TNAG-0714-FCO40-910-Future-of-the-Dependent-Territories-1978 — Page 19

10.

in practice involve the Powers concerned in assuming some measure of

control over the territory if only for the maintainance of order and the

Aservand

servance of certain international obligations. The jurisdictional

rights required for this were accordingly assumed by us in the Pacific Order in Council of 1893, and under that authority we assumed a Protect-

orate over the Soloman Islands in 1898 and over the Gilbert and Ellice islands in the following year (to which neighbouring islands like Ocean and Fanning Islands were subsequently added).

III. The Reasons for our Rigid Attachment to the 'Westminster Model'

of Parliamentary Democracy in the Colonies, especially in the

relation to the Small Dependencies, and Criticisms which have

Been made thereof.

The latter part of this question, concerning the criticisms made of

the suitability of the Westminster Model to our dependencies, is a very

large one and can only be briefly alluded to here (at the end of this

*

Section), but I think the Minister has mostly in mind the unsuitability,

both as institutions of government and in terms of cost of the elaborate

machinery involved, of the Westminster model for the S.D's,

As to the reasons for our adherence to it in these S.D's, a

distinction must be made between the W. Indian possessions and the rest,

since the former are a special case in this respect. As the dates of

the acquisition of most of them given in Section II above indicate, they

have a very long British tradition dating from the early 17th century in

many cases, and a very long tradition of British modes of government.

They inherited in most cases, at the outset, our classical 18th century

constitution of King, Cabinet or Privy Council, and a bi-cameral legis-

lature, and despite the rapid and early outnumbering of the

British element of their population by the imported negro population, and

despite the substitution in many cases in the 19th century of direct

In the event; time has not permitted me to include this, regretfully.

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