CO129-382 - Public Offices - 1911 — Page 373

[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]

OPIUM.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[2659]

No. 1.

371

[January 23.

SECTION 4.

21 FEB 1'

Sir,

Board of Trade to Foreign Office.-(Received January 23.)

Board of Trade, January 21, 1911.

I AM directed by the Board of Trade to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 12th January relative to a suggestion made by the Colonial Office that legislation should be passed in this country restricting the export of preparations of morphine and cocaine, and in reply, I am to transmit to you herewith, copy of a communication which the Board have caused to be addressed to that Department on the subject.

I am, &c.

GEO. J. STANLEY.

Sir,

Enclosure 1 in No. 1.

Board of Trade to Colonial Office.

Board of Trade, January 21, 1911.

I AM directed by the Board of Trade to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 6th January with its enclosures, relative to a suggested restriction by legislation of the exports of preparations of morphine and cocaine from the United Kingdom.

In reply, I am to state that the Board are disposed to think that the passage at the present stage of an Act or Parliament on the lines suggested would accomplish little in the desired direction, for unless export from this country to all destinations were prohibited, it would be difficult, without international agreement, to prevent drugs reaching their intended destination indirectly by being consigned, for instance, from the United Kingdom to the continent and reshipped thence to Hong Kong. Moreover, even if the export trade of the United Kingdom in these products were to be entirely stopped, consumers in the East would still be able to obtain supplies from other

sources.

In view of these considerations the Board doubt the desirability of any steps being taken with a view to legislation in this country unless and until an international arrangement is arrived at, as the result of which it may prove possible to prevent both indirect trade in the drugs in question and also the substitution of one source of supply for another. It is of course open to the Hong Kong legislature to restrict the importation of these preparations into that colony.

A copy of this letter is being sent to the Foreign Office.

[1857 ~4]

I am, &c.

GEO. J. STANLEY.