HC Deb 11 February 1963 vol 671 cc909-11
3. Mr. Mayhew

asked the Lord Privy Seal what is now the policy of Her Majesty's Government regarding the creation of a zone of controlled disarmament in Central Europe.

12. Mr. Emrys Hughes

asked the Lord Privy Seal if Her Majesty's Government will now approach the French Government with a view to formulating a joint policy designed to remove Russian bases from Eastern Europe and United States bases from Western Europe.

20. Mr. Zilliacus

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether he will invite the French Government to join Her Majesty's Government in an attempt to open negotiations with the Soviet Union with a view to a settlement of the German problem on the basis of some variant of the Rapacki Plan.

Mr. Heath

Her Majesty's Government do not believe that European regional schemes of the kind suggested, which would unduly inhibit our freedom to deploy our defensive resources as and where we wanted, would contribute to the lessening of international tension. They do not contemplate any approach to the French Government on these questions. A more hopeful approach is through the United States' disarmament plan, which has been tabled at the Geneva Conference with our full support and provide for the balanced reduction of all military forces everywhere.

Mr. Mayhew

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that this concept will come up at the disarmament conference beginning next week? Will he consider it again in the hope that the Government can take a more positive attitude to this idea at these talks? The difficulties are obvious, but what alternative do the Government have? Is it safe to leave all the initiative in this matter to Mr. Khrushchev and, possibly, President de Gaulle?

Mr. Heath

No, certainly not. The initiative we took was taken with the United States Government. We were in full support of the proposals for a disarmament plan which are still before the disarmament conference at Geneva.

Mr. Hughes

Surely the initiative in this matter has been taken by Mr. Roy Thomson. Would not it pay the country better if Mr. Roy Thomson were to take over the Foreign Office and run it on a commission and life peerage basis?

Mr. Heath

I do not know whether the hon. Gentleman is suggesting that the Foreign Office should appear in colour.

Mr. Zilliacus

Does not the Lord Privy Seal appreciate that the only possible basis for a settlement by negotiation with the Soviet Union is disengagement on some such basis as the Rapacki Plan? If he goes on stonewalling this for years while piling up arms, does not he realise that he is backing the forces making for a world war and sabotaging peace?

Mr. Heath

No. I cannot accept that that is the only basis for reaching a peaceful settlement. Nor does the Soviet Union, otherwise it would not have put forward its own disarmament plan.