§ 32 and 33. Mr. H. Hyndasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (1) whether he will make a statement on the recommendation of the Council of Europe that procedure be established whereby individual petitions about human rights and freedom may be considered even when they are against a member State, such as this country, that has not yet accepted the clause about the right of individual petition;
(2) which members of the Council of Europe have now accepted the clause about the right of individual petition in the Convention about Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms; and whether Her Majesty's Government have yet decided to accept this clause.
§ Mr. Dodds-ParkerBelgium, Denmark, the Federal German Republic, Iceland, Ireland, Norway and Sweden have made declarations accepting the competence of the European Human Rights Commission to investigate individual petitions. Her Majesty's Government do not propose to make such a declaration, nor are they prepared to accept the recommendation to which the hon. Member refers.