Miss Farrell
HKGD
CONFIDENTIAL
Reference
W/34
MR ROBERT PARRY'S PQ'S ON THE REMAINING DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
1
2
We spoke about your circular minute of 4 June.
In keeping with the spirit and the letter of the Prime Minister's recent statement about reducing the number of civil servants and cutting out unnecessary tasks, I hope it would be possible to agree to give a general reply to Mr Parry's first PQ, perhaps on the following lines:
"The administration of each of the remaining dependent territories is executed by its own government under an Officer Administering Government (OAG), most of whom are styled Governor, appointed by Her Majesty. Each territory, which enjoys a large measure of autonomy, has its own elected legislature and its own civil service. Matters relating to external affairs, defence, internal security, the judicature and the public service are generally reserved for decision by the OAG.
I would refer the hon Member to the 1979 edition of "A Yearbook of the Commonwealth", which is available in the House of Commons Library, for further details of the system of government in individual territories.
Few dependencies have a system of local government but those that exist are also described in the same public- ation."
3 In the same spirit, the reply to Mr Parry's second PQ might be as follows:
"I would refer the hon Member to the population figures for the dependencies quoted on page 399 of the 1979 edition of "A Yearbook of the Commonwealth." These are the latest estimates available."
4 I am copying this minute to the recipients of yours, and also to Mr Rushford who will need to agree the terms of whatever draft reply we eventually decide to submit to Mr Parry's first PQ.
Puolues
CODE 18-77
SS 8/78
5 June 1980
сс
Mr Duggan, SAMD Mr Keith, SED Ms Falconer, MCD Miss Marles, SPD Mr Haswell,EAD
"
B T Holmes
West Indian and Atlantic Department G122/3 233 4180
Mr Webb,HKGD Mr Rushford
CONFIDENTIAL