§ Mr. Tom Clarkeasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the recent letter to the hon. Member for Monklands, West on the subject of Belize from the hon. Member for Wycombe (Mr. Whitney).
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§ Mr. WhitneyThe text of the letter sent to the hon. Member on 23 July 1984 was as follows
During the debate in the House on 17 July on Estimates 1984–85 you asked me a question about Belize which I did not, unfortunately, have time to answer. After discussing Grenada you went on to express the hope that any suggestion that the case for a British presence in Belize had fallen by the wayside would be one I would repudiate, and that our aid policy would give every assistance to George Price, the Prime Minister.Our position on the British garrison has not changed; as agreed with the Government of Belize at independence, the garrison will remain for an appropriate period to assist Belize with external defence. I agree with the implication of your question that the British presence does make a contribution to the security of the region. Nevertheless, we naturally wish to see as soon as possible conditions in which it can safely be withdrawn.At independene the United Kingdom committed £12 million to Belize, half as a grant and half as an interest-free loan, and this sum is currently being taken up at a rate of about £3 million per year. This aid is directed toward infrastructural improvements, such as road building, which are likely to be of immediate benefit but also to contribute to the long-term security of the country.