§ 12. Mr. ARTHUR MICHAEL SAMUELasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is investigating the complaints of British shipowners against the scale of Suez Canal dues; and, if so, will he say when he can make a statement or issue a report upon the position?
§ Mr. W. GRAHAMThis matter is being carefully considered, and I hope soon to be in a position to make a statement.
§ Mr. SAMUELWill the right hon. Gentleman take into consideration the fact that complaints were made to the Foreign Office by six great European maritime Powers quite recently?
§ Mr. GRAHAMAll points will be taken into account. I can assure my hon. Friend that I have received, and continue to receive, a very large number of representations.
§ Mr. SAMUELWill the President of the Board of Trade therefore in the meantime convey to the board of administration of the Canal Company the fact that their methods are now becoming a source of international friction?
§ Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYIs my right hon. Friend not in a position to use the voting power of the British Gov-
§ which it will be most inconvenient to read.
§ Sir A. STEEL-MAITLANDBut at the end of the table the right hon. Gentleman has given the difference in the percentages. [Interruption.]
§ Following is the statement:
§ ernment stocks held in this company, to influence policy?
§ Mr. GRAHAMI prefer not to be drawn into a controversy on that point, pending the reply, following the present discussions, which I hope to give to the House at a very early date.
§ 49. Lieut.-Colonel Sir A. LAMBERT WARDasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether His Majesty's Government will in future use its voting power in such a way that when British directors are appointed to the board of the Suez Canal Company the appointment to the directorate shall be subject to the proviso of retirement at 65 years of age, in order that the board may be staffed by directors conversant with the changing conditions of export trade as apart from ship owning?
§ The FINANCIAL SECRETARY to the TREASURY (Mr. Pethick-Lawrence)In practice, no question arises of His Majesty's Government using its voting Dower as a shareholder in the Suez Canal Company in connection with the appointment of British directors. It is the custom for the seven unofficial British directors representing British shipping and commerce to fill vacancies by nominating a new director, whose appointment is ratified in due course by the General Assembly. The three official 783 British directors are appointed by His Majesty's Government, and no retiring age has been prescribed.
§ Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYIs it the practice for the retiring British directors to appoint their successors?
§ Mr. PETHICK-LAWRENCEIt applies to some extent in the case of the seven unofficial directors to whom I have referred.
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAIs it not the case that it does not matter what the British Government do about the British directors, because the French have a majority?
§ Mr. PETHICK-LAWRENCEI should not agree that the board of directors is entirely governed by considerations of that kind.
§ 58. Sir A. LAMBERT WARDasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the total amount received in 1930 by each of the directors of the Suez Canal Company appointed by the British Government; and on what basis, the fees, allowances, bonuses, commissions, or other emoluments, if any, are calculated?
§ The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Mr. Dalton)As stated yeserday in reply to a question by my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Central Hull (Lieut.-Commander Kenworthy), two per cent. of the net profits of the Suez Canal Company are, in accordance with the Statutes, alloted to the directorate. The income of each director depends to some extent on the number of meetings attended by him. My right hon. Friend is, therefore, unable to state the exact amounts received by the British official directors last year.
§ Mr. W. B. TAYLORWhat is the average number of meetings per year?
§ Mr. DALTONI cannot say without notice.
§ Mr. HAYCOCKWhat does each director get for a meeting?
59. Mr. WEST RUSSELLasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the directors nominated by the Government to represent British interests on the board of the Suez Canal Company have had personal experience 784 of British commerce and are familiar with the continuously changing conditions of those British exporting industries which ship their manufactures through the Suez Canal?
§ Mr. DALTONIt appears that the appointments, made by previous Governments, have not usually been given to persons with specialised business experience, but rather to persons with Parliamentary or official experience.