§ 26. Mr. Spearingasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he is making to the relevant authorities of the European Economic Community to rectify the difficulties in obtaining EEC documents referred to in paragraph 9 of the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee in its Second Special Report (HC 250-ii) dated 20th August.
§ Mr. HattersleyResponsibility for the supply of EEC documents to the Scrutiny Committee rests with the Government, not with the EEC authorities. I have discussed this question with the Committee in the light of its Second Special Report. As a general rule these particular documents are not published. Any which were published would be sent to Parliament in accordance with normal practice.
§ Mr. SpearingDoes not my hon. Friend agree that the House would be disturbed to know that these documents were not available? Is it not worth noting that nearly two years after joining the EEC we are apparently not able to influence matters because, due in certain respects to communications, we do not know what is going on? Is my hon. Friend aware that the Select Committee said that matters of trade mandates were sometimes of even greater importance than those concerning legislation? Will he now do his best to make sure that these documents are published so that our Scrutiny Committee can at least see them and send them to the House for discussion?
§ Mr. HattersleyI am bound by the resolution of the House of 7th May which says that it is my duty to send to the Scrutiny Committee documents which are published. While I have an obligation to fulfil that duty, I have an equal obligation not to exceed it. As to whether the EEC should publish its trade mandates, let me remind my hon. Friend that the EEC publishes and the House examines propositions for new treaties which would have been determined by the Community as a whole. What it does not publish is its interim negotiating position, and neither does this country, and it would be ridiculous to do so.
§ Mr. John DaviesWill the Minister of State reassure the House by saying that the arrangements to which he has now subscribed are of a kind which will give the House better, or at least equal, access to arrangements which are entered into by the Community than may be gained by this country on its own account?
§ Mr. HattersleyI would be happy to give that assurance, but the assurance given by implication by the right hon. Gentleman, the Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee, probably carries more weight than anything I might say.
§ Mr. LeeEven if my hon. Friend has no direct responsibility in this matter, should he not put pressure on the body to publish its documents, or is that something far too democratic for the Common Market to consider?
§ Mr. HattersleyI must conclude that my hon. Friend does not understand the documents about which we are speaking. 1572 The documents to which the Committee specifically referred and which are the subject of the Question are the interim position papers of the nine members as they try to form a collective view on a negotiating mandate. I am sure that on reflection my hon. Friend would agree that they are not suitable for publication.