§ 29. Mr. Bellengerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is now in a position to say, as a result of inquiries made of the Federal German 633 Government, what assistance can be rendered by Her Majesty's Government in alleviating the hardship caused to large numbers of refugees from Eastern Germany.
§ The Joint Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Anthony Nutting)No, Sir. Although the Federal Chancellor welcomed Her Majesty's Government's approach, no definite suggestions have yet been made by the German Federal Government.
§ Mr. BellengerAre we to understand from that answer that the Government are doing very little to assist in this matter?
§ Mr. NuttingAs the right hon. Gentleman knows, this is a German problem, a responsibility which the German Federal Government have accepted. We have suggested to the German Federal Government that they may be willing to make a suggestion as to what help we could give. The right hon. Gentleman may be interested and gratified to know that we are informing the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that if the clothing, which the W.V.S. have collected for the relief of the victims of the floods in this country, and which is found surplus to requirements, is made available for the relief of refugees from Eastern Germany, the Government have offered to pay the costs of transporting it.