§ 73. Colonel Burtonasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he can state the circumstances under which the Steamship "Monte Offa" has been sold to Germany; and whether he is now in a position to inform the House if, and when, he proposes to introduce legislation to deal with the question of the transfer of British-owned ships to foreign countries; and can he state the name of the company and its directors who sold this ship?
§ Mr. CrossI am unable to trace any British ship of this name, and I assume that my hon. and gallant Friend refers to the Steamship "Mount Ossa," a Greek ship, which is reported in the Press as having been sold to Germany.
As regards the second part of the question, I would refer to the answer given in reply to questions on 18th April. As then stated, it will be made a condition of the assistance proposed for the shipping industry that any vessels on the United Kingdom Register which the owners may wish to scrap or to sell to foreign buyers shall be offered to the Government in connection with the scheme for a reserve of tonnage. The legislation contemplated will be introduced as soon as possible.
§ Mr. ShinwellWith regard to the second part of the question, will His Majesty's Government not employ the principle which is applied in the case of the export of munitions, namely, that no British merchant vessel should be exported except under licence granted by the Board of Trade, and will he not consider introducing that principle into the forthcoming legislation?
§ Mr. ShinwellWould not the Board of Trade consider taking such powers, and is he aware that conditional assistance has nothing to do with the case at all, and 1149 that shipowners may refuse to accept the prohibition and to avail themselves of the financial assistance, and then ships will be exported?
§ Mr. CrossI have no information of the names of the directors of the company owning this steamship.