§ Mr. Iremongerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what initiative Her Majesty's Government are taking to promote consideration of an international agency to assume responsibility for the development of Middle East oil supplies and applying an agreed proportion of the financial proceeds of such development to the benefit of the inhabitants of the area as a whole.
§ Mr. Ormsby-GoreResponsibility for the development of Middle East oil supplies rests with the countries which own the oil and the oil companies to which they have granted concessions. Any initiative to promote consideration of an international agency for oil development in these countries should, therefore, come from the countries themselves who exercise sovereign rights over their natural resources of oil.
Profits from the production of oil in the Middle East are divided equally between the Governments owning the oil and the oil companies producing it. It is a matter for the Governments concerned how they apply their portions of the profits, and in particular whether they apply a proportion to the benefit of the inhabitants of the area outside their own countries. However, my hon. Friend is no doubt aware that some of the Governments concerned allocate a considerable percentage of their income from oil to economic development programmes for the benefit of their peoples. In the case of Iraq this amounts to 70 per cent. of the oil revenues. Such a policy naturally has the full support of Her Majesty's Government.