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Oral Answers
27 MARCH 1974
Oral Answers
438
Kong and to maintain the garrison in your presence in Hong Kong should be
Iwithdrawn. that colony?
Mr. Ennals: The hon. Gentleman will remember that my right hon. Friend referred in his Budget speech also to the defence review being carried out by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence. Clearly, it is an all- embracing review. It would be unwise -I have no intention of doing so-either to trespass on his territory or to answer questions that relate to particular parts of the review. Before the hon. Gentle- man leaps to his feet, I can assure him that no changes will be made affecting any part of the world without the fullest consultation with our allies and the occupants of the area.
Mr. George Cunningham: Does my right hon. Friend recall the case of the British police officer in Hong Kong who committed a criminal offence there, came to this country and could not be returned to stand trial in Hong Kong? Are there any plans to avoid a repetition of that situation, so that people who commit an offence in a British colony cannot then seek refuge in the United Kingdom?
Mr. Ennals: This is a difficult prob- lem. The offence alleged against the gentleman in question, in respect of which a warrant has been issued in Hong Kong, concerns a matter which is not an offence in this country. It is an offence under Section 10 of the Hong Kong Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, but, since there is no corresponding offence in this country, the Hong Kong Government are not in a position to seek his return under the Fugitive Offenders Act. It would not be casy, therefore, to produce legislation that would enable this to take place in the case of a matter which is not an offence in the United Kingdom.
Sir Alec Douglas-Home: Does the right hon. Gentleman recall that when his party, in earlier years, proposed to withdraw from east of Suez, it never pro- posed to withdraw from Hong Kong? Does he recognise, also, the absolute importance of maintaining confidence in Hong Kong?
Mr. Ennals: I can give the right hon. Gentleman that assurance. There is no doubt that Her Majesty's Government's commitments to Hong Kong will remain, and there is no suggestion at all that
Vol. 871
EEC and Greece
13. Mr. Woodhouse asked the Secre- tary of State for Foreign and Common- wealth Affairs if he will terminate the negotiations for the adherence of the United Kingdom to the treaty of associa- tion between the European Economic Community and Greece.
The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Roy Hattersley): The negotiations on the protocol to adapt the association agree- ment between Greece and the EEC have made no progress for some months. The Community's relations with Greece will be considered as necessary in our con- tinuing review of EEC policy.
Mr. Woodhouse : Does the hon. Gentleman appreciate that these negotia- tions offer the Government a much more effective lever for persuading the Greek Government to restore democratic institu- tions than the mere cancellation of a naval visit? Will he at least agree to make any renewal of these negotiations conditional upon the relcase of Mr. George Mavros, the leader of one of the major political parties in Greece, whose only offence has been to support the Government's policy towards Greece?
Mr. Hattersley: These negotiations are on a narrow commercial point con- cerning not membership but association. As to the attitude of the Government, I hope that hon. Gentlemen opposite have no doubt where we stand on the need for the restitution of democracy in Greece and our feelings about the imprisonment of those people who thought it right to express their support for the action which the Government took.
Mr. Whitehead: Is my hon. Friend aware that the decision to cancel the naval visit to Greece was widely wel- comed in all parts of the House? Will he convey to the Greek Government the fact that many of us believe that incidents such as the arrest of Mr. George Mavros make it less rather than more likely that the Treaty of Accession negotiations can be continued?
Mr. Hattersley: I am in strong agree- ment with my hon. Friend's comment
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