§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will take such action as may be necessary to ensure that, in the future, Members of Parliament with 20 years' or more service in the House of Commons are given at least an equal opportunity with those Members who have only recently entered the House of Commons of attending cocktail parties and receptions organised by 201W his Department for the purposes of meeting statesmen, business people and other representative personages from countries overseas.
§ Mr. JayInvitations to functions of this kind organised by my Department are based entirely on the special interests of the principal guests. This principle applies to invitations to Members of Parliament irrespective of their length of service.