§ Mr. Peter Freemanasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is aware that the dredger "Famagusta" is the only efficient dredger in the Red Sea, and that its presence there is necessary for keeping waterways open; why it has been sold to Societa Anonima Costruizioni, Africa, for£1,600 plus a sequestrated debt of£8,000, when its real worth was in the region of£35,000; and why the sanction of the United Nations Organisation was not obtained for this sale, in view of the fact that the British Administration in Eritrea is acting as agent only for the latter body.
§ Mr. NuttingThe "Famagusta," which was never at any time the property either of the Italian Government or of the Administration of Eritrea, was seized in prize by the British Admiralty on 24th February, 1942, and requisitioned by the Ministry of Transport on 18th May, 1942.
196WThe vessel was sold by the British Stores Disposal Mission in Cairo on 2nd July, 1947, to the Societa Anonima Costruzioni, Africa, for£(East Afr.)9,368. At the same time a claim by the Italian firm for goods requisitioned by the Army to the value of£8,000 was paid over to them on the initial understanding that the dredger, on purchase, would be retained in Massawa for use by the British Military Administration on charter. The charter hire at commercial rates subsequently proved to be higher than the revenues of the port could afford.
At the time when the dredger was sold it was unseaworthy. United Nations sanction was not required since the "Famagusta" was never Eritrean property.