1245
British Nuclear Fuels (Warrington)
16 MARCH 1992
weeks' time, and I fully intend to be here, but exactly who turns and on what side we sit will be decided, as it should be, by the electorate. I have no epitaph for this Parliament beyond saying after Syetonius,
"Ave, Populus, morituri te salutant”.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Miss Betty Boothroyd): The sitting is suspended until 2.30 pm when either Black Rod will be expected imminently or a further announcement will be made about when he will arrive.
11.6 am
Sitting suspended until half past Two o'clock.
On resuming:-
2.32 pm
Sitting further suspended.
On resuming:
3.15 pm
Sitting further suspended.
3.51 pm
On resuming:—
Royal Assent
Message to attend the Lords Commissioners: The House went:—and, having returned:
Mr. Speaker (in the Clerk's place at the Table): I have to acquaint the House that the House has been to the House of Peers, where a Commission under the Great Seal was read, authorising the Royal Assent to the following Acts:
Consolidated Fund (No. 2) Act 1992 Appropriation Act 1992
Finance Act 1992
Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992
Offshore Safety (Protection against Victimisation)
Act 1992
Prison Security Act 1992
Tourism (Overseas Promotion) (Wales) Act 1992 Parliamentary Corporate Bodies Act 1992
Medicinal Products: Prescriptions by Nurses etc.
Act 1992
Still-Birth (Definition) Act 1992
Traffic Calming Act 1992
Firearms (Amendment) Act 1992
Cheques Act 1992
Social Security (Mortgage Interest Payments) Act
1992
Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992 Timeshare Act 1992
Sea Fisheries (Wildlife Conservation) Act 1992 Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 Education (Schools) Act 1992
Army Act 1992
Friendly Societies Act 1992
Transport and Works Act 1992
Competition and Service (Utilities) Act 1992 Charities Act 1992
Museums and Galleries Act 1992
London Underground Act 1992
Aire and Calder Navigation Act 1992 Avon Weir Act 1992
Folkestone Habour Act 1992
Midland Metro Act 1992
Midland Metro (No. 2) Act 1992
Prorogation
Prorogation
1246
HER MAJESTY'S MOST GRACIOUS SPEECH
Mr. Speaker: I have further to acquaint the House that the Lord High Chancellor, being one of the High Commissioners, delivered Her Majesty's Most Gracious Speech to both Houses of Parliament, in pursuance of Her Majesty's Command, as follows:
My Lords and Members of the House of Commons
The Duke of Edinburgh and I were pleased to visit Australia in February.
My Government have continued to make provision for the defence of the United Kingdom, including a substantial contribution to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. They ratified the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty.
At the Summit meeting in Rome last November, NATO agreed a new Strategic Concept and set up the North Atlantic Co-operation Council, which at its Ministerial meeting on 10th March formally admitted republics of the Commonwealth of Independent States as members following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
My Government welcomed President Yeltsin to London on his first official visit as President of the Russian Federation. They are contributing directly to international efforts to dismantle weapons of mass destruction in the former Soviet Union and to economic reform programmes there. The European Community have agreed emergency food aid grants and credits worth over £1.5 billion.
My Government contributed significantly to the successful outcome to the European Council at Maastricht. Negotiations were concluded in the Inter-Governmental Conferences on Economic and Monetary Union, and on Political Union. The Treaty was signed on 7th February. My Government have continued to work within the Community to complete the Single European Market; to promote budgetary discipline; and to reform the Common Agricultural Policy; and for the conclusion of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations. Agreement in principle has been reached to extend the Single Market to the European Free Trade Area from 1993.
The Community have also moved to consolidate relations with the new democracies to the East. Three Association Agreements, which were originally proposed by the United Kingdom have been signed with Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland, and the trade liberalisation provisions of these Agreements have now come into effect.
In Yugoslavia, My Government have strongly supported the European Community's peace conference under Lord Carrington's chairmanship. They recognised the independence of Croatia and Slovenia. They participated fully in discussions leading to the adoption of a United Nations' Security Council Resolution to authorise the deployment of a peace-keeping force.
As President of the Security Council, My Government convened the first Summit meeting of Council Heads of State or Government which set in hand work to strengthen the United Nations' preventive diplomacy and peace-keeping efforts.
My Government have worked for the full implementa- tion of Security Council Resolutions against Iraq. The
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