§ Mr. W. Fletcherasked the President of the Board of Trade (1) whether he will make available to Members of this House and to the public the text of the bilateral agreement for direct trade between the United Kingdom and Indonesia, referred to in the Board of Trade Journal for 12th March, 1949;
(2) what were his reasons in coming to the bilateral Agreement for direct trade between the United Kingdom and Indonesia, mentioned in the Board of Trade Journal for 12th March, 1949, in view of the fact that most of the commodities which His Majesty's Government have contracted to buy from Indonesia are produced in Malaya, and that Singapore is accustomed to handling manufactured goods for distribution in South-East Asia and is equipped therefor with long-established, highly-developed and specialised entrepôt facilities.
§ Mr. J. EdwardsThere have been no separate trade talks with Indonesia. But in the recent talks with the Kingdom of the Netherlands agreement was reached to provide for an expansion of trade with Indonesia in both directions. Trade with Indonesia is carried on partly directly and partly through entrepôts such as Singapore and Amsterdam, and there is nothing in the present arrangements to disturb this traditional pattern. A fuller note is being prepared for the Board of Trade Journal 47W and I will send a copy to the hon. Member. The relevant facts have already been communicated to trade associations concerned. As regards goods which we are buying from Indonesia, and which Malaya also provides, we are willing to buy whatever may be available in Malaya at a reasonable price, but the quantities we need are greater than Malaya can provide.