§ 44. Mr. Healeyasked the Prime Minister if he will appoint a Minister for Disarmament.
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir. I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Coventry, North (Mr. Edelman) on 30th June last.
§ Mr. HealeyWe recognise the devoted work done in the field of disarmament by members of the Foreign Office, but the Prime Minister must be aware that in many respects the policy of the Ministry of Defence runs counter to the policy of the Foreign Office on disarmament. He will be aware that some years ago when the Russians accepted a Foreign Office plan for disarmament the Chiefs of Staff promptly vetoed it. Would it 1243 not be a good idea to set up a special agency with powers in both Departments so as to ensure that disarmament takes the priority it deserves?
§ The Prime MinisterNo. I do not accept the implications of the last part of the supplementary question. This is, after all, one of the main fundamental responsibilities of the Foreign Secretary and I do not think that to appoint another Minister would help things on.