HC Deb 05 May 1955 vol 540 cc1898-9
50. Mr. Driberg

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware of the hardship likely to be caused by the decision not to develop the port of Larnaca, Cyprus; and if he will reconsider this decision.

The Minister of State for Colonial Affairs (Mr. Henry Hopkinson)

As my right hon. Friend informed my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Haltem-price (Major Wall) on 27th April, the Cyprus Government are having a detailed engineering survey made before final decisions are taken about the scale of port development. But, as regards the siting of such development, the Cyprus Government have sought the best available technical advice, and the advice so far received has been that, for various reasons, port development at Larnaca would be unjustifiably costly.

Mr. Driberg

Could the right hon. Gentleman say whether the memorandum containing a number of detailed arguments on this point, which I forwarded two days ago, is being studied?

Mr. Hopkinson

Certainly, the hon. Member's memorandum will be considered in the Colonial Office, but the Cyprus Government have gone into this matter very carefully. Not only is it a fact that Famagusta next door has already out-distanced Larnaca as a port—

Mr. Driberg

Next door?

Mr. Hopkinson

—and it will be very difficult for Larnaca to recover the ground, but there is also a very complicated technical objection, which is that the sea-bed slopes very gently at Larnaca and it would be extremely expensive to construct a deep water port there.

Mr. Driberg

When the right hon. Gentleman says that Larnaca is next door to Famagusta, could he say how many miles it is?