§ 19. Mr. A. Hendersonasked the Lord Privy Seal whether he will make a statement on the discussions which have taken place between Her Majesty's Government and other Governments on the Berlin problem.
§ 44. Mr. S. Silvermanasked the Lord Privy Seal what progress has been made towards a negotiated settlement of the future status of Berlin; whether Her Majesty's Government has made or will make constructive proposals for such a settlement; and what are Her Majesty's Government's precise objections to the Soviet proposals made more than three years ago.
§ Mr. HeathI would refer the hon. Gentleman to what my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said on 14th November. Since then Dr. Adenauer has visited Washington and President de Gaulle has been here. These discussions have been useful and I hope that further progress 428 will be made in the near future, but I cannot give any details before the basis of the Western position has been agreed.
Her Majesty's Government's objections to the Soviet proposals of 1958 are fully dealt with in the account of the Foreign Ministers' Conference at Geneva in 1959 published as Cmnd. 868.
§ Mr. HendersonMay we be assured that President de Gaulle will not be allowed to veto an East-West conference with a view to securing a peaceful settlement of the Berlin crisis, and that following the Ministers' meeting in Paris in mid-December there will be a conference with the Soviet Union on this crisis?
§ Mr. HeathAs the right hon. and learned Gentleman knows, Dr. Adenauer is going to meet President de Gaulle on 9th December; this will be followed by the N.A.T.O. Ministerial meeting, at which my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said yesterday he hoped it would be possible for the four Foreign Ministers to meet together and discuss the Western position.
§ Mr. HendersonWill the right hon. Gentleman answer my question? His reply is a complete evasion of the point that I asked. May we be assured that President de Gaulle will not be allowed to veto an East-West conference? Will an East-West conference follow the Ministers' meeting in Paris in December?
§ Mr. HeathThe right hon. and learned Gentleman has very great experience of these matters in foreign affairs and he will, therefore, not expect me to answer a supplementary question of that kind. He knows that we are searching for a basis on which it would be possible to have fruitful negotiations with the Soviet Union.
§ Mr. S. SilvermanCan the right hon. Gentleman say at what stage in these important matters the House of Commons will be informed of the constructive proposals which Her Majesty's Government would wish to put forward for a solution of the crisis which, they say, threatens the peace of the world in a nuclear age? When the right hon. Gentleman says that the parties are searching for a fruitful basis, does he mean searching with the Soviet Union for a fruitful basis for such discussions, 429 or does he mean that the Western Allies have not yet succeeded in reconciling their differences and at this moment do not know what it is that they want? If they do not know what it is they want, will he tell us so?
§ Mr. HeathOf course, I recognise the difficulties of the House of Commons in a situation of this kind. When negotiations are being considered the House is always confronted with this difficulty and so are the Government, and we are anxious to give the House as much information as we can. As the hon. Gentleman knows, there have been discussions with Mr. Gromyko, the Russian Foreign Minister, as well as with members of the West, and I suggest to the House that we should be allowed to continue with them.
§ Mr. P. Noel-BakerCan the right hon. Gentleman say how many months it is since the Western Governments began to discuss whether it would be a good thing to meet Mr. Khrushchev to discuss what has been a very dangerous situation in Berlin?
§ Mr. HeathThe right hon. Gentleman probably knows the answer. I can also tell him that it is several years since Mr. Khrushchev first created this situation himself.