§ Q5. Mr. A. Royleasked the Prime Minister on what date the post of Secretary of State for the Colonies will be abolished.
§ The Prime MinisterI have, as yet, nothing to add to the Answer I gave on the 11th of August to a Question by the hon. Member for Woking (Mr. Onslow).
§ Mr. RoyleIs the Prime Minister not aware that it is an absurd situation when there are two Cabinet Ministers running one Department? Is he further aware that the same situation applies in the Ministry of Housing and Local Government? Will he not apply his own instructions to industry to cease work-sharing in his own administration in Whitehall?
§ The Prime MinisterIf I thought that it was ludicrous to have two Cabinet Ministers in one Department, I would have to condemn both the Treasury and the Foreign Office in the period of Conservative Government before 1964 when there were two full members of the Cabinet in each Department. With regard to this particular Department, I felt, and still feel, that the amount of work requiring top-level Ministerial negotiations on the progress to independence of colonial countries and the very heavy volume of work from within the independent Commonwealth justified having two Ministers.