TNAG-0525-FCO40-620-Visit-of-UK-Members-of-Parliament-(Defence-and-External-Affa-1975 — Page 39

Mr Rowlands

CONFIDENTIAL

DEFENCE AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS SUB-COMMITTEE (DEASC)

Mr. O'Keeffe

162B

Flags

A & B

10/4/201

1. FCO officials have been summoned to appear before the Sub-Committee on Tuesday 9 December following the Sub-Committee's return from a visit to Hong Kong, Cyprus and Athens. Mr Hawley, AUSS, will lead our team and he will be supported by Mr Goodison

of SED, Mr O'Keeffe of HKIOD and Mr Thom of ASD. Mr Sloman of

the Parliamentary Commissioner and Committees Unit has been in

touch with the Clerk of the Sub-Committee and his minutes of 1 and 4 December indicate the line of questioning which the Committee is likely to follow.

2.

You may recall that the terms of reference for the House of Commons Expenditure Committee, of which the DEASC is a Sub- Committee, are that "there shall be a Select Committee, to be called the Expenditure Committee, to consider any papers on public expenditure presented to this House and such of the Estimates as seem fit to the Committee and in particular to consider how, if at all, the policies implied in the figures of expenditure and in the Estimates may be carried out more economically ....". Unlike the previous Estimates Committee, the Expenditure Committee is not barred from considering the policy behind the figures and I understand that Ministers have on occasion appeared before such Committees to discuss aspects of policy.

3. It is of course the duty of our officials to be as helpful as possible to the Committee but it is normal practice for officials to answer only questions of fact and explain the administrative reasoning behind existing policy. (A distinction could be drawn between explaining policy behind certain expenditures, and explaining HMG's policies in certain international situations, the Committee being more properly concerned with the former.)

CONFIDENTIAL

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