8. Mr. Colin Jacksonasked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on recent plans by Her Majesty's Government for constitutional progress in Gibraltar.
§ 14. Sir F. Bennettasked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs on what date a constitutional conference on Gibraltar's political future relationship with the United Kingdom will be held; what will be its terms of reference; on what basis the composition of Gibraltar's representatives at such a conference will be arranged; and whether constitutional advisers to the various Gibraltar representational groups or individuals will be permitted.
§ 19. Sir W. Teelingasked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs whether he has yet decided if the Indian Merchants' Association and Indian community generally in Gibraltar will be represented at the forthcoming talks on the Gibraltar Constitution.
§ Mr. George ThomsonAs already announced, we expect to start discussions about the constitution early in the new year. I am still in consultation with the Governor about procedure, and am not yet in a position to add to the replies I gave to various hon. Members on 23rd, 24th and 25th October.—[Vol. 751, c. 373, 1480, 1481 and 514.]
Mr. JacksonI thank my right hon. Friend for that reply. Is he aware that there has been very considerable dissatisfaction in Gibraltar because it was announced that Her Majesty's Government wished to have talks with the Spanish Government directly after the overwhelming vote in the referendum and before it was decided to have talks between the people of Gibraltar and the British Government?
§ Mr. ThomsonYes, Sir; I am aware that some Gibraltarians have expressed this concern. I should have thought that the actions taken by Her Majesty's Government, first in promoting the referendum as a very special case in colonial administration, and secondly in the very robust position we have taken up at the United Nations on behalf of Gibraltar, would have completely reassured the 1120 people of Gibraltar that in any talks that take place with the Government of Spain their interests will be fully safeguarded.
§ Sir F. BennettWill the Secretary of State bear in mind the need to make a definite statement soon about the date when these constitutional talks will be held? This announcement was promised before 10th September, and, as the hon. Member for Brighouse and Spenborough (Mr. Colin Jackson) has said, since then it has been found possible to make an announcement about Anglo-Spanish talks which apparently will not preclude the political future of the Rock? Can he at least give a definite assurance today that these talks will not cover the political future of the Rock at least until the talks with Gibraltar directly have taken place?
§ Mr. ThomsonI think that the nature of the proposed talks with Spain, which have now been postponed by the Spanish Government until the new year, has been made plain on a number of occasions by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary. I am aware of the impatience in the House about the need to get ahead with the constitutional discussions in Gibraltar, which are my responsibility. The Chief Minister of Gibraltar and one of his senior colleagues are at present in New York at the United Nations representing the interests of Gibraltar there. This is one reason for a certain amount of delay. I hope to be able to announce further details shortly when my consultations with the Governor are completed.
§ Sir W. TeelingDoes the right hon. Gentleman remember that I asked him about the Indian question many weeks ago and he said that he would look into it? Does he realise that the Indians were not allowed to vote in the Gibraltar referendum and they are getting very worried about what their position is? Can he not give some clue as to what he feels about their position now?
§ Mr. ThomsonI am aware that the hon. Gentleman has raised this matter with me before. I am sorry that my consultations with the Governor are not complete on this aspect, as on other procedural aspects of the forthcoming discussion.
§ Mr. ThorpeWould it not be better to defer the talks with Spain until after 1121 the constitutional talks? Is the Secretary of State aware that the people of Gibraltar, who have been under blockade for the past two years, are very concerned that the British Government, in their handling of the passport issue, of the air space issue, and of the currency regulations matter, have been wet and weak towards a Fascist régime which is threatening very loyal British subjects?
§ Mr. ThomsonI cannot accept that for a moment. Her Majesty's Government have just completed the very exceptional process of holding a referendum in Gibraltar in order to show Spain and the rest of the world exactly where the people of Gibraltar feel that their true interests lie. The House can be assured that Her Majesty's Government will continue to represent these true interests.
§ 19. Sir W. Teelingasked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs what approaches have been made to him by the Gibraltar Government, or other representative ye bodies in Gibraltar, to remove from Gibraltarians those restrictions on immigration which are placed on them by the Commonwealth Immigrants Act; and how many Gibraltarians, on an average, apply each year to enter the United Kingdom to work.
§ Mr. George ThomsonRepresentations have been received on several occasions from Gibraltar Ministers and from the Integration with Britain Party in favour of either the amendment of the Commonwealth Immigrants Act or alteration of the administrative procedure thereunder so as to reduce or remove difficulties over the immigration of Gibraltarians to Britain.
The answer to the second part of the Question is 50.
§ Sir W. TeelingDoes not the right hon. Gentleman realise that the place is only about the size of Hyde Park and that from its people, as Sir Joshua Hassan tells me, at the most only about 200 apply to come here in any one year? Is not the right hon. Gentleman aware that, on the other hand, there were 10,000 applications last year from Spain, Gibraltar's next-door neighbour, and just under 10,000 of these applications were agreed to, whereas only 57 Gibraltarians asked to come—I think that is the figure—and only 19 applications were granted? 1122 Ought not something to be done for our own people?
§ Mr. ThomsonI feel great sympathy for the position of the Gibraltarians in this matter, and I recognise that we face not so much a large-scale desire for immigration into this country as a deep sense of claustrophobia. We are carefully examining the whole question at the moment. I have the personal difficulty that I must represent the interests of a number of dependent territories as well as of independent Commonwealth countries to Her Majesty's Government and there are difficulties about singling out any one territory. But I understand the general question and shall do my best.