8. Captain CROOKSHANKasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any action is being taken towards creating a single Colonial scientific and research service, as recommended in the Report submitted by Lord Lovat and his colleagues to the recent Colonial Office Conference?
§ Mr. AMERYAs my hon. and gallant Friend will recollect, the Committee of the Colonial Office Conference, over which Lord Lovat presided, while recommending the ultimate creation of a single Colonial research service, recognised that the natural method of growth of such a service was the organisation, in the first instance, of workers in the various fields of science into separate services. I have already appointed a Committee in accordance with the recommendation referred to by my hon. and gallant Friend to formulate practical proposals, for submission to Colonial Governments, to give effect to the resolution of the Colonial Office Conference, on the subject of a Colonial agricultural research service; and it is proposed that the recently appointed Colonial Medical Research Committee should, as one of its first tasks, consider the organisation of a Colonial medical research service. I may also say that steps are now being taken to set up another Committee to inquire into the present condition of the Colonial veterinary services. This Committee will no doubt consider the possibility of establishing a veterinary research service common to all the Colonies, Protectorates, etc. As regards forestry, I proposed to defer consideration of the question of constituting a Colonial forestry research service until after the meeting of the Empire Forestry Conference to be held at Melbourne in 1928.