§ Q10. Mr. Kenneth Lewisasked the Prime Minister whether, on his visit to Washington he will reaffirm to President Johnson his support for United States action in South Vietnam.
§ The Prime MinisterPresident Johnson is already fully aware of the British Government's position and this was made clear in my statement on 29th June and again during the debate on Vietnam on 7th July.
§ Mr. LewisIs it not time that the Prime Minister gave support to a very valuable ally before placating his Left wing in the Labour Party?
§ The Prime MinisterI have nothing to add to the statement I made on that occasion, which the hon. Gentleman is capable of reading. I wish, however, that he and some other hon. Gentlemen opposite would realise the gravity and seriousness of the war in Vietnam, instead of adorning these debates and Questions with remarks of that kind.
§ Mr. WinnickWould it be possible for the Prime Minister to tell President Johnson that the greatest enthusiasm for continuing the bloodshed in Vietnam comes from the Tory Party in this country?
§ The Prime MinisterI would not propose to say that to him, because I do not believe it to be true. I think that hon. Members in all parts are anxious to see this fighting come to an end. My only complaint about hon. Gentlemen opposite is not about their aims, or even the methods they suggest, but about their eternal frivolity when we deal with this subject.
§ Sir T. BeamishIs the Prime Minister aware that those who have seen most of war best understand its gravity and seriousness?
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir. I would feel that that question is incontestable. What, however, I also feel is that sometimes it would be better if we could discuss these Vietnam questions with the real gravity and seriousness that the horrible fighting in that country demands.
§ Mr. WhitakerDoes my right hon. Friend recollect the very salutary corrective which the American Government gave to the British Conservative escapade at the time of Suez.
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir. That is going back a little in time, but no 1720 doubt one day we shall learn the truth of what happened in those times.
Q11. Mr. Frank Mannasked the Prime Minister if he will discuss with President Johnson the matter of Great Britain's selling rockets, bombs, and other weapons to the United States of America, and also the reconsideration of the purchase of F111 bombers from the United States of America.
§ The Prime MinisterI have nothing to add to the Answer I gave on the 23rd of June to a similar Question by the hon. Member for Bournemouth, West (Sir J. Eden).
§ Mr. AllaunBut since our arms sales to America are proving small and since they appear to exclude sales of arms for use in Vietnam, and since our deficit last month was so big, how can we possibly afford to continue with purchases of £1,080 million of arms from America? Is it not crazy?
§ The Prime MinisterSo far as the F111 bomber purchase is concerned, this has been fully debated in the House. It is essential to defence policy and essential if we are to get defence costs down to the figure we have set as our target.
§ Mr. MartenIn view of the problem raised by the hon. Member, would the Prime Minister consider perhaps selling some more Buccaneer fighters to South Africa?
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir.
§ Mr. PagetIs not the fact that we are wholly dependent on the Americans for nearly all our vital weapons a reason for making the suggestion that we should impose limits as to the use to which those weapons are put rather an unfortunate precedent from our point of view?
§ The Prime MinisterWhen we undertook the Defence Review it was necessary, because of the very high cost of some of the aircraft projects we had inherited, to replace them by cheaper and earlier weapons that could be bought from the United States. This was approved by the House. I do not think that in any way it calls in question what I said earlier about the matter of arms supply in Vietnam.