§ 14. Mr. Ridsdaleasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether the findings of the committee inquiring into British defence interests in space, under the chairmanship of Professor Bondi, will be made public.
§ Mr. HealeyNo, Sir.
§ Mr. RidsdaleWhy is the Secretary of State being so secretive? Is it not in the general defence interests of the country that the findings of previous committees should be published while we are awaiting the findings of the Bondi Committee?
§ Mr. HealeyI think this arises from the hon. Gentleman's next Question.
§ 15. Mr. Ridsdaleasked the Secretary of State for Defence why it is the practice not to give information about the general conclusions reached by committees that have recently sat on the question of space, or the names of their chairmen.
§ Mr. HealeyThe task of official committees is to provide confidential advice to Ministers, and it has never been the general practice to publish the findings or membership of such committees.
§ Mr. RidsdaleIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that now that he has publicly stated that Professor Bondi is not going to make the findings of the committee public, surely we should know what the findings of these other official committees were, particularly as there were on those committees some very distinguished people? How much did they advise should be spent and what were the priorities given?
§ Mr. HealeyI think the hon. Gentleman knows as well as I do that when official committees are set up under the chairmanship of an official to advise the Minister, it is highly undesirable that the committee's conclusions or the evidence which it considered should be published. The Bondi Committee which 15 has just been set up is a committee with an independent chairman, with wide outside representation. That is why Her Majesty's Government decided to publish the fact that it was being established but on this, as on previous committees, it is not the intention of the Government to publish the report.
§ Sir G. NicholsonIs it not undesirable when it is not intended to publish the names or to refer to the members of a committee or its findings, that it should be mentioned in this House or anywhere else? Surely, it should remain completely confidential?
§ Mr. HealeyI have just stated that in this case of the Bondi Committee a very distinguished independent chairman was appointed and wide outside representation was invited. It was in order to prevent unnecessary speculation on the existence of the committee and additional risks to security that it was decided to publish the fact that it had been appointed, and I think the House will recognise that this was a wise decision.