HC Deb 15 November 1956 vol 560 cc1132-3
Mr. Dugdale

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. I want to ask a question connected with Questions, which, I believe, I have to raise at this stage. My question applies to Question No. 62, which asks the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at what date he was first informed that the Soviet bloc were sending large quantities of military equipment into Egypt. I put down a Question in the same terms earlier this week to the Prime Minister. I did that for a particular reason—because I understood that the Prime Minister is personally responsible for certain services which deal with the supply of information to this country. I thought the Prime Minister would personally like to defend the charges made against the Government that they did not in fact know about the supply of arms to Egypt, a charge which was made in particular to the President of the Board of Trade when he stated that only recently, on the intervention in Egypt, was it discovered that the Soviet had in fact sent large quantities of munitions to Egypt.

Mr. Speaker

The right hon. Member seems to be explaining his point of order. Is his complaint that the Question has been transferred to the Foreign Secretary?

Mr. Dugdale

Yes, Sir.

Mr. Speaker

What I have often said in this House is perfectly true—that I have nothing to do with that. Ministers are the judges of their own responsibility and I cannot control the transference of Questions from one Minister to another. If the right hon. Gentleman has a complaint to make, I am afraid he should take it up with the Ministers concerned. Therefore this is not a point of order for me and not one on which I can express an opinion.

The Prime Minister

I did write to the right hon. Member for West Bromwich (Mr. Dugdale). This is a matter of fact and information to which I thought the Foreign Office was perfectly capable of replying and not a matter personally for the Prime Minister.