§ Mr. SpeakerMr. Sandys. Statement.
§ Mr. WiggOn a point of order, Mr. Speaker. According to the rules which 30 govern our business, before statements are made we have to dispose of Questions and Private Notice Questions. It will be within your recollection that this morning I sought your permission to ask a Private Notice Question addressed to the Minister of Defence, questioning him on the military situation in Brunei and a number of cognate subjects.
I will not trespass on your kindness by referring to them further now, because that would be out of order, but surely it is stretching our procedures somewhat far for the protection of the Executive if permission is given for a Private Notice Question to the Minister of Defence to be answered and it is then disposed of because the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations is about to make a statement.
It will be within your recollection, Mr. Speaker, that questions arose at the time of the Suez and the Kuwait operations, but Ministers then sought, I suggest respectfully, to camouflage the facts by making statements and then circulating long statements in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
May I ask you, Mr. Speaker, to give us the opportunity, either by accepting a Motion under Standing Order No. 9, or in some other way, of being able to question the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations on the important facts of what the military situation is in Brunei, the extent to which troops have been committed, and the extent to which the Government are prepared to reinforce them as necessary, so that, through question and answer, we shall be able to establish for the information of the House and the country what the military situation there actually is?
§ Mr. SpeakerWhat is happening now is that I am, without discourtesy, declining to breach the rule which causes me not to have to give in public the reasons for declining permission for a Private Notice Question. If and when the circumstances arise, I will rule on any application made under Standing Order No. 9, but, obviously, we must hear the Minister's statement first so that we can see how many of the matters which are covered by the hon. Gentleman's question are dealt with—what the state of information is and other matters of that kind.