§ Mr. Eldon Griffithsasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will set out in tabular form the purposes and duration of the various foreign visits made by the Minister for Disarmament since his appointment.
§ Mr. George ThomsonThe following foreign visits have been made since his appointment by my noble Friend the Minister of State with special responsibility for disarmament:
§ Mr. George ThomsonAs my hon. Friend the Joint Minister of State explained to my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham, North (Mr. Arthur Lewis) on 10th May, the issue of Temporary Travel Documents to East Germans by the Allied Travel Office is governed by rules agreed by all the N.A.T.O. allies which are of course binding on us.
It is contrary to practice to disclose the reasons why a Temporary Travel 285W Document is refused by the Allied Travel Office in West Berlin in any particular case.
It is clear, however, that the Mayor of Dresden would be regarded as a political figure of some prominence in East Germany.
Many travel applications from East German citizens where there is no political motive in the journey are accepted by the Allied Travel Office each year, in contrast to the severe restrictions imposed by the East German authorities on travel by their own citizens including the right to visit their own families in West Berlin.