§ Sir J. Fletcher-Cookeasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many reservations the Government have made to its acceptance of the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice; what are the subjects of these reservations; and whether he will make a statement on the Government's policy in this matter.
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§ Mr. George ThomsonBy the latest Declaration by Her Majesty's Government concerning the optional clause of the Statute of the International Court of Justice made on 27th November, 1963, Her Majesty's Government have attached eight reservations to their acceptance of the Court's compulsory jurisdiction. The text of this Declaration was issued as a Command Paper (No. 1 in the Miscellaneous Series for 1964; Cmnd. 2248), from which information about the subjects of these reservations can, of course, be obtained. The Government's policy towards attaching reservations to their acceptance of the Court's compulsory jurisdiction is to ensure that their scope is kept to the minimum required by the national interest. With a view to reducing the reservations to a minimum, they are reviewed from time to time.