§ Mr. Dalyellasked Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report the text of the letter from the Minister of State to the hon. Member for West Lothian, dated 29 November, relating to remarks made by the Civil Commissioner on the Falklands and to consultation with Falkland Islands councillors over the use of the islands for military training.
§ Mr. OnslowYes. The text is as follows
I indicated in written answers on 22 November on two of your Parliamentary Questions about the Falkland Islands (which appear in columns 349 and 350 respectively in Volume 32 of the Official Report that I was making further enquiries which might enable me to give you more information. I am now able to do so.In the Second part of the first of these Questions, you ask if the text of a statement reportedly made by the Civil Commissioner, Sir Rex Hunt, on 3 November could be published in the Official Report, I regret that this will not be possible. The Civil Commissioner has confirmed that he did give an interview on 3 November to Ronald Faux of The Times, in which he commented on the United Nations General Assembly Resolution on the Falklands. No formal record of Sir Rex Hunt's remarks is available, but he tells us that the version which appeared in The Times on 4 November was subsantially correct.Your second Question concerned consultation with the Falkland Islands councillors over the use of the Islands for military training. The Civil Commissioner informs me that this subject has been discussed with councillors at various informal meetings, and that no objections have been raised. No formal consultations with Councillors have taken place because no government land has been requested for military training. Were such a need to arise, any request would certainly be put to them for their formal approval.Sir Rex Hunt adds that most of the land in the Falklands is privately owned, and that the military have sought and received the willing permission of private land owners for military training 29W on their ground. He assures me that the military have been careful to define their firing ranges only in areas where land owners have given their permission.
§ Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, column 370, how the Falkland Islands Government office shortly to be established in London will be funded; what its capital and annual current costs are expected to be; and what proportion of this is expected to be attributable to work to identify potential settlers.
§ Mr. OnslowThe Falkland Islands Government office will be funded by the Falkland Islands Government and it is for them to decide on its capital and annual running costs. As I told the hon. Member on 6 December, identification of potential settlers will be a priority for the office.
§ Mr. Proctorasked the Secretary of Sate for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list those countries of the Commonwealth which voted or the Argentine-sponsored resolution concerning the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands at the United Nations.
§ Mr. OnslowThe countries of the Commonwealth that voted for this draft resolution were:
- Botswana
- Cyprus
- Ghana
- Grenada
- India
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Nigeria
- Tanzania
- Uganda
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe