§ Q12. Mr. Shinwellasked the Prime Minister what reports are received by Her Majesty's Government from the directors appointed by the Government on the Board of the British Petroleum Company on the working of the company.
§ The Prime MinisterThe Government directors have a general obligation to report on all matters which they consider should be referred to, or brought to the notice of, Her Majesty's Government.
§ Mr. ShinwellIn view of the large share of financial control by the Government in British Petroleum, will my right hon. Friend arrange for reports by the Government directors to be made available to the House, and also arrange that Government directors should inform the Government of the reason why non-Government directors have recently been making criticisms of Government policy?
§ The Prime MinisterI have been wondering a little about this. I thought that I would like to see some of the reports put into the Treasury but on making inquiries I find that although reports are quite frequent they are mainly of an oral character, and that written official reports are not sent in. So it would be difficult to do what my right hon. Friend has in mind. As for the freedom of these directors to make political speeches, successive Governments have always left them on a pretty easy rein, although I am bound to wonder what would happen if the chairman of a company which had a 51 per cent. shareholding by Mr. Clore were to make a speech in those terms attacking Mr. Clore.
§ Mr. Geoffrey LloydIs it not a sinister aspect of Government ownership that members of the party opposite use it in an attempt to suppress free speech by responsible people?
§ The Prime MinisterThe right hon. Gentleman could not make anything look sinister if he tried. If he is attacking public ownership as exemplified by the 51 per cent. shareholding in the British Petroleum Company, he will recall that 1112 this very successful decision and successful investment was made by Sir Winston Churchill very many years ago. I hope that he is not calling it in question.
§ Mr. PagetDoes not my right hon. Friend feel that Mr. Clore would be quite right to object, and that for a man who accepts office as director of a publicly-owned company to use that position to criticise the economic policy of the Government is quite wrong and should not be allowed?
§ The Prime MinisterI hope that my hon. and learned Friend will not take all this too tragically. I used the phrase about keeping the directors on an easy rein. What I should be concerned about would be if there were decisions taken by the board of this company, in which the Government and the community have a majority shareholding, on grounds which might appear to be politically inspired or which might appear to be an adverse reaction to policies introduced in this House and ultimately passed by this House. This would be a very serious matter. If its decisions appeared in the short term harmful to this country on purely commercial considerations, that is different. But I am sure that the whole House would agree that the directors of this company have an obligation to the nation in view of the majority Government shareholding in it.
§ Mr. PeytonWill the Prime Minister make himself quite clear? Will he make it plain that he does not intend to put any pressure on the chairman of British Petroleum, in particular, to refrain from putting forward the interests of his own shareholders and especially saving his own major shareholder from being the victim of its own folly?
§ The Prime MinisterThe nation is the chairman's shareholder, or at least it accounts for the majority shareholding. I have made it clear that we would not be likely—I do not think that any Government have been likely—to put the same kinds of discipline or pressures on the chairman which a private majority shareholder would put on a team of directors. I have said that as long as his decision—and I am more concerned with his decision than his speeches—represents genuine commercial considerations and is taken in the interests of the country as 1113 a whole, because the country is the majority shareholder, I do not think we should have any objection. If decisions were taken, or if there was any suspicion that they were being taken, because of political views expressed in speeches, we should all take a different view.
§ Mr. ShinwellIs my right hon. Friend aware that the last thing which I would seek to do would be to restrict the right of anybody to express an opinion on any matter which came within that person's purview? What I am concerned about—and I beg my right hon. Friend to direct his attention to my Question—is whether it is possible for hon. Members to have made available to them the reports by the Government directors. If the Government directors are not doing their job efficiently, would it not be advisable to change the directors?
§ The Prime MinisterAs I made clear, the reports which we get—I think that this is a convenient way of working—are mainly oral and mainly informal. The directors are in frequent touch with the Treasury. But I will discuss with my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether anything more formal is needed in the form of written reports. If there is, we will certainly consider whether these reports could be made available to the House.