§ 25. Mr. Robert Hughesasked the Attorney-General if he will publish in the Official Report the number of cases of alleged contravention of the Rhodesian Sanctions Orders which have been investigated by the Director of Public Prosecutions and the number of cases in which prosecutions have been initiated; and if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Rhodesia Sanctions Orders.
§ The Solicitor-General (Mr. Peter Archer)Yes, Sir. I shall arrange for the information requested to be so published. The effectiveness of the Rhodesia Sanctions Order is essentially a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of 27 State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.
§ Mr. HughesMay I congratulate my right hon. and learned Friend on his appointment to the Privy Council? Is he aware that to the layman the decision taken by the Director of Public Prosecutions not to proceed to prosecute in certain sanctions cases defies any rational understanding? Since the DPP gives no reason for not prosecuting, is it not my right hon. and learned Friend's duty and that of his Department to monitor the decisions and to advise the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to strengthen the sanctions orders? Will he undertake to monitor these arrangements?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralI am most grateful to my hon. Friend for his references to me personally. In relation to any specific decision by the DPP, when it can properly be done we are always prepared to discuss reasons in the House. My hon. Friend will be aware that in the case of Dovaston, in which the court held that there was no case to answer, serious consideration is being given to a reference to the Court of Appeal. The question of whether conduct not at present prohibited under the orders ought to be prohibited is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend and ultimately for the House.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergCan the Solicitor-General tell the House, since he is to publish the information, roughly how many of the allegations turned out to be the subject of prosecutions?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralI am in a difficulty. I am happy to answer, but I should not earn the gratitude of the House if I were to reel off statistics. There have been five prosecutions in relation to the orders. In addition, the Director of Public Prosecutions has prosecuted in a further five cases. Her Majesty's Commissioners of Customs and Excise have initiated proceedings in 17 cases.
§ Mr. RostWhy was the former Derbyshire man, who fought for this country in the war and who is now an MP in Rhodesia, refused entry into this country when he was coming here purely for a compassionate reason to visit his 85-year-old mother? Is not that sinking to the lowest depths of spite and malice, even for this Government?
§ The Solicitor-GeneralEven if that supplementary question arose from the original Question, it would be a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.