§ Mr. Michael McNair-WilsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 29 April,Official Report, columns 310–11, whether he will make it his policy to seek to suspend sine die the rights of common, instead of extinguishing them under the Defence Act 1854, with a view to their restoration once Greenham and Cookham Commons are no longer required for military use.
§ Mr. FreemanThe option was carefully considered before the decision to extinguish the commoner's rights was announced. Since the lapse of the wartime defence regulations in 1958 the Ministry of Defence has had no legal powers to suspend commoners' rights. However, I am considering whether these rights, once extinguished, could be restored, in the event that RAF Greenham Common is no longer required for defence purposes.