§ 54. Mr. Clinton Davisasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his negotiations with the illegal régime of Southern Rhodesia.
§ Mr. GodberI would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for York (Mr. Alexander W. Lyon) and others.
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§ 55. Mr. William Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he now has to pay an official visit to Rhodesia.
§ Mr. GodberAs the hon. Member is aware, a visit is taking place.
§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a statement giving details of the times and dates when Lord Goodman acted on behalf of Her Majesty's Government in visits to Rhodesia to negotiate with the illegal Smith régime; what was the cost of such visits; what were and are his qualifications; and what results have been obtained as a result of each such visit.
§ Mr. GodberWith regard to the costs of Lord Goodman's visits, I have nothing to add to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Greenwich (Mr. Guy Barnett) earlier today.
The dates of the four visits were 1st–6th April, 19th–27th May, 29th June to 7th July, and 16th–21st September His legal qualification and experience of the Rhodesian problem made Lord Goodman well suited to conduct exploratory discussions on Her Majesty's Government's behalf. This is borne out by the fact that they led to the current negotiations.
§ Mr. Hugh Jenkinsasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make it a condition of the continuation of talks in Salisbury that the police there discontinue the practice of torturing Africans for information.
§ Mr. GodberWe have no substantiated evidence to show that the police in Rhodesia are behaving in this way.