§ Colonel WEDGWOOD(by Private Notice) asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he has any information about the crisis in Bagdad?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLI regret that a Ministerial crisis has arisen in Bagdad. Five members of the Iraq Cabinet have resigned, owing to divergence of views on the amount of the Army Estimates, and in particular on the question of the steps to be taken to guard against the raids on the Southern border of Iraq, which have, however, already been satisfactorily dealt with by the Royal Air Force. I regret to say that the Chancellor of the Exchequer is included among those who have resigned. He was known to be anxious about his Budget. The Iraq Government is organised on a non-party or Coalition basis and consequently there should be no difficulty in adequately filling the vacancies. The Press of Bagdad is divided, but the country remains calm.