§ Q10. Mr. Sandysasked the Prime Minister what progress he has made with the renegotiation of the undertakings given by the British Government to the Governments of Malaysia and Singapore and of the Persian Gulf States regarding British assistance for their defence and the maintenance of British forces in those areas for that purpose.
§ The Prime Minister:I told the House on 16th January that our cuts in defence expenditure would mean renegotiating a whole new series of arrangements, agreements and treaties with our allies and partners. We are actively considering these but, as the right hon. Gentleman well knows, this process will take time.