life of British seamen; whether formerly the Turkish Government gave Fatigue with its own steam launches, and whether the system was abandoned on the score of expense: if he can state the total amount of reserve set aside out of profits by the International Sanitary Board of Turkey; and whether any, and, if so, how much of such reserve has been lent to the Turkish Government; also the amount of profit made in the year 1891–2, out of fees levied on shipping; whether such tees have been reduced, and to what extent British shipping contributes to them; whether, when the International Sanitary Board was established, it was understood by the various Powers that the fees should not exceed the expenses; and whether Her Majesty's Government will intervene to bring about a system of steam launches to give pratique, and, further, to reduce the fees to a level with the expenses of the sanitary administration?

*THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE roll FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Sir E. GREY,) Northumberland, Berwick

The present system of taking pratique and landing firmans at the Dardanelles has in a number of instances involved the loss of life of British seamen. Formerly the Turkish Government gave pratique with its own steam launches, but the system was abandoned on the score of expense. The reserve fund of the Ottoman Board of Health amounts to £99,789, from which a stun of £T60,000 has lately been lent to the Ottoman Government for sanitary purposes. The Sanitary fees levied on shipping during the year 1891–92 amounted to £49,615. Of those fees 39 per cent. were contributed by British shipping. No reduction in the scale has, apparently, been made of late years, but on the last occasion of the revision of the tariff in 1882, Her Majesty's Ambassador gave his consent to the revised scale on the distinct understanding that no increase in the charges was involved. From the correspondence on the subject of those charges it certainly appears to have Leer the intention to make receipts and expenditure balance. The introduction of a system of steam-launches has for some time been engaging die attention of Her Majesty's Ambassador, and he reports that there are grounds for hoping that an arrangement may shortly be come to which will be satisfactory to British shipowners. Sir Clare Ford will be consulted as to the possibility of some reduction being made in the fees.