– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 15 June 1964.
Mr Willie Hamilton
, Fife West
12:00,
15 June 1964
asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what progress is being made in the discussions with the Libyan Government concerning the future of British military establishments in that country; and if he will make a statement.
Mr R.A. Butler
, Saffron Walden
The discussions between Her Majesty's Government and the Libyan Government about the Anglo-Libyan Treaty were begun on 20th April and resumed on 6th June. The Libyan side was headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the British side by Her Majesty's Ambassador. The talks are continuing, and I am not in a position to make any statement on their substance at this stage.
Mr Willie Hamilton
, Fife West
Is it not the case that our ejection from Libya is imminent? If that is so, can the right hon. Gentleman explain why so many millions of £s have been poured into these bases when such a prospect was highly likely?
Mr R.A. Butler
, Saffron Walden
No; I would not accept the conclusion which the hon. Gentleman draws. Talks are going forward in a constructive spirit and are likely to take some time. I hope that the fundamental wishes of Her Majesty's Government may be met.
Mr Paul Williams
, Sunderland South
Does the existence of these bases make any cash contribution to the Libyan economy?
Mr R.A. Butler
, Saffron Walden
There is no doubt—I am sure that the Libyan Government would agree with this—that these bases have been of considerable value to the economy of the country.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
