§ Mr. Lennox-Boydasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will make a statement upon the general scheme of development in the island of Mauritius, in view of the loan of £700,000 free of interest to meet expenses of rehabilitation and revive the planting of sugar cane and other crops in the island.
Mr. Creech JonesI assume that the hon. Member has in mind the financial assistance outlined in the reply given by my predecessor to the hon. Member for West Leyton (Mr. Sorensen) on 19th December, 1945. This assistance was given by His Majesty's Government specifically for the rehabilitation of the sugar industry, following the hurricanes of 1944 and 1945, and is additional to the sum of £1,750,000 allocated to Mauritius under the Colonial Development and Welfare Act, 1945. A ten-year plan for development and welfare in the Colony, estimated to cost £7¾ millions, has recently been passed by the Mauritius Council of Government. This plan will be examined by my advisers and by the Colonial Economic and Development Council. I have arranged for a copy of it to be placed in the Library of the House for Members' information;