§ 123. Mr. Collinsasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is now in a position to make a general statement about future policy in Cyprus.
Mr. Creech JonesYes, Sir. His Majesty's Government have recently had under review the question of their future policy in regard to Cyprus, with a view to seeking opportunities to establish a more liberal and progressive regime in the internal affairs of the island. With this object, I propose to invite the Governor, Sir Charles Woolley, who is in full accord with this policy, to call together a Consultative Assembly, drawn from representative elements in the island, to consider the framing of proposals for constitutional reform, including the re-establishment of a Central Legislature. It is hoped that the result will be the creation of a Council which will bring representatives of the Cypriot people into full consultation with the Government in the conduct of their local affairs.
His Majesty's Government are also determined to press on with vigour the programme of economic development and social welfare, which has been successfully initiated during recent years. I have had before me a systematic and detailed plan of development covering the next 10 years. It has been under close examination in the Colonial Office and is being published in Cyprus today. This plan deals with every aspect of the island's life and economy —agriculture and irrigation, the forests, medical and education services, the expansion of the ports, the provision of tourist facilities and so on.
There are two further matters on which I can also announce decisions. The first relates to the situation at present existing in the Church of Cyprus, of which the Archiepiscopal See has now been vacant for many years. There seems little doubt that the three local laws enacted in 1937 with the object of controlling certain aspects of the election of a new Archbishop have impeded the settlement of 397W this problem. The retention of these laws would seem no longer to be justifiable and, on the advice and with the full concurrence of the Governor, His Majesty's Government have now decided that they should be repealed as soon as practicable. It is to be hoped that, as a result of this action on the part of the Government, the Church of Cyprus will find itself able to make an election to the vacant See and thus resolve a situation which, so long as it continues, must be prejudicial to its spiritual authority and influence.
Finally, the Government consider that the time has now come to permit the return to Cyprus of those persons who were deported from the Island for their part in the disturbances of 1931. His Majesty's Government earnestly hope that these measures will inaugurate a new and happier era in the relations between this country and the people of Cyprus, and that they will now wholeheartedly join in the task of developing the Island's resources and bettering their own conditions.