§ 52. Sir J. Hutchisonasked the Prime Minister if he is now in a position to make a statement about the possibility of this country's entering into some form of relationship with Euratom.
§ Mr. R. A. ButlerI have been asked to reply.
97WYes. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has suggested to the President of the Euratom Commission that until Euratom has selected its permanent headquarters the Head of the United Kingdom Delegation to the High Authority of the Coal and Steel Community should also be accredited to the Euratom Commission. My right hon. Friend has also proposed to Monsieur Armand that we should negotiate a technical collaboration agreement which would provide the necessary framework for collaboration between Her Majesty's Government and the Community and would enable co-operation to proceed smoothly and effectively both between institutions and between individual industrial concerns in the respective countries. I understand that these proposals have been welcomed by the Euratom Commission.
The proposed technical collaboration agreement would be complementary to the general co-operation on nuclear affairs within Western Europe as a whole, including Euratom and its Six constituent members, which is the task of the newly established European Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organisation for European Economic Co-Operation.