DISPOSAL OF HERR KRUPP'S ASSETS (Hansard, 27 July 1959)

VISCOUNT ELIBANK
My Lords, I beg to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

§ THE JOINT PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE)
My Lords, the answer to the first part of the Question is that the Committee met in full session on July 3 and began its work. On the second part of the Question, as I told the noble Viscount on January 29, the estimated nominal capital value, including reserves, of the assets remaining to be sold is in the region of £14 million. Applications in respect of these assets have been lodged with the: Committee.

VISCOUNT ELIBANK
My Lords, I thank the noble Marquess for that reply. Is it clear that under the 1952 Bonn 540 Convention, as amended in 1954, the only thing the Committee have to decide is whether an extension of time for the disposal of the Krupps securities shall be granted? I would ask this further question. So far as I can see—I shall be corrected if I am wrong—there is nothing in Article 10 which says that the deliberations of the Committee—not the findings, but the deliberations—should not be made available to the public. Will the attitude of Her Majesty's Government in this matter be that those deliberations should be made available to the public?

§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE
My Lords, in answer to the first part of the noble Viscount's supplementary Question, to make it perfectly clear I think I should read out the words of paragraph 2 of Article 10 of the Settlement Convention, which are: The function of the Mixed Committee shall be to consider applications for extensions of the final time for the disposition of securities. That is the function of the Mixed Committee. As regards publication of the deliberations of the Mixed Committee, I think that here again the situation is perfectly clear. The decisions of the Committee will be published and it will be for the Committee to decide whether to submit a report to the four Governments. Publication of any such report would be a matter for decision by the four Governments at the time, but, as I think the noble Viscount is well aware, it is not for Her Majesty's Government or for any of the other Governments concerned to give instructions to the Mixed Committee as to how they should proceed.

VISCOUNT ELIBANK
My Lords, I quite understand the position as the noble Marquess has put it. All I was asking was that in a matter where there are four Governments concerned, Her Majesty's Government would, I suggest, be fully competent and able to advance an opinion of their own as to whether the deliberations should be published.

§ LORD HENDERSON
My Lords, may I ask the noble Marquess whether the section of the agreement to which he referred limits the function of the Mixed Committee simply to deciding whether an extension of time should be given; or whether the Committee has power either to decide or to recommend 541 that the agreement should be abrogated on the grounds that in its opinion it cannot be enforced.

§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE
My Lords, I have tried to make clear what the function of the Committee is, and I hope I shall not have to repeat that. The Mixed Committee has an obligation and a duty: The Mixed Committee shall extend the time fixed for the disposition of he securities, provided that the applicant establishes that all such securities could not, with the exercise of reasonable efforts, be disposed of on reasonable terms. I could read the whole thing, if the noble Lord wishes. That is the responsibility of the Mixed Committee, and it also has the function which I have already described. So, as I see it, that is the limit of the functions of the Mixed Committee.

§ LORD HENDERSON
May one take it from the answer given by the noble Marquess that the Mixed Committee has no power at all to interfere with the operation of the agreement, except in so far as it may decide to extend the time for the assets to be sold?

§ THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE
My Lords, that is quite correct.