HC Deb 09 December 1986 vol 107 cc173-8
Ql. Dr. Michael Clark

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

The Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons (Mr. John Biffen)

I have been asked to reply.

My right hon. Friend is today reporting to the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Dr. Clark

During the course of his busy day will my right hon. Friend convey to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy our congratulations on the successful privatisation of British Gas, which has brought about a most welcome extension of share ownership in Britain? I also ask my right hon. Friend to ask my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to reflect upon the fact that the percentage of people in this country who now own British Gas shares is considerably higher than the percentage of people in America who know the name of the Leader of the Opposition.

Mr. Biffen

I will certainly convey the second point raised by my hon. Friend. With regard to his point of substance, I shall certainly convey that to my right hon. Friend. I agree with him that the remarkably successful flotation of British Gas and the premium it has secured demonstrates not only the confidence of the British people in the future of gas but their belief that British Gas has an assured future within private ownership.

Mr. Kinnock

May I first invite the right hon. Gentleman to join me in condemning the attempt in the European Parliament this morning to impair free speech, especially as the individual concerned has ample opportunity to make his case in two Parliaments?

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, in the light of the European Community agreement on anti-terrorism policies, and in view of common necessity, the Government are now taking measures to insure against London being used as a location for making arms deals similar to those made between the United States Administration and Iran?

Mr. Biffen

I have no reason to believe that the right hon. Gentleman, whose return I very much welcome, is aware of a situation that validates his anxieties. On his first point, I am sure he will speak for the entire House in regretting the way in which my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister was treated at Strasbourg this morning.

Mr. Kinnock

I am grateful for that reply. In view of the frequency of meetings apparently required for the arms deal with the Iranians, does the right hon. Gentleman find it strange that no measure was taken by the Government or knowledge received by them from any source that such a deal was being made?

Mr. Biffen

I have no reason to believe that there was any laxity on the part of the Government, but I take note of what the right hon. Gentleman has said.

Sir William Clark

Given that this is a period of goodwill, will my right hon. Friend congratulate the Leader of the Opposition on commanding an audience that did not come in from out of the rain?

Mr. Biffen

I think that we might have just an interlude of good-natured exchanges on these matters, and to that extent I agree with my hon. Friend, but the right hon. Member for Islwyn (Mr. Kinnock) will know perfectly well that he comes back from the United States to fairly well-charged political situations. I could not—[Interruption.]

Mr. Speaker

Order. It is just that sort of question that causes difficulties.

Mr. J. Enoch Powell

When the Prime Minister is back, will the Leader of the House find out from her whether she knows why the Anglo-Irish Conference yesterday was attended by representatives of the United States Government?

Mr. Biffen

I cannot comment authoritively on that point, but I shall certainly convey it to my right hon. Friend.

Q2. Mr. Amess

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

Mr. Biffen

I have been asked to reply.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

Mr. Amess

Will my right hon. Friend ask the Prime Minister to restate the Government's policy of multilateral, rather than unilateral, disarmament? Will he also ask her quickly to repair the damage done by statements made in America giving the impression that we will abandon our allies and renege on our NATO commitments?

Mr. Biffen

I shall most certainly convey the first point to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister. On the second point, it must be a matter of judgment for the House to assess just how influential was the visit of the right hon. Member for Islwyn (Mr. Kinnock). These are fair points in the political debate that commences now and will continue until the general election. We are happy that the Labour party set out its non-nuclear defence policies in the United States, as it has done in this country, because we believe that the popular judgment will lie with us.

Mr. Winnick

Does the Leader of the House accept that if it is true that some officials within MI5 mounted a political operation against Lord Wilson when he was Prime Minister, a full parliamentary inquiry is certainly needed? Does he further accept that if there remains within the MI5 service some criminal and subversive elements who were responsible for what happened in 1974, they should no longer be in the service?

Mr. Biffen

Those points all relate to matters which are being argued directly or indirectly in a court in New South Wales and it would not be appropriate for me to make any further comment.

Mr. Nicholas Baker

Does my right hon. Friend agree that there is a world of difference between a decision whether to take proceedings in respect of a book by an independent journalist, such as Chapman Pincher, which some of us believe to be the code name of the hon. Member for Workington (Mr. Campbell-Savours), and a decision concerning ex-employees of the service, who propose to tell their all for money, in breach of their undertaking and contract? Does he further agree that the right hon. Member for Islwyn (Mr. Kinnock), who manages to do down the country over defence policy while he is in America—[interruption]

Mr. Speaker

Order. One question at a time.

Mr. Biffen

My hon. Friend will find that there was an answer yesterday from my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General which relates to his first point. I am afraid that I could not hear the second point.

Mr. Steel

Will the Leader of the House give the House an assurance that the decision whether to order AWACs or Nimrod for the Royal Air Force will be made by the Cabinet as a whole? Does he recognise that failure to proceed with Nimrod would be seen as an act of industrial surrender and would undermine Britain's efforts to remain at the forefront of high technology?

Mr. Biffen

The right hon. Gentleman will not expect me to comment on the second part of his question. On the first part, the Liberal party is some distance from Cabinet Government, but I assure him that a decision of this magnitude would necessitate the proper consideration of the Government.

Dr. Hampson

Will my right hon. Friend convey to the Prime Minister that there would be deep concern on both sides of the House should a decision be made not to buy Nimrod, because already £800 million has been spent and through its design it is doing a wider job than the AWAC, which will cost £1 billion more and will lose the country core technology for ever?

Mr. Biffen

I shall certainly comply with that request, but I suspect that my hon. Friend has already made it on his own behalf.

Q3. Mr. Hoyle

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

Mr. Biffen

I have been asked to reply.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

Mr. Hoyle

On Nimrod, did the Leader of the House see in The Observer last Sunday the report that the Prime Minister is firmly in the Boeing camp? As a decision is shortly to be made on the airborne early warning system, and as many jobs and the future of the high-tech industry are at risk, will the right hon. Gentleman ask the Prime Minister, when she finally returns, whether she will make a statement making it clear whether she is batting for Britain or for Boeing?

Mr. Biffen

That is an allegation of partiality which I completely reject. This is a major decision affecting the defence and industrial consequence for the United Kingdom, and it will be taken in the appropriate detached fashion.

Q4. Mr. Adley

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

Mr. Biffen

I have been asked to reply.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

Mr. Adley

Contrary to the view being propagated in some quarters, will my right hon. Friend confirm that Her Majesty's Government are more than happy for the House and the country to spend as much time as they like debating defence and the nation's security? Are the public not right to be wary about the possibility of a party which wants to leave NATO having anything to do with Britain's defence? [Interruption.]

Mr. Speaker

Order. The Lord Privy Seal.

Mr. Biffen

I do not wish to deny the pleasures of my hon. Friend or the House, but I must say that there can be no question of there being as much time as would be liked in the debating of such matters, given all the other commitments in the Queen's Speech. None the less, I agree with my hon. Friend that defence will be a central feature at the forthcoming election. We know perfectly well what a non-nuclear policy in the hands of Labour Members implies. We know perfectly well the extent to which it is a retreat from the Socialism of Aneurin Bevan, and we know perfectly well that the defendable alternative that we offer will be decisive in the outcome of that election.

Q5. Mr. James Hamilton

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

Mr. Biffen

I have been asked to reply.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

Mr. Hamilton

Will the Leader of the House find time today to inform the Prime Minister that thousands of people are now finding it difficult to purchase their house on mortgage because of high interest charges and redundancy? Is he aware that many of those people who go to their local authorities are now finding themselves homeless because of the Government's policy on public sector housebuilding? What do the Government intend to do about that?

Mr. Biffen

I do not deny for one moment the significance of high interest rates mentioned by the hon. Gentleman, but the most important thing that the Government can undertake in that context is to ensure fiscal and budgetary policies which avoid heavy borrowing.

Q6. Mr. Cash

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 9 December.

Mr. Biffen

I have been asked to reply.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

Mr. Cash

Has my right hon. Friend noticed that the latest nuclear-free missile which the Leader of the Opposition is about to launch on the nation tommorrow—[HON. MEMBERS: "Order."]

Mr. Speaker

Order. The question must be related to the Prime Minister.

Mr. Cash

Has my right hon. Friend noticed that the Leader of the Opposition—[Interruption.]

Mr. Speaker

Order. One more try.

Mr. Cash

Has my right hon. Friend noticed that the Government have a policy of ensuring that Britain is properly protected, unlike the sort of policies that the Leader of the Opposition has been propagating in Australia and the United States and from the Opposition Front Bench?

Mr. Biffen

I am sure that the Government have such a policy, and I am sure that it is one that commends itself to their formal treaty allies. In my busy day, I have not yet had the chance to open all incoming mail to see whether I have an invitation to the launch of the Labour defence policy tomorrow, but I shall be interested to see whether there is a single senior United States figure there to endorse it

Mr. Madden

Why has it taken the Attorney-General six years to contemplate prosecuting Mr. Chapman Pincher under the Official Secrets Act, whereas he has taken much less time to charge Mr. John Lee, a reporter on the Croydon Midweek Post, your local newspaper, Mr. Speaker, under section 2 of the Official Secrets Act?

Mr. Speaker

Order. I do not know anything about this case, but I hope that it is not sub judice.

Mr. Biffen

I was about to say that I do not think that it would be appropriate for me to comment.