HC Deb 26 July 1965 vol 717 cc7-8W
42. Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (1) what criteria at present govern the issue of temporary travel documents to citizens of the German Democratic Republic applying to the Allied Travel Office in West Berlin for permission to visit Great Britain;

(2) if he will seek to restore British control over the issue of visas to citizens of the German Democratic Republic wishing to enter Great Britain for short periods, and to end the control at present exercised by the Allied Travel Office in West Berlin.

Mr. Walter Padley

Visas, which are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, are granted to East Germans only if Temporary Travel Documents have first been issued by the Allied Travel Office in West Berlin. The criteria governing the issue of Temporary Travel Documents by the Allied Travel Office are agreed in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and are confidential.