§ Mr. Lewis42, 43 and 44. asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (1) if he will give a detailed list of the private property stored in Her Majesty's Embassy in Peking; what charges have been or will be made for such storage; if he will detail a list of the owners of this private property; and why these private individuals are allowed to use Her Majesty's Embassy for the storage of their private property;
(2) whether he will publish in HANS 4RD a list of the Embassies which allow private individuals to store their private goods and chattels;
(3) if he will state the cost to his Department for the Press and other advertisements informing private individuals that Her Majesty's Government will no longer store private property in Her Majesty's Embassy in Peking and advising owners to reclaim their private property.
§ Mr. Ormsby-GoreThis property consists of furniture, cases, clothing, books, photographs and other personal effects. No storage charges have been or will be made. I would not wish to make public a list of the owners of this private property without their consent. The cost of putting notices in the Press about this property was £25 17s. 6d.
In normal circumstances individuals are not allowed to store private property on the premises of Her Majesty's Embassies. Her Majesty's Embassy in Peking accepted custody of this property at various times of disturbance in China in order to safeguard it against loss or damage.