73. Mr. Lindsayasked the Lord Privy Seal, in view of the fact that the British wives of those who are serving with the Queen's Own Nigeria Regiment in the Congo have received no mail from their husbands since these troops left Nigeria a month ago, and in view of the shortcomings of the present mail services handled by the United Nations, if he will make representations to the United Nations administration in the Congo regarding the need for immediate action to remedy this situation, such as organising a direct mail service to and from these units through Tanganyika.
§ Mr. GodberI am grateful to my hon. Friend for bringing this matter to my notice. The military personnel in question are in the service of the Government of Nigeria, who. I am sure, will take such measures as are necessary over matters concerned with the welfare of these people and their families. I am 3W asking my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations to arrange for the matter to be brought to the notice of the Nigerian Government.
§ 74. Mr. Warbeyasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will make a further statement on official British action in support of United Nations activities in the Congo.
§ 77. Mr. A. Hendersonasked the Lord Privy Seal, in view of the recent transport restrictions imposed by the Congolese authorities, to what extent it continues to be the policy of Her Majesty's Government to support United Nations action in the Congo; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GodberFrom the outset Her Majesty's Government have given full support to the United Nations effort in the Congo. We still think this presents the best hope of helping the Congolese people find a satisfactory solution to their present difficulties. Our representatives in New York and Leopoldville are constantly in touch with the United Nations authorities over the latest developments that have taken place in the Congo.
§ Mr. Biggs-Davisonasked the Lord Privy Seal the latest estimate of the United Nations Organisation's expenditure on the former Belgian Congo; how much has been spent to the nearest convenient date; what contributions have been made by the member tSates, respectively; and what proportion of the expenditure is devoted to Katanga, Kasai, and the rest of the former Belgian Congo, respectively.
§ Mr. GodberThe latest estimate of the cost of the United Nations Military and Civilian Operations in the Congo (O.N.U.C.) for the period July-December, 1960, is $60 million. It is given under administrative sub-heads in document A/C.5/836, as revised by A/4580, both of which are in the Library of the House. No information is available on expenditure by regions.
The General Assembly is now discussing the financing of O.N.U.C., a quarter of whose costs represent reimbursement to Governments for airlifts. Her Majesty's Government have waived their air-lift costs of $.52 million, the United States have similarly waived 4W $10.3 million, Canada $.65 million and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics 5,207,000 roubles. It is expected that the General Assembly will decide to put the remainder of the costs, some $48 million, on to the Regular Budget, which is financed by the assessed contributions of Member States, and at the same time will invite voluntary contributions to lessen the burden on those with the least capacity to pay; the United States have announced that they will contribute $3½–$4 million for the latter purpose.
In addition to the funds required to finance the United Nations operations in the Congo, a United Nations voluntary fund of $100 million for financial assistance to the Congo budget has received contributions and pledges as shown below. Disbursements from it for 1960 are not known.
CONTRIBUTIONS TO $100 MILLION VOLUNTARY FUND (a) Paid ($ million equivalent) United Kingdom 3.0 United States 5.0 New Zealand 0.280 8.280 (b) Pledged Australia 0.75 Cambodia 0.002 Canada 1.0 Denmark 0.6 Haiti 0.002 Liberia 0.25 Morocco 0.04 Netherlands 1.0 Sweden 1.39 Tunisia 0.01 5.044 Total 13.324
§ Mr. Biggs-Davisonasked the Lord Privy Seal the present strength, situation, and composition of the United Nations forces in the former Belgian Congo, including those in Katanga shown separately.
§ Mr. GodberThe most recent information which has been issued about the distribution and composition of the United Nations force is that given in the Annex to the second report of the Secretary-General's Special Representative in the Congo, A/4557, a copy of which is in the Library of the House. The present total strength of the United Nations force in the Congo is approximately 18,500 men.