§ 1. Mr. Dribergasked the Minister of Public Building and Works if he will give an assurance that no final decision on the rebuilding of the Foreign Office and the buildings adjacent to it will be taken until Her Majesty's Government has received, and Parliament has discussed, the report of the tribunal of three judges which is to consider the question of the legal ownership of the India Office building, since such a decision must tend to prejudice the tribunal's deliberations.
§ The Minister of Public Building and Works (Mr. Reginald Prentice)No, Sir. The decision to rebuild the Foreign Office was taken by the previous Government, and has been confirmed by the present Government.
§ Mr. DribergIf that is so, can my right hon. Friend say how it is that I was told on 17th January by the Minister of State for Commonwealth Affairs that correspondence is continuing with India and Pakistan on a tribunal to investigate the legal ownership of the India Office? If we do not yet know who owns it, how can my right hon. Friend pull it down?
§ Mr. PrenticeWhen the decision was made to demolish the Foreign Office, the Governments of India and Pakistan were informed, and they raised no objections. The removal of the library should take place before the end of this year, and that will not prejudice any future decision about the ownership of it.