§ 45. Mr. J. Hyndasked the Prime Minister whether he will appoint a Minister for European Affairs.
§ The Prime MinisterThere is no plan at present for creating such an office.
§ Mr. HyndIs the Prime Minister aware that the demand for this appointment has been made by the Council of Europe at Strasbourg? Is he aware that, while his answer will, no doubt, give great satisfaction to the Minister of Supply and to the Minister for Housing and Local Government it will have precisely the opposite effect among many politicians and statesmen in Europe whom he has been leading up the garden so long?
§ The Prime MinisterI am informed of the general drift of opinion in important circles on this subject.
§ Mr. James CallaghanDoes not the Prime Minister remember the very powerful support he gave to this project when both he and I were at Strasbourg together, and he asked us why we were not appointing a Minister for European Affairs?
§ The Prime MinisterI am sure I always look back with great pleasure to the occasions when I was at Strasbourg with the hon. Gentleman, but between forming these opinions of a favourable character and actually taking steps to create a new office there is a large gap, and in that gap all kinds of considerations have to be taken into account.
§ Mr. Gordon WalkerIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that at the last meeting at Strasbourg all the British Conservative delegates there voted in favour of creating such a Ministry?
§ The Prime MinisterIt is one thing to express a favourable opinion upon a matter and another to translate it into action which involves the creation of an additional office when there are quite a lot of offices at the present time.