§ 40. Mr. Whitakerasked the Lord President of the Council how many manhours of Ministers of Her Majesty's Government were spent in travelling to and attending meetings of the Privy Council during the last year; and what plans he has for their reduction.
§ Mr. Crossman26 meetings of the Privy Council were held during the period in question. 24 of these took place in London and occupied less than one hour of the time of each Privy Counsellor attending. On the other two occasions, both during the Recess, Ministers were effectively absent from London for one complete working day.
§ Mr. WhitakerWould not one more sensible means of obtaining the Royal Assent be for Measures to be taken, for instance, to Balmoral by a messenger, or an official of the Privy Council?
§ Mr. CrossmanI suggest that all these proposals would require a change by legislation.
§ Sir Knox CunninghamCan the right hon. Gentleman say whether that answer applies to Cabinet meetings in Brighton?