§ Mr. DILLONasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, in view of the statement contained in the Report of the Consul-General for Egypt that the Egyptian National Assembly displayed an unreasonable hostility to the Suez Canal scheme, he would now lay upon the Table a translation of the Report of the Committee of the General Assembly in which the reasons for rejecting the proposed convention was set forth?
§ Sir E. GREYI do not consider that there is sufficient reason to justify the expense and labour of translating into English and laying the report as a Parliamentary Paper; but I will obtain copies of the French version of the report and of the Egyptian Government's observations upon it, and send them to the library of the House.
§ Mr. DILLONMay I ask the right hon. Gentleman—seeing that the report of the Consul-General contained the statement that the Egyptian National Assembly showed an unreasonable hostility—whether it would not be fair to give the same publicity to the report of the Assembly, in order to give this House an opportunity of judging of the facts?
§ Sir E. GREYI will put copies of the original version of the report in the library. There would be considerable labour and expense involved in the translation of the report. If this proposed convention were to be revived, I think there might be a case for publishing a translation of the report and laying it before the House, but as it is not being revived we are hardly justified in undertaking the labour and expense of translating it.