HC Deb 25 May 1950 vol 475 c2236
51. Mr. Sutcliffe

asked the Lord President of the Council if he will give an approximate date for the visit of the Festival ship "Campania" to Manchester and other north-western ports next year.

Mr. H. Morrison

The Festival ship "Campania" will not be visiting Manchester or any other north-western port in England. But it has been arranged with the local authority that the land travelling exhibition shall visit Manchester. The provisional dates for this visit are 4th May to 27th May. The land travelling exhibition will be no less attractive than the sea-borne one.

Mr. Sutcliffe

Surely the ship ought to visit such great ports as Liverpool and Manchester. Would the right hon. Gentleman say why that is not to be done in this case?

Mr. Morrison

The answer is that the ship cannot go everywhere and that those ports are to get the land-borne exhibition, which will be just as good as the exhibition on the ship. We are trying to distribute these favours all over the country. Manchester will have a very good show, and so will Liverpool.

Mr. Thomton-Kemsley

Arising out of the right hon. Gentleman's statement that the Government are trying to distribute favours fairly, may I ask whether, by any chance, there is any connection between the fact that the only two ports which this ship will visit in Scotland are those represented in this House by Ministers of the Crown?

Mr. Morrison

The hon. Gentleman is out-of-date. That bright but improper idea was invented by the right hon. Lady the Member for Manchester, Moss Side (Miss Horsbrugh). It is a very naughty suggestion.

Mr. Hector Hughes

May I ask what we are to understand by the extremely vague term "north-west," and whether it means that north-west of this island, the north-west of England or the north-west of Scotland?

Forward to