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to contige 1to3admister Tripolitania for a furthagperiod, of 488king party should be sent to the territory and that its terms of reference should be as wide as those of the Cyrenaican working party of 1947. This new working party should review the situation in the light of developments within the last two years and should consider to what extent the recommendations of 1947 should be extended and brought up to date.

5. In connection with the future of Tripolitania, our colleagues will recall that on 20th January this year (C.M. (49) 5th Conclusion, Minute 4) the Cabinet approved a proposal contained in C.P. (49) 12 that the administrative responsi- bility for the territory, together with that for Cyrenaica, should be transferred from the War Office to the Foreign Office as soon as the necessary arrangements could be made. These arrangements are now in hand and the date upon which responsibility should be transferred is under consideration.

RECOMMENDATION

We therefore recommend that the Cabinet should approve the setting up of a working party for Tripolitania under the leadership of an experienced admin- istrator such as was Sir B. Reilly and its despatch to the territory in the imme- diate future. We also recommend that our colleagues approve the draft terms of reference for this working party which are annexed to this memorandum.

E. B.

8th March, 1949

E S

ANNEX

TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR WORKING PARTY ON TRIPOLITANIA

The Working Party shall, in consultation with the Chief Administrator and other officers of the administration, review the situation in Tripolitania in the light of the developments during the last two years and make recommendations for social, administrative, economic and constitutional measures designed to benefit the inhabitants of Tripolitania. In making these recommendations the Working Party will bear in mind the available labour, material, &c., and will assess the financial implications and how far any increased expenditure can be offset by additional locally raised revenue.