§ 33. Mr. W. Fletcherasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement on the increase of fatal incidents and the danger of a breakdown in the Malayan economy due to failure to suppress the new wave of insurgent activity.
Mr. Creech JonesI cannot accept the implications of the hon. Member's question and I would refer to the reply I gave on 26th January to the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight (Sir P. Macdonald). Murders of civilians by terrorists fell from an average of 48 a month during the period June-December to 31 in January, 1949. The production of rubber has been maintained and that of tin increased, thanks largely to the loyalty and courage of those concerned and to the confidence which they and others have shown in the future of the territory.