§ 20. Mr. Farrasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Minister in his Department is responsible for promoting good relations with other Commonwealth countries.
§ Mr. M. StewartSince the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Offices, all Ministers in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are responsible for promoting good relations with other Commonwealth countries.
§ Mr. FarrI am delighted to have that reply. Are the Ministers merely taking a passive rôle, or are they seeking to take some initiative to promote and extend the very important good relations which we have with other Commonwealth countries?
§ Mr. StewartWe regard it as a positive duty on all of us to promote good relations with Commonwealth countries.
§ Mr. ShinwellIf there is any difficulty in selecting a Minister for this purpose, could we not release Lord Chalfont from his European duties and ask him to undertake this task, in which he might be a little more successful than he has been in the past?
§ Mr. StewartI do not think that my right hon. Friend has listened to my answer. I said that there is no difficulty in securing a Minister for this purpose. My right hon. Friend's suggestion is, therefore, on those and other grounds unnecessary and undesirable.