§ MR. LABOUCHERE (Northampton)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether he will lay upon the Table of the House the Report of the Gibraltar Committee in reply to the questions addressed to it made at Gibraltar on 30th March, and also the subsequent Report made by some members on 15th May; and, if so, when; and will he say when and how he proposes to afford the House an opportunity of discussing these Reports.
§ THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR, Manchester, E.)Yes, Sir. There are, as the hon. Member says, two Reports in question. There is the Interim Report—(laughter)—avowedly an Interim Report—of 30th March, and there is a Report of 15th May, 554 signed by all the members of the Committee except the Member for King's Lynn. There are parts of these Reports which, by universal consent, ought not to be laid on the Table of the House; but I see no reason why the greater part of both Reports should not be textually laid on the Table, and I propose to do that.
§ MR. JAMES O'KELLY (Roscommon, N.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether any diplomatic protest or representation has been made by the Spanish Government against the carrying out of the Naval works at Gibraltar.
§ VISCOUNT CRANBORNENo, Sir. No such representation has been made.
§ MR. JAMES O'KELLYI beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether His Majesty's Government will open negotiations with the Government of Spain with a view to obtaining the cession of the western shore of Gibraltar Bay and sufficient of the adjacent territory to enable the port to be securely fortified, and whether any offer to purchase the Spanish side of Gibraltar Bay has ever been made by His Majesty's Government.
§ MR. WILLIAM JOHNSTON (Belfast, S.)May I respectfully ask whether, considering the mischievous excitement already created in Spain, the right hon. Gentleman will decline to answer such a question?
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURI agree with my hon. friend that no great public advantage is served by putting such questions, but as this question has been put it is as well to answer it. I will say that the Government have never made any proposal to purchase, and do not propose to make any proposal to purchase, any part of Spanish territory.