§ Mr. Grovesasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether, in view of the 950W fact that the agreement referring to the Turkish concession for the extraction of salts from the Dead Sea belonging to a British subject was omitted from the annual report on Palestine and Transjordan for 1929 to the Permanent Mandates Commission, he can say if that commission has knowledge of the existence of the Turkish concession and of the reasons why and the circumstances under which the concession was agreed to be granted to Mr. Novomeysky; and, if not, whether, as it is essential for the proper consideration by that commission of the report of the Royal Commission on Palestine, especially in so far as the proposed Arab area is concerned, that these matters should be within their knowledge, he will take steps to inform the Permanent Mandates Commission of them?
§ Mr. Ormsby-GoreI am not in a position to state the extent of the knowledge of the Permanent Mandates Commission regarding the circumstances of the grant of the Dead Sea Salts Concession in 1930 I do not understand how the Agreement to which the hon. Member refers can be regarded as relevant to the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Palestine, and I do not see how any useful purpose would be served by a communication on the subject to the Permanent Mandates Commission.