Mr Harold Macmillan: As the oldest of the very few Members of this House who served in both Administrations of my right hon. Friend the Member for Woodford (Sir W. Churchill) t ask the indulgence of the House to say a few words in support of the Motion now before us. In a sense, there is little more that can or that need be said. The Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, the Leader of the Liberal Party,...
Mr Harold Macmillan: This debate takes place in circumstances very different, as far as I personally am concerned, from what I had envisaged up to two months ago, and therefore I hesitated about whether I should weary the House with an intervention or not. I speak now for only two reasons. First, I wished to express publicly what I have, of course, expressed privately, my gratitude to Lord Denning for...
Mr Harold Macmillan: I did not say that there was shame or discredit on the other figures. I said that I thought the procedure was shameful by which, in the Committee—I have read the book carefully—every division was on a party basis and the whole thing seemed to be run on both sides on the basis of whether they could score off each other and not seeking the truth.
Mr Harold Macmillan: With the permission of the House I would like to add a few words to the eloquent tributes to the memory of President Kennedy which have been paid on behalf of all the three great parties in our country. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, and the right hon. Member for Smethwick (Mr. Gordon Walker) and the hon. Member for Huddersfield, West (Mr. Wade), who followed, have expressed in...
Mr Harold Macmillan: My right hon. Friend the Minister of Transport has invited the Confederation to discuss this resolution adopted at its annual conference.
Mr Harold Macmillan: All the aspects will be taken fully into account, and discussions are going on with both ship-owners and ship builders.
Mr Harold Macmillan: All these problems have to be taken into account.
Mr Harold Macmillan: The Government have been looking into the way the D notice system works. As a result we have decided, with the agreement of the Press representatives on the Services Press and Broadcasting Committee, to introduce certain modifications in the procedure for consulting them in future about the issue of D notices on sensitive subjects. I am sure this will meet the point which my hon. and gallant...
Mr Harold Macmillan: Yes, Sir. I think that the discussions we have had will make the system work better. Broadly speaking, it works well, but there are sudden and special cases and we hope to get over some of the difficulties.
Mr Harold Macmillan: I think that, taken broadly over a wide field, the system has worked efficiently. However, there are special cases which present special difficulties.
Mr Harold Macmillan: No, Sir. I share the hon. Member's concern about the congestion in London, but I do not think that the solution is to move the entire seat of government elsewhere.
Mr Harold Macmillan: There are great advantages which we enjoy in having a single city as the seat of government and the main seat of finance and commerce.
Mr Harold Macmillan: I have nothing to add at present to what I told the House on 25th July.
Mr Harold Macmillan: All sorts of possibilities open up as the result of the signature and ratification of the treaty by the countries concerned. We are in close consultation with our allies, but I do not think it would help to make a statement today.
Mr Harold Macmillan: I am considering the representations to which my hon. Friend refers together with other related matters and I will arrange for a statement to be made as soon as possible.
Mr Harold Macmillan: We have to consider these things rather carefully, but I hope to be able to make a statement within two months.
Mr Harold Macmillan: I have not yet received a reply.
Mr Harold Macmillan: We hope to discuss all these matters fully with our allies, including our French allies.
Mr Harold Macmillan: I do not think there is anything; I can usefully add to the statement which I made to the House on 25th July and to the replies which I gave to Questions on 30th July.
Mr Harold Macmillan: All these are important and relevant matters, but, if I have learned anything from my experience in the last few years, it is to proceed by patient negotiation rather than by premature public statements before full consultation.
