§ Mr. Biggs-Davisonasked the Lord Privy Seal whether he will make a statement about the United Kingdom's attitude to the considerations endorsed by UNESCO's thirty-first general conference as a basis for a "new world information and communications order"; and whether he will give an assurance that no commitment was made thereto by Her Majesty's Government.
§ Mr. BlakerThe Government have strong reservations about part VI of the MacBride resolution. I informed the House on 8 December of the reasons why the United Kingdom delegation did not stand against the consensus on this resolution. But the delegation stated categorically that our participation in the consensus did not mean that we were in total agreement with the resolution, nor did the consensus imply any form of commitment on the part of this Government. I have placed in the Library a copy of the United Kingdom statement which sets out in full our objections to the resolution.
We have repeatedly made it clear that we are not prepared to endorse State control of the media or the imposition of international standards or regulations which would have the effect of further reducing freedom of information. We shall continue to press British views strongly, and are consulting friends and allies about achieving more close and effective co-operation with them in the future to uphold these fundamental principles.