§ 8. Mr. Juddasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consultations he has now had with Commonwealth Governments concerning the environmental consequences of the recent French nuclear explosions in the Pacific; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Sir Alec Douglas-HomeThe subject of French nuclear testing naturally came up in my recent discussions with Australian and New Zealand Ministers. As to the environmental consequences of the tests, data collected by our health 1297 monitoring team on Pitcairn Island are available to any Commonwealth Government which asks for them. The reports of this team to date show no increase in radioactivity over the normal background level.
§ Mr. JuddIn the light, however, of the Stockholm conference and all the accumulated long-term medical and scientific evidence produced since 1945, does the right hon. Gentleman agree that, on reflection, his remarks were singularly ill-informed and ill-timed? Can he assure the House that his failure to make forceful representations to the French Government is not just another example of the refusal of the British Government to do anything to upset Mr. Pompidou at this juncture?
§ Sir Alec Douglas-HomeI follow exactly the same practice as that followed by the Opposition when they were in Government. We have made no protest. We have made it clear that we felt there should not be testing in the atmosphere.