§ 15. Mr. Hamilton Kerrasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether his attention has been called to the statement of Sir Frederick Maze, the inspector-general of the Chinese maritime customs, to the National Government, giving instances of armed smuggling in North China, especially in Tientsin and Tsingtao; and, seeing that these practices are a contravention of the Sino-Japanese treaty of 1896 as well as of the Tariff Autonomy Agreement of 1930, in view of the importance of this matter to British exports, will he make representations to all the Powers interested?
§ Mr. EdenI have not seen the statement in question, unless it is the statement reported in the Press in January and referred to in the reply to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for 986 Preston (Mr. Moreing) on 8th February. The facts are well known and, as I have previously stated, representations in regard to the matter have been made to the Japanese Government by His Majesty's Government and by at least one other Government. A recent report gives ground for thinking that the situation generally is improving, but I will consider whether there is any further action that can usefully be taken.