The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Category: 1994

  • PMQT Written Answers – 28 April 1994

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 28th April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Community Health Councils

    Mr. Redmond : To ask the Prime Minister on what dates, and where, in the last five years he has held discussions with officers of community health councils.

    The Prime Minister : I frequently meet a wide range of people involved in the national health service.

    My right hon. Friend the Minister for Health, and my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Health, spoke at the Association of Community Health Councils for England and for Wales at their annual conferences in 1992 and 1993 respectively. Ministers in both Scotland and Northern Ireland have also made keynote speeches at equivalent conferences.

     

    Lockerbie Disaster

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister what representations Her Majesty’s Government have received concerning the extradition of the persons alleged to have committed the murders of the passengers and crew of Pan Am 103 and residents of Lockerbie in December 1988; and if he will make a statement.

    The Prime Minister : We have received no recent representations concerning the extradition of the two accused, who are Libyan nationals. It is now well over two years since warrants were issued for their arrest.

    We have given comprehensive assurances as to the fairness of a trial in Scotland and the pre-trial conditions for the accused. We and our Security Council partners have made it clear that the Libyan Government should comply with the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and hand the two accused over for trial without further delay.

     

    Engagements

    Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 April.

    The Prime Minister : This morning, I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

     

    VJ-day

    Mr. Austin-Walker : To ask the Prime Minister what consultations he has had or proposes to have regarding proposals to commemorate the 50th anniversary of VJ-day.

    The Prime Minister : The Ministry of Defence will consult the principal veterans’ associations about the nature of commemorative events to mark the end of the second world war. Consultation will also be appropriate with other nations and other voluntary or charitable organisations who may wish to be involved.

     

    Sir Robin Butler

    Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Prime Minister what advice Sir Robin Butler has furnished to Government Departments when issuing decisions relating to local or European dimensions.

    The Prime Minister : Sir Robin Butler’s office recently reminded departments of the standing guidance to civil servants relating to the period preceding local and European elections. The guidance emphasises the political neutrality of the civil service and is as follows :

    “Local and European election campaigns differ from general elections in that there is no prospect of a change of government consequent upon the elections, and the business of government continues as usual. However, there is an increasing tendency by all political parties to approach local and European elections from a national point of view, with nationally produced material, and departments will wish to follow consistent principles when responding to requests for information in connection with election campaigns. They should also exercise particular care in issuing decisions with a local or European dimension, and in undertaking new paid publicity campaigns during the period of a local or European election. The following general principles should be observed during the period of a local or European election :

    (a) as at other times, civil servants should not be asked to engage in activities which call into question their political impartiality, or to give rise to the criticism that people paid from public funds are being used for party political purposes; special advisers should be asked to avoid circulating material on party paper within departments;

    (b) there should be even-handedness in meeting information requests from candidates from different political parties ; such requests and responses should be channelled through the appropriate Minister’s private office;

    (c) organisations and members of the public (including election candidates) should be provided, on request, with factual information which is unclassified and does not require disproportionate time or effort to produce. As from 4 April 1994, such requests should be handled in accordance with the principles laid down in the Code of Practice on Government Information;

    (d) particular care should be taken on the timing and announcement of sensitive decisions which have a bearing on local or European matters. It may be better in some cases to defer announcements until after the election, but each case should be considered on its merits ; the key point is to avoid criticism that action by officials might influence the political outcome;

    (e) special care should be taken in respect of proposals for new paid publicity campaigns, which should not invite criticism that they are being undertaken for party political purposes.”

     

    Blaby (Visit)

    Mr. Robathan : To ask the Prime Minister when he is next intending to pay an official visit to Blaby.

    The Prime Minister : I have no immediate plans to do so.

     

    War Medals

    Mr. Hardy : To ask the Prime Minister if he will now reconsider the question of the award of campaign medals for those involved in the invasion of Europe in 1944 and for those involved in the bombing campaign over mainland Europe in the period from 1940.

    The Prime Minister [holding answer 27 April 1994] : His Majesty King George VI approved the following awards. All personnel who took part in the invasion and subsequent operations in north-west Europe, between 6 June 1944 and 8 May 1945, are eligible for the France and Germany Star. British aircrew who undertook operations over the continent of Europe between 3 September 1939 and 5 June 1944 are eligible for the Air Crew Europe Star, provided they have qualified for the 1939-45 star.

     

    Public Appointments

    Mr. Byers : To ask the Prime Minister which organisations have recently been contacted by the public appointments unit asking it to consider nominations for public appointments.

    The Prime Minister [holding answer 27 April 1994] : To increase the supply of names of people who might be willing to serve on public bodies, and to supplement those already on its database, the public appointments unit within the Cabinet Office began, in September 1993, a three-year programme of actively seeking more names. Letters from the director of the unit are being sent to universities, professional and voluntary bodies, companies, trade unions, women’s groups and organisations representing the ethnic minority communities and disabled people.

    As has been made clear on previous occasions, nominations are welcome from hon. Members and from any other appropriate quarter at any time.

  • Mr Major’s Joint Press Conference with Chancellor Helmut Kohl – 27 April 1994

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s joint press conference with the German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, held in London on Wednesday 27th April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We have had today at Chequers, and with other Ministers elsewhere around London, a formal summit but frankly with a fairly informal side. It has certainly, judging from the reports of the plenary, both been very easy natured and very productive. Many of the meetings that have been held have produced some initiatives and I will touch on some of those in a few moments time.

    In the discussions I had with the Chancellor at Chequers we spent the bulk of our time looking at the broad picture of what will happen in the European Union and in our European continent beyond the boundaries of the European Union in the years immediately ahead.

    The key issue we were keen to exchange views on today was how to extend the security and prosperity that we have become used to in Western Europe to our neighbours further to the East, and we agreed that Germany and the United Kingdom should continue to work together on that particular objective.

    We agreed on three specific projects: first, we will jointly make a proposal to Hungary for our armed forces to hold a trilateral peace-keeping exercise in 1995 in the broad framework of the Partnership for Peace Agreement; secondly, we have agreed to coordinate our national efforts to help Ukraine remove all nuclear weapons from her soil; and thirdly, we agreed to enlarge our traditional bilateral defence seminar and enlarge it by inviting representatives of Partnership for Peace countries to take part next year at our seminar in Hamburg.

    We also discussed relations with Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States and other countries of central and eastern Europe. I do not think I need to go into those discussions in depth, our approach to them is virtually identical and our governments continue to cooperate very closely in these areas.

    We spent some time this morning looking at the problems of Bosnia. I think there is no doubt after the set-back earlier this month that UNPROFOR has taken a step forward today with the withdrawal of Serb heavy weapons from the surrounds of Gorazde. That was the result of some very difficult and some very carefully measured decisions by NATO and of skilful and courageous work yet again by the United Nations protection forces on the ground. We are both determined to help NATO and UNPROFOR defer aggression against any of the safe areas, but we agreed this morning that the real prize is a negotiated settlement. Both the United Kingdom and Germany are represented in the new contact group that has now been established and that will try to help the United Nations achieve a comprehensive ceasefire which must be linked to the settlement negotiations.

    Neither of us were in any doubt that achieving a settlement, a lasting settlement, was likely to be an immensely difficult task, but we share the view that we will have the best chance of achieving that by pooling the diplomatic effort between Europe, the United Nations, Russia and the United States in the contact group that has been established.

    We spent some time on European Union matters. The Chancellor of course takes over the Presidency of the Community in a couple of months time and he may wish to say more about that himself in a few moments. But before then we hope to see the accession treaties of the four EFTAn applicants through the European Parliament and signed. During the German Presidency we agreed we wish to work together on specific steps to build up the Union’s relations with the countries to the east.

    We also identified a fairly long list of European Union subjects where we share a common approach. Simply to list them for you illustrates the scale of the areas of agreement: competitiveness; subsidiarity; deregulation; the single market, especially telecommunications, energy, transport and budgetary discipline; a more effective foreign policy; and common action under the Justice and Home Affairs pillar on illegal immigration, asylum, terrorism, drugs and other forms of crime. We have issued a joint statement on cooperation in those areas which I think you should have by now.

    There is no doubt you are going to hear a good deal more about deregulation in Europe. The Chancellor and I wish to see a substantial reduction in the regulatory burdens on European business because we both believe it will help growth and help competitiveness.

    We have agreed today to work with the Commission and other members to ensure that deregulation is at the heart of European policy-making in order to promote real increases in competitiveness, employment and economic growth.

    At their bilateral the President of the Board of Trade and Herr Rexrodt agreed that an Anglo-German group of businessmen should be invited to scrutinise European Union regulation and to act as a stimulus for specific deregulatory measures in Europe.

    I do not wish in these brief remarks to cover all the subjects we discussed, though I should emphasise to you the importance to both countries of the South African elections today. Both Britain and Germany have worked for many years, very often very closely together, to help bring about change in South Africa, so we both wish to do all we can to assist the in-coming government after the elections are concluded in South Africa. We hope to see business investing there and both competing and collaborating to develop the enormous economic potential that we both believe exists in South Africa.

    What was clear from our discussions was that the Anglo-German relationship is in very good heart indeed. Our politicians, our professionals, our businessmen, our performers, our cultural figures, all of them know one another, I believe they both like and respect one another as well.

    But we did discuss one other matter, we do wish to bring our young people closer together if we possibly can and improve our understanding of each other’s countries. So the Chancellor and I agreed this morning that we would ask our officials to come up with specific and imaginative proposals on this and we will discuss them and take decisions on that at our next meeting later this year.

    So that is a broad summary of what has been happening, I will invite the Chancellor to add, or if he wishes, subtract from what I have just said.

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    First of all, I will gladly take this opportunity here to thank you and the members of the British Cabinet on my own behalf and also on behalf of my colleagues in the Cabinet, for these very frank, very open, very fruitful talks that were characterised by a spirit of mutual friendship.

    The relationship between our two countries are of the utmost importance, particularly if we look towards the future development of the European Union. We have taken different courses during this century and this century will soon end in only a few years time and it was a century that was characterised by a lot of suffering, death and pain, and we see it as our task, looking to our children and generations to come, to build a cooperation characterised by friendship and mutual trust in all possible areas.

    And John, here in front of the public of your country, l would like to thank you personally, John, for the fact that during your time in office we have been able to discuss matters in such a frank, open and very warm atmosphere and I trust that we might be able to continue that.

    The Prime Minister has just mentioned in his introduction most of the issues that we discussed, I would just like to make a few remarks. The first remark is that another subject which we discussed was one that may not be the most dramatic one, but that is important too, we agreed that until the next Anglo-German consultations to enlarge and intensify the exchange of young people, I think that this is a very important subject indeed. You know that we should foster this to the best of our abilities and I think there should be very many possibilities for young people to meet and to get to know each other.

    On 3 September in Berlin we will, together with Vice President Al Gore, Francois Mitterrand and John Major, take leave of the allied troops that have been stationed in Berlin for so long and I would like to use this opportunity to thank the hundreds and thousands of British soldiers who served in our country and who lived together with their families in our country and the fact that we, before unification the Federal Republic of Germany, were able to maintain our freedom and peace and the fact that we have been given this gift of German unification is due to the fact that they have served and done their duty in our country. I know it is not fashionable these days to say “Thank You”, but I would like to use this opportunity to say a very warm “Thank You” to you.

    The Prime Minister mentioned a number of issues that we discussed this morning, we were totally in agreement that we should do everything in our power in order to give help for self help to the reforming countries in central and eastern Europe and I think that we have after all entered into a promise here and we have said to those people who were subjugated under the yoke of communism, should you throw off that yoke, should you introduce democracy, the rule of law and a market economy, we will help you, and we have to keep this promise now.

    We talked about the important vote that will be taken next week in the European Parliament on the accession of the EFTA countries -Norway, Sweden, Finland and Norway – and we hope that there will be a clear majority of the European Parliament for this accession.

    Another important issue was the German Presidency, Germany will take over the Presidency of the European Union in only a few weeks and we have agreed on trying to promote a number of very important issues together in very close coordination and cooperation, close cooperation also of the immediate members of our personal staff.

    Of the many issues that we discussed this morning that will play a role in the second half of this year, I would like to only mention a few. First of all a discussion of the white book on employment and economic growth. In spite of the positive developments that we see in our economic systems the problem of the loss of jobs is a concern, one of the most important concerns that we both share, the problems that many people have to find jobs. And John Major talked about the intensification of cooperation in the common foreign and security field, and there is another area where we should cooperate, namely in home matters, in domestic matters, would like to mention here particularly the fight against organised crime, against the mafia. In only few weeks time there will be a summit meeting under the Greek Presidency and we will have this on the agenda.

    Another important subject obviously is the issue of migration and the whole complex of issues related to asylum. Then another subject that we discussed already in Edinburgh but which I think has not really developed in a very positive sense, something that is at the real heart of the integration of Europe, namely the subject of deregulation, getting away from too much rhetoric, too much bureaucracy on a European level, and that is a subject that I take a personal interest in.

    In Germany we are very satisfied, although one would have to wait and see whether optimism is really in place here, but there seems to be a bit of light at least at the end of the tunnel in former Yugoslavia in view of the developments this morning. We sincerely hope that those who have political responsibility in Serbia understand the message that the civilised world has sent to them, and last but not least, that NATO has sent to them.

    A last point. Since we have waged so many battles together, the British government and the German government, over the past 10 years on South Africa on abolishing apartheid, racial discrimination, I would like to say that we both note with particular pleasure and satisfaction that the elections are now going on in South Africa and let me say that I am hopeful that they will be democratic and free elections, obviously we would all have to remember here in Europe that this is an enormous undertaking and we all hope I think for peaceful developments there in South Africa.

    In one word and in a nutshell, John, thank you for the very warm and friendly reception and we will go on and continue to work together closely.

     

    QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

    QUESTION:

    Chancellor, two questions, the first one as to the relationship between the UK and Germany. One sees that the mood seems to have improved considerably since the predecessor of Mr. Major left office.

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    He has his own complex, John, you know!

    SAME MAN:

    There are certain irritations in the press however on for example the commemoration of D-Day. Do you feel that this is something normal or do you think that this is a burden on the relationship?

    The second question is on Europe where too one has mentioned a number of different accents that seem to be put on different parts of policy by the two governments. Do you think that what has been the policy enumerated in the Maastricht Treaty is no longer realistic in the light of present developments? And then the development of Europe will not go without blood, sweat and tears?

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    Well, John, I have known this esteemed colleague from the British press for a long time and I would have been very disappointed had he not mentioned your predecessor in office. That has been his standard subject for many years.

    The relationship is an excellent one and has been for a long time and I don’t think one should make any bones about it and as far as I can see, in every family however there are obviously disagreements and there are as far as I can see also in every newspaper editor’s room about this.

    As to the events that will commemorates what happened fifty years ago, I must say quite frankly that I really don’t understand what people are talking about. When I read these reports in the press I am really surprised because at no point in time did I ever seek to get invited to the commemorations for D-Day and had I been invited I would not have attended and this was very well known so this has never been an issue between us but what is I think quite a matter of course and understandable to everyone is that we want to learn our lesson from history and if next year for example, looking back on the end of the Second World War, we agree to meet and to remember the dead of that war and to pay our respects to the victims of that particular war it will be in the joint conviction that it is our duty – and let me say this on a very personal note; after all I was 15 years old when the war ended so I have a very personal memory of it – that we feel obliged to see to it that no generation will ever be in such a situation again in Europe that there be war between them.

    As to enlargement, I think we have a common policy concert and we will have to obviously discuss that during the Presidency.

    As to the question of union, from the German point of view there has always been a very clear list of priorities. The first and most important point has been and will always be that a future joint European currency will have to be subordinated to the laws of stability and that stability is more important than anything else.

    As to the date, I think you should wait and see a little but after all I was in Paris six years ago and had I said at the time that the Common European market will be introduced and if I had given you the date and people would have been very doubtful five years ago had I told you we would agree on the Maastricht Treaty and adopt it. People here would have said: “Well now he has finally gone round the bend! That treaty will never come!” People said it would never be ratified and now it has been ratified and is being ratified so please be a bit patient with us!

    Here in this house you can feel history in every nook and cranny and you can feel also that time is very relevant if you look back into history. What is important now is that we make the right decision and this is what we want.

    QUESTION:

    I wanted to know if the chances of the Belgian Prime Minister for the Presidency of the EC Commission are stronger after this summit than before.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I read in the newspapers today, those that I read, that the Chancellor and I were supposed to be having “sharp disagreements” I think was the expression over the Presidency of the Commission, I hate to disappoint you but we haven’t managed a sharp disagreement today on any subject at all!

    As far as the Commission Presidency is concerned, the question is now only beginning to come under discussion around European capitals. It didn’t feature high on our agenda and it is not something which will be decided between Britain and Germany or indeed between any two member states; it is a collective decision for all the members of the European Union.

    The matter will almost certainly be discussed at the Corfu Council which is still two months away and the Twelve will collectively look for a well-qualified candidate who can command general support. It is not absolutely necessary that the decision is made at Corfu but clearly we will examine it there. At this stage it isn’t yet wholly clear who all the candidates might be. I have heard at least half a dozen names mentioned; it may be others will be mentioned as well so there is no sharp disagreement, no determination who the next President of the Commission will be, it is a decision for a later time in a larger group.

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    John, let me comment if I may. I would like to say that the Federal Government has not in any way made any firm choice or is trying to push any particular candidate. The purported talks that have been reported in the papers have never taken place. Obviously we will consult about this matter with partners in the European Union, with colleagues of state and government so whoever is reporting that we have already fixed a candidate will report something that is totally wrong and if you think that I am a candidate you may rest assured that I will certainly not be a candidate for this particular post.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, your former colleague in government, Lord Young, who is now Chairman of Cable & Wireless launched a very strong attack yesterday on the European Community. He suggested Britain was wasting its time being a member of it and should actually look to the emerging markets in the Far East. He also gave a very strong warning about unemployment in Europe and the rise of fascism. Could I have your response to that please?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think there is total agreement certainly between the Chancellor and I and amongst the other European Heads of Government as well that Europe can’t be inward-looking, that Europe does have to look to the Far East and elsewhere. It is with those markets that we have to compete. Germany and Britain don’t just have to compete against Spain and against France; we have to compete against Japan, the United States, the Pacific Basin and Latin America as well so to that extent Lord Young is right to say that the whole of the European Union must lift its sights and make sure that it collectively can compete with the rest of the world. There is nothing startling about that. The Chancellor and I would absolutely agree with that point.

    We also think that within the European Union a great deal has been gained collectively by the development of the Community into the present Union. That would be our view on the latter point but of course we must look beyond the European Union. We are not, we can’t be and we never will be a narrow inward-looking group that doesn’t raise its sights to what goes on in the rest of the world so of course we will compete beyond it. A great deal of Britain’s trade is with the European Union, we are massive trading partners of Germany, Germany are our largest trading partners in the European Union but we also have very substantial trade in the Far East, America, Africa and elsewhere and so of course do our partners so I think Lord Young on the substantive part of his thesis was preaching a gospel that would be generally accepted.

    QUESTION (Barnaby Mason, BBC World Service):

    Prime Minister and Chancellor, you are both in favour I think of opening up the European Union towards the countries of central and eastern Europe. What changes, what reforms do you think there are going to have to be in the structure of the European Union in order among other things that it should be able to pay for the financial implications of enlargement?

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    Before I answer the question, allow me to make just one remark on what Lord Young said. In the Federal Republic of Germany every fourth job comes from export into countries of the European Union and allow me half in jest to say that the productivity of the European Union cannot be seen if you look at the atlas of 1914, you have to look at the map of today of 1994; then you can see very clearly that the world is a very changed place and that the world has changed for the United Kingdom, changed for Germany and changed for all.

    Right now we are in the final phase of enlargement of the European Union with new members Norway, Finland, Sweden and Austria coming in and obviously after the referenda are taken in these countries and the decision has been made there needs.to be a certain phase of tranquillity, a certain breathing space when one has to discuss the consequences for institutions, for the Parliament, for the budget in the European Union because after all we must not have a situation where enlargement means that we raise the number of funds to an unlimited number; we also have to achieve budget stability.

    Secondly, under German Presidency – and I am saying this in such a general way because I don’t want to preempt anything that anyone else might want to say – we will have to discuss in public an enlargement at a later point in time. I don’t want to mention any dates here but obviously under the precondition that these countries themselves actually want it and actually create at home the necessary preconditions for that it will have to be seen in such a way that the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary would be the first candidates for that enlargement. Then we will have to talk very frankly about where we see limits to enlargement and in all the discussions that are now going on about enlargement, further enlargement will certainly not be possible. We will have to discuss the possibilities of concluding Treaties of Association in the security field and the foreign policy field and in the economic field and enlargement over and above the countries that I have mentioned and on the list of the Parliament for next week for the vote but that will only be possible in a number of years and when this will be no-one is able to say and certainly only after the present enlargement has been concluded.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Those who are familiar with the British position on enlargement will have been familiar with what the Chancellor has just said. I think it indicates the degree of practical agreement between us on many of these issues. Clearly, we have to look at institutional change. It also means looking at policies. As the Chancellor said, there is no bottomless budgetary pit and we have to take account of the economic readiness of applicant countries as staging posts. We will wish to see what we can do in a variety of ways – trade liberalisation and other ways as well – to help encourage the next tranche of members to become ready for membership and to look at Association and other agreements to achieve it. That is very much a matter that we will need to address not in the far distance but in the near distance so that we can begin to prepare the path for those applicant countries we have identified and assist them to become ready to join the Union.

    QUESTION (Andrew Marr):

    Could I ask the two leaders whether they believe that the historical drive for a deeper Union is now over?

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    I certainly don’t think so, certainly not. We are right now at the front of a development that may have both possibilities in it. We will have to do a lot of work, we will have to increase the awareness of people in our countries about what is going on. We have to disseminate information but I must say I am very clear in my mind that if we were to be asked how do we want to shape the future of countries going back on what we have achieved would mean yesterday and then there is a common future in a European Union that is not a centralist state, not a supranational entity that takes care of everything. Quite the contrary would be a Community where we all of us maintain our identity, where we bring in our traditions, our culture, where the British stay British, the French French, the Germans German and it would be a rather boring sort of club if we were not to maintain our national peculiarities.

    In the decisive questions however as they relate to the acceptance of our people we would not be able to cope with matters. Just look at the worldwide challenge posed by the subject of environmental pollution and other matters like development policy, the gap between rich and poor countries; look at the European Union! In spite of all the difficulties that we may have it is actually a community of the rich nations. If I look at the task that we have in order to maintain peace, freedom and security on our continent no-one should believe that these terrible spectres of the past, these terrible ghosts of the past, are only at home on the Balkans; they may raise their ugly heads at any minute and there are a number of other issues where I feel we have to work strongly together. I think that we are now at a historical cross-roads where we have the possibility to ensure that one’s own country enjoys prosperity and wealth and together with our partners we go into the future and create that sort of prosperity for all of us.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    As the Chancellor said, we illustrated earlier some areas of greater cooperation not a centralist state as the Chancellor indicated a moment or so ago but if one pitches one’s mind forward for a few years and looks at the sort of world we will be living in – Japan, a much, more powerful China, United States, Russia – there are going to be areas where in the collective European interest one will wish to have the collective European muscle and those are areas of cooperation where it is very much in the interests of each individual country in Europe to seek cooperation. The Chancellor touched on some, I would offer others! The initiatives that were developed between our Home and Interior Ministers today on crime are an illustration where it is practical for us to work together. You can call that “deepening” if you wish. The development of the foreign policy pillars is another illustration where one works as individual nations but collectively exercising muscle. They both arise – the home affairs pillar and the foreign affairs pillar – out of the Maastricht Treaty and there are developments like this where it is going to be collectively in the interests of the European states without, as the Chancellor emphasised, creating a centralist state which so many people not just in the United Kingdom are concerned about, where it is in the interests of all of us in the European Union to cooperate so I think there are many areas.

    QUESTION (Robin Oakley, BBC):

    Could I ask Chancellor Kohl please: we are at the moment in the European elections campaign. Does he think that the European Parliament has sufficient powers at present and if not, how would he like to see those powers enhanced at the next intergovernmental conference in 1996?

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    I think that the European Parliament now has an enlarged competence after the Maastricht Treaty. One may obviously discuss whether one has actually gone a step further in adopting the Maastricht Treaty but I do think that we have gone a step further. Now the new Parliament will be elected and will have to deal with its rights and obligations. There will be a certain phase of transition which we will have to get used to it and you will see after a certain phase of consolidation that for the first time the European Parliament will actually be able to have a say and a very significant say in the appointment of the President of the Commission.

    I am for pragmatic solutions. I don’t think that one should hold any dogma. I must say that I am rather surprised that the Germans should be all of a sudden the pragmatists and that there are others in Europe who look at the subject in a way that I think is particularly German. I am for a number of many small steps but I am for making those steps. As to how they may develop also in view of the intergovernmental conference in 1996 one would have to look at that in the light of developments.

    There is one thing that I would like to mention here. If I look back fifteen years ago when we discussed the question of competency at the European Parliament, if I remember my first EC summit meeting in December 1982 in Copenhagen at what was possible then and what is now reality now, I am not pessimistic at all.

  • Mr Major’s Joint Doorstep Interview with Helmut Kohl – 27 April 1994

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s joint doorstep interview with Chancellor Helmut Kohl, held at Northolt on Wednesday 27th April 1994.

    [Some of Chancellor Kohl’s comments were inaudible due to the translation being heard at the same time].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    May I just say at the outset how pleased I am to see the Chancellor back in the United Kingdom. Over the last few years we have met in a number of countries, quite apart from the United Kingdom and in Germany, we have had meetings at chalets in Austria and many European Councils, I am delighted to see such a good friend of the United Kingdom back here for a meeting today at Chequers.

    We have a wide range of European Union and wider European matters to discuss today and no doubt we will report on those at our press conference later on this afternoon.

    Let me just say at the outset that I am pleased to say it does seem we had a pretty quiet night in Gorazde. At the moment aid is getting into Gorazde and patients are getting out and I am delighted that that proves to be the case and I hope further examination this morning will show that the Serb armaments have been moved to 20 kilometres away, as requested, we will know about that I think fairly shortly.

    I think the Chancellor and I will also wish to discuss the South African elections, both Germany and the United Kingdom have taken a great interest in moving South Africa towards democracy in recent years and despite the further disgraceful bomb incident this morning, it does seem that the election is proceeding satisfactorily and we look forward to the new government being formed and to the role that both Germany and the United Kingdom can play in helping South Africa move forward to the future.

    I think on bilateral and other matters I will reserve any comments until after our press conference this afternoon, but I will invite the Chancellor to say just a word or two at the outset.

    CHANCELLOR KOHL:

    It is a very great pleasure to be here once again. We have had a very strong and [indistinct] cooperation and we have been able to achieve a lot together. And the relationships between our countries are not like the weather today, the relationships are very sunny, they are excellent, we have [indistinct] and if there are questions or problems then we always manage to discuss them in a very friendly atmosphere.

    We have a lot of understanding for each other, we understand each other well. Britain and Germany are amongst the important countries of the European Union and from my perspective as the German Chancellor it is particularly important that the common European future is actually done together with Britain. We have different histories, we have different traditions and it is quite natural and obvious to me that we take into consideration how the other countries have come this long way [indistinct].

    [Indistinct] very particular day because the truth is that it was the British government [indistinct] who during these whole years [indistinct] in South Africa have actually committed themselves to this course of action. It was a process that often one had to wonder whether it [indistinct] success and neither of us has any illusions, we know how very difficult it is and we know how difficult it is to achieve what [indistinct] and to achieve it in a useful way. But if I look at the many meetings in the European Council where we talked about it over the last 10 years or so, and if I think of the Conference of the G7, it is a very great pleasure to think that today we really have made enormous progress.

    And I wish all of those who are suffering in the former Yugoslavia that what has been attempted now and what has been started will actually lead to success and that all those who are active there will understand that a civilised international community cannot [indistinct] where one changes orders with brutal violence.

    I am looking forward to our day, a day amongst friends, and I would like [indistinct].

    QUESTION:

    Do you still believe Sir Leon Brittan should be the next Commission President?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    There are a number of very good candidates, we think Leon Brittan is a very strong candidate for the Presidency of the Commission, there are other candidates as well. It is our view that Leon is the best candidate, we will need to discuss that with all our colleagues and there will be a collective decision.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 27 April 1994

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 27th April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    State Property, Downing Street

    Mr. Redmond : To ask the Prime Minister (1) who maintains the inventory of state property at Downing Street;
    (2) who is the appointed auditor responsible as part of his duties for checking the Downing Street inventory; when the inventory was last checked; and what was the result of that check.

    The Prime Minister : There is no single inventory of state property at No. 10. Separate inventories are maintained for differing purposes. Those responsible for maintaining them are also responsible for making periodic checks of the items against inventory. Cabinet Office internal auditors are free to check the inventories at any time they wish.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 26 April 1994

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 26th April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Labour-controlled Local Authorities

    Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 18 April, Official Report, column 370, if he will list the district auditor’s reports referred to; what were the dates and places of the criminal proceedings referred to; and which councils were involved.

    The Prime Minister [holding answer 22 April 1994] : Criminal proceedings are a matter of public record. Various district auditors’ reports, for example, which are publicly available, confirm my earlier answers.

     

    Sir Tim Bell

    Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Prime Minister how many contracts the Government have awarded since 1987 to Sir Tim Bell for public relations work; and if he will list their nature and value.

    The Prime Minister : Information on Government contracts is not held centrally and would involve disproportionate cost to obtain. The Department of National Heritage let a contract to Lowe Bell Communications on 24 January to help with its programme of civilian events to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the D-day landings. The value of the contract is £50,000 plus a maximum of £12,500 for expenses, net of VAT. The Department has not let any other contracts to Lowe Bell Communications.

     

    Engagements

    Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    Sir Peter Tapsell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House I shall be having further meetings later today.

  • PMQT – 26 April 1994

    Below is the text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 26th April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Mr. Morgan : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : This morning, I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

    Mr. Morgan : Does the Prime Minister agree with the words of the Home Secretary to the Institute of Directors convention this morning, when he said that the police, the courts and the prison services were having to pick up the pieces for the failures of others? Does he agree that the word “others” may include those who have been governing this country for the last 15 years?

    The Prime Minister : I have not seen the text of what my right hon. and learned Friend said, but I am sure that he was seeking to convey that the causes of crime are many and varied; that it is not possible to let all the aspects of crime simply be dealt with by the police and others; and that everyone in authority, whatever that authority may be, may have to, and should be prepared to, take their share of responsibility.

    Mr. Rathbone : Will the Prime Minister send a special message of encouragement to South Africa as the democratic elections continue there in order to welcome this final step away from apartheid ? Will he continue to bend his energy to bringing South Africa back into the Commonwealth?

    The Prime Minister : I think that people around the world welcome the elections that are taking place in South Africa and hope that they can be concluded without any more of the violence that has scarred events in the last few days. When the election is concluded and a new multi-racial government is formed, I very much hope that South Africa will decide to rejoin the Commonwealth. As far as this Government is concerned, it will be a very welcome entrant.

    Mr. John Smith : How can the Prime Minister justify his Government’s spending £500 million of taxpayers’ money in fees to private consultants when, as is revealed in today’s Financial Times, only £10 million was gained as a result?

    The Prime Minister : Let me set out some of the points related to that, because I think that the right hon. and learned Gentleman may tend to agree with much of what I have to say about it. The right hon. and learned Gentleman is asking questions that I myself asked, which is the reason why the scrutiny was established in the first place. It was set up because of the growth in expenditure on consultants and in order to find out whether it is good value for money or whether better value for money can be obtained. If it confirms that the expenditure is producing good results, we will maintain it ; if not, we will make the changes required.

    As far as savings are concerned, the spending is on specialist advice to support programmes. It is not a search to find savings especially.

    Mr. John Smith : In other words, it is true : another grotesque waste of taxpayers’ money has occurred. Is not the Prime Minister’s game to delay this and any other bad news until after the local and European elections are over? Why not tell the truth for once before an election?

    Hon. Members : Withdraw!

    Madam Speaker : Order. I believe that I heard the right hon. and learned Gentleman correctly and found nothing unparliamentary in what he said, but would he care to repeat it so that it is clear to all of us?

    Mr. John Smith : What I suggested to the Prime Minister was that for once he should tell the truth before an election.

    The Prime Minister : If there was an intention to hide anything, perhaps the right hon. and learned Gentleman could explain why we established the scrutiny in the first place–it is precisely to determine that the expenditure is conducted properly. However, since the right hon. and learned Gentleman wishes to judge without having seen the report, before the report is completed and without any understanding of the report or what is in it, let me give him a little more information. The examination of where the money is spent includes matters such as helping to design and evaluate weapons systems for the armed forces–not something that the civil service could do–and conducting feasibility studies on technical aspects of the road programme, which is not something that could be done without specialist advice. The right hon. and learned Gentleman should find out some facts before he smears.

    Mr. John Smith : Does not the Prime Minister realise that families all over Britain–the real quiet majority–who are now paying huge tax increases imposed by his Government will bitterly resent this further example of the Government’s now legendary incompetence?

    The Prime Minister : The whole House will have noted that the right hon. and learned Gentleman was prepared to criticise, was wrong and was not prepared to apologise. I am glad at last that he is taking a closer interest in value for money and efficiency. I hope that he will apply the same test to Labour local authorities up and down the country–every single one he knows. If he were really concerned about tax, perhaps he would indicate what aspects of public expenditure restraint he would support. If he were concerned about local authority tax, perhaps he will explain why he and his party oppose compulsory competitive tendering despite the savings that it has made in councils up and down the country. Every single thing that he has said today is bogus.

    Mr. Rowe : Is my right hon. Friend aware that, despite having inherited a remarkably sound economy and having driven up the council tax quite unnecessarily, the Labour-Liberal coalition which runs Kent has decided to cut the police budget? Will he comment on the amazing gap between the statements of the Front-Bench spokesmen of the two Opposition parties and what they do when they have office?

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend has made the point very clearly. I am not familiar with the particular illustration that he produced, but there are many similar illustrations of which the House is well aware.

     

    Q2. Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Callaghan : Is the Prime Minister aware of the statistics that have just been produced by the North West health authority which show a 60 per cent. increase over three years in the number of youngsters aged 18 and under who have to attend hospital for treatment for drug abuse? In view of those alarming figures and the fact that there is a connection between serious crime and drug abuse, as evidenced by the number of murders in our cities, will the Prime Minister tell the House exactly what he intends to do to combat the evils of drug abuse and serious crime?

    The Prime Minister : The hon. Gentleman touches on a very important matter and I am pleased to respond to him. The sum total of expenditure by the Government on drug-related programmes and other matters related to drugs now exceeds £500 million a year. I have asked my right hon. Friend the Lord President to bring together the expenditure all across Government to make sure that we can target it at the right Departments and at the right problems to begin to cope with the problem of drugs, which exists right across the world but which I think every hon. Member would wish us to tackle at the roots as speedily as possible.

     

    Q3. Sir George Gardiner : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave some moments ago.

    Sir George Gardiner : In the course of his day, my right hon. Friend may have time to look at the final draft of the Conservative manifesto for the European elections. When he does, will he make doubly sure that it emphasises the crucial choice that faces our people in those elections– between Conservative resistance to further moves towards Euro federalism, while we protect British jobs by staying out of the social chapter, and Labour and Liberal eagerness to sign up to anything, to hand over control to the Eurocrats in Brussels and to saddle us with employment costs that would hit directly at British jobs?

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend is entirely right. There is a sharp contrast between our policies on Europe and those of both the main Opposition parties, whose policies are almost indistinguishable. We believe in a free trade, deregulated, outward-looking Europe of independent nation states–unlike either of the Opposition parties, both of which want regulation, intervention and more high spending in a federal European state. That is not for us and I do not believe that it is the wish of the British nation either.

     

    Q4. Ms Quin : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave some moments ago.

    Ms Quin : Following the previous question, and as the Prime Minister feels that he has a lot in common with the four countries that hope to join the European Union next year, will he tell the House how many of them have supported his Government in requesting an opt-out from the social chapter?

    The Prime Minister : I think that one will find that across Europe– [Interruption.] Across Europe, as the hon. Lady knows, countries are recognising that Britain is more competitive because we had the courage to stand up and say that destroying jobs in Europe was not a good idea. There are 19 million people unemployed in Europe; only in this country is unemployment falling. Only this country is becoming more competitive, and that is because we were prepared to say no to policies that destroy jobs and yes to policies that create jobs.

     

    Q5. Mr. Kynoch : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Kynoch : Although controlling inflation is not an end in itself, does my right hon. Friend agree with me and the many business men in my constituency that it is, however, a precondition for falling unemployment, low interest rates and, ultimately, sound and stable economic growth?

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend is entirely right about that. The necessity to get inflation down is self-evident, as is the necessity to keep it down to have the economy growing steadily. As a result of the disinflationary policy that we have followed, we have now had growth for eight successive quarters, unemployment has fallen by a quarter of a million and we have a higher growth pattern than any other nation in the European Community. A CBI survey published this morning showed business optimism continuing to rise. That is a scenario which most other nations in Europe would be pleased to have.

     

    Q6. Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Williams : On this historic day in South Africa, will the Prime Minister congratulate Nelson Mandela, the African National Congress and everyone else involved in the anti-apartheid movement for bringing democracy at last to South Africa?

    The Prime Minister : I am happy to extend my congratulations to Mr. Mandela, to President de Klerk and to everyone else who over the years has worked towards a non-racial South Africa. That will be welcomed by people across the world, and I hope that it will bring greater stability for South Africa in the future.

    Mr. Jonathan Evans : Has my right hon. Friend noticed the recent extensive and co-ordinated press attention to concerns about the Government’s proposals to deal with new age travellers? Perhaps I can tell my right hon. Friend that the quiet majority in my constituency very much support the Government’s plans as contained in the Criminal Justice and Public Order Bill, which will give them real protection from those unlawful activities.

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend is entirely right. New age travellers have been an immense nuisance, not least, of course, in the west country over recent years. The legislation proposed by my right hon. and learned Friend the Home Secretary will give the police far more powers to deal with them. In view of the difficulty that there has been in the west country, I am surprised that we have not had more support from the Liberal Democrats on that matter.

     

    Q7. Mr. Enright : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Tuesday 26 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Enright : How does the Prime Minister square the suppression of the sleaze about Westminster on the “Panorama” programme with his aim of open government?

    The Prime Minister : No Government have ever been more open than this one and there is no suspicion of sleaze.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 22 April 1994

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 22nd April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Stephan Adolphus Kock

    Mr. Cousins : To ask the Prime Minister whether Mr. Stephan Adolphus Kock was at any time between 1 January 1984 and 31 December 1989 in the service of the Government or any of its agencies or wholly owned companies or carried out any functions for, or on behalf of, the Government or any of its agencies or wholly owned companies.

    The Prime Minister : I have nothing further to add to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Meacher) on 19 April 1994, Official Report, column 432.

  • Mr Major’s Comments at Memorial for James Morrison – 22 April 1994

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s comments at the unveiling of the memorial for Detective Constable James (Jim) Morrison, held on 22nd April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am privileged to be here today to unveil this memorial to a young man of great courage.

    You have heard from the Commissioner what kind of police officer Jim Morrison was. He proved his dedication by his courageous actions on 13th December 1991. Despite being off duty, he refused to let a dangerous criminal escape. Despite being threatened with a knife, he continued to chase his assailant.

    Such people are rare. I didn’t know Jim Morrison but I know a great deal about him. One of his greatest strengths was his tenacious approach to crime investigation. He wished to serve his community in the best way he knew – in the finest traditions of the Police Service. He had an aptitude for detective work. He pursued his investigations with great enthusiasm.

    Modern policing is a demanding and responsible service which requires professional commitment and courage. Jim Morrison displayed both qualities by accepting that, even when off duty, his first responsibility was to protect the public against crime whatever the threat to his own safety. It was that commitment and courage which Her Majesty the Queen honoured earlier this year with the posthumous award of the Queen’s Gallantry Medal. And I am honoured to pay my own tribute today.

    We owe so much to police officers like Jim Morrison. Every day – up and down the country – thousands of police officers expose themselves to danger to protect the public. They do so willingly, with dedication and bravery. On behalf of us all, I offer my thanks to them.

    Jim Morrison made the ultimate sacrifice. He knew the danger he faced, but he did not hesitate. He saw a dangerous criminal and he sought to arrest him. It was a brave act by a brave man.

    But Jim Morrison was not only a dedicated police officer. He was a husband, a son and a brother. His friends and family will have their own memories of him and a special sense of loss. No words of mine can properly do him justice, but I know the police service lost a distinguished, dedicated and well liked officer. This memorial will, I hope, remind those who see it of the bravery, dedication and vulnerability of those at the forefront of upholding the law. With respect and gratitude I honour Jim with you today.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 21 April 1994

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 21st April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Parliamentary Questions

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what guidance has been issued to Ministers regarding the practice of replying to parliamentary questions in terms such as, “I will write to the hon. Member”; and in what circumstances this practice is considered appropriate.

    The Prime Minister : A reply in which a Minister says that he will write to the hon. Member may be given for a number of reasons. It may be used as an interim reply because it is not possible to provide a substantive answer within the time scale laid down, to provide information of specialist or local interest which is detailed or lengthy or where there is a need for discretion in making the full reply available because it concerns a confidential constituent’s case.

    Following a recommendation from the Procedure Committee, first report, Session 1992-93, guidance has been issued that such replies should also state, except where confidentiality is necessary, that copies of the Minister’s reply will be placed in the Library.

     

    Engagements

    Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    Sir Peter Tapsell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

     

    Tigris and Euphrates Valleys

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister what is the latest information to Her Majesty’s Government about malnutrition-related diseases, and the shortage of water-pumps, water-filters and pharmaceuticals in the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates.

    The Prime Minister : In addition to information given to me by the hon. Member himself, and obtained from non-governmental organisations with local knowledge, information is in the most recent reports from the United Nations and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Copies have been placed in the Library of the House. The reports point out that reliable data are not generally available.

  • PMQT – 21 April 1994

    Below is the text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 21st April 1994.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Mr. Ward : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : This morning, I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

    Mr. Ward : Will my right hon. Friend unreservedly condemn the continuing attacks on the civilian population of Gorazde by the Serbs, and particularly the outrageous attacks on the hospital there? Does he agree that we must have more effective action by both NATO and the United Nations to protect the UN safe areas?

    The Prime Minister : I believe that my hon. Friend speaks for most people in this country. These attacks have rightly been condemned by European, Russian and American leaders alike. NATO should help the United Nations to give stronger protection to the safe areas, and I hope that the additional troops committed to UNPROFOR and the necessary funds will be made available as soon as possible. The United Kingdom is pressing for a rapid and united NATO response to the Secretary-General’s request for further assistance. That must be based on a thorough military appraisal. We shall also be studying the proposals made by President Clinton last night ; but we must keep the objectives of a negotiated settlement clearly in view, while showing that attacks on UNPROFOR or safe areas will meet with a strong response.

    Mr. John Smith : Would it not have been much better if the Government had properly consulted the D-day veterans in the first place instead of paying £62,000 to a public relations company for what turned out to be very bad advice ?

    The Prime Minister : I am pleased that the right hon. and learned Gentleman enables me to set the record straight on what is happening. Many people will have been concerned over some of the things that they have read, and it is right to tell the House the present position.

    The first discussions with the veterans organisations, including the Royal British Legion, took place in February 1993. The main focus of the programme will be in Portsmouth and Normandy over the weekend of 4 to 6 June. The Archbishop of Canterbury will lead an open air service of remembrance attended by Heads of State and Government from the allied countries that took part in the Normandy landings. There will be similar services in Normandy the following day– [Interruption.]

    Madam Speaker : Order. The Prime Minister has been asked a question and he is answering it.

    The Prime Minister : I am aware of the great interest in the matter, and it will be of interest to the House and others if I set the record straight. There will be similar services in Normandy the following day, including services of commemoration at the British cemetery and a march past of veterans. Many veterans will be able to attend those events and other ceremonies in Normandy, Portsmouth and right across the United Kingdom. Beyond that, many hundreds of events are still being planned, but the present programme includes church services in towns and villages around the country, parades and marches past by veterans and exhibitions illustrating local involvement in the events of 50 years ago.

    Mr. John Smith : Does the Prime Minister not appreciate that the difficulties have arisen about the so-called civilian side of this anniversary? Does he accept that one way in which the Government could avoid constantly getting things so badly wrong is to consult more widely? In the case of genuinely national events, ought that not be on a cross-party basis? Will that be the approach to the VE-day anniversary next year?

    The Prime Minister : It is a genuinely national event, and a genuinely cross-party event in every sense. I hope that the right hon. and learned Gentleman and other right hon. and hon. Gentlemen will take part in the events to which I referred a moment ago. Let me explain to the right hon. and learned Gentleman and the House why there is a civilian aspect. Although his colleagues groan, that is the question that he asked. As well as commemorating the bravery and sacrifice of those who took part in the Normandy campaign, we also wish to remember the immense efforts made by the whole civilian population leading up to D-day and beyond. That is why we want the commemorations to involve all generations, including our children. I hope that the right hon. and learned Gentleman will share my concern that so few of the present generation understand precisely what happened on that occasion and the fact that we would not have the freedom of speech that we enjoy in the House but for that.

    Mr. John Smith : Bearing in mind the difficulties that have arisen over D-day, but also bearing in mind the fact that the second world war involved the sacrifice by people of all persuasions, will the right hon. Gentleman now undertake that in the planning of the VE-day anniversary there will be genuine cross-party involvement, including the involvement of all parties in this House? Can he give us that undertaking today?

    The Prime Minister : The right hon. and learned Gentleman is entirely right; it is both cross-party and non-party. Neither on this occasion nor on any future occasions will there be any partisan involvement in the celebrations. That is the right way to approach this event; it was the right way to deal with previous commemorations and it will be the right way in future. There is no difference between the right hon. and learned Gentleman and me on that point.

    Mr. Leigh : Did my right hon. Friend notice that yesterday Mr. Jacques Delors declared his intention to render worthless any concessions won by Britain on majority voting rights in the Council of Ministers; in particular, his statement that it was a political declaration not a legal text? He said that he could declare that a reasonable period had been exhausted and that it would last only for another two years, thus driving a coach and horses through any concessions we gained. Will my right hon. Friend, therefore, echo his predecessor in replying to Mr. Jacques Delors no, no, no, especially as my right hon. Friend does not have Lord Howe beside him?

    The Prime Minister : What the President of the Commission said yesterday was that the decision commits member states to act in accordance with the declaration. I can confirm to my hon. Friend that the Council decision taken as part of the Ioannina agreement is legally binding on the Council. If my hon. Friend finds that not satisfactory, he might also listen to other Foreign Ministers. For example, the German Foreign Minister said :

    “Germany itself would regard the decision as binding on the Council”.

    He had no doubt that all other member states of the Union would fully respect the procedures foreseen. That is what we will expect and that is what will happen.

     

    Q2. Mr. Gapes : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave a few moments ago.

    Mr. Gapes : In view of the serious problem in the health service in London–the cuts, the closures and the increased waiting lists–will the Prime Minister give some hope to my constituents in Ilford who face great problems at the King George hospital? Will he instruct the Secretary of State for Health today to stop immediately any further closures, cuts, reductions or staff losses throughout London?

    The Prime Minister : Since the hon. Gentleman mentions Ilford, I might just mention the capital expenditure on the Redbridge healthcare NHS trust £58 million hospital at Goodmayes, the biggest capital development in the region last year ; the work under way on the Forest healthcare NHS trust £10 million new wing for Whipps Cross hospital, and the great expansion in primary health care right across London. The hon. Gentleman is not very well informed about his own constituency.

    Dame Jill Knight : On the question of D-day, will my right hon. Friend bear in mind the fact that thousands of people outside the House believe that once we have paid tribute in dignity to the heroism of those who died, it is entirely appropriate that joy should be experienced with enthusiasm to celebrate the fact that the sacrifices made gave us deliverance from the most inhuman and wicked dictatorship that the modern world has ever known?

    The Prime Minister : I think that my hon. Friend speaks for many people when she says that after one has dealt with the specific matter of commemoration on D-day, millions of people in Britain will wish to give thanks in one form or another in some form of thanksgiving ceremony for the fact that we have the freedoms today that we take for granted.

     

    Q3. Mr. Rendel : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Rendel : Will the Prime Minister confirm that his party, unlike the Liberal Democrats, believes that band for band is the best way to compare council tax levels between different authorities? Will he further confirm that on that basis Hampshire is the most efficient English county council?

    The Prime Minister : From memory, I think that Hampshire has had the biggest increases in council tax anywhere across the country. However the hon. Gentleman may care to phrase it, if he looks at matters on a like-for-like basis he will find that Conservative-controlled councils are noticeably cheaper than Liberal Democrat-controlled councils and even less expensive than Labour-controlled councils.

     

    Q4. Dr. Spink : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave a few moments ago.

    Dr. Spink : Can my right hon. Friend tell the House when he was last asked a question on unemployment by the Leader of the Opposition? Does the length of time have something to do with the fact that unemployment has been falling month after month after month, so that there are now a quarter of a million fewer people unemployed than there were a year ago?

    The Prime Minister : It certainly is some time since the right hon. and learned Gentleman last mentioned it. I cannot be precisely sure when it was. I do not believe that he has asked such a question since his hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline, East (Mr. Brown) said that unemployment would go up month after month after month after month.

    Mr. Clapham : Will the Prime Minister join me in condemning the blackmail tactics used by British Coal to coerce the miners at Tower colliery into accepting its closure? Is the Minister aware that, with the closure of Tower colliery, only 16 collieries are now operating under British Coal management, and the men at those collieries face an uncertain future, as do their families? Will the Prime Minister therefore tell the House today, giving a commitment to those men and their families, that he will adopt for the next four years the redundancy package that British Coal has been operating and which closes on 30 April, so that the miners at those 16 collieries will have a fall-back position if the private venture fails?

    The Prime Minister : With regard to British Coal’s decision to withdraw its closure proposal, as I understand it, the men at Tower colliery sought further discussions with the corporation at which they indicated that they did not wish to oppose the closure proposal. That is my understanding of what has happened and I am pleased that such an agreement was eventually reached.

     

    Q5. Mr. Carrington : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave a few moments ago.

    Mr. Carrington : What action would my right hon. Friend take over a local authority that has debts of £356 million, more than Gambia, and is being sued for fraud by a bank because of its illegal activities on the money markets and the bank is demanding £20 million in compensation; a council which, through its waste and corruption has cost the council tax payers of Hammersmith and Fulham £250 each and in a local authority which has the third worst record of collecting rents in the country?

    The Prime Minister : The people of Hammersmith and Fulham will have the opportunity to make their own decisions on 5 May. In view of what my hon. Friend has said, they would be very well advised to vote for a Conservative council.

     

    Q6. Mr. Hutton : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 April.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave a few moments ago.

    Mr. Hutton : Are the biggest tax increases in modern British history that will take effect this month the result of the Government’s incompetence in handling the economy or simply their lack of honesty in dealing with the British public at the previous general election?

    The Prime Minister : The hon. Gentleman clearly has not been attending many Question Times over the past few months or he would know that the tax increases were necessary in order to get public finances in better shape, to get Government borrowing down and to ensure that we can sustain a low interest rate level which is helping us in getting back in growth. He will know that, as a result, we now have a growth pattern that is twice as high as any of our main European competitors, that we have inflation at under 3 per cent., that we have exports running at record levels, that we have a stable exchange rate and that we are poised for a long period of sustained, non-inflationary growth–a prospect which this country has sought for many years and which now lies there as a result of the policies that this Government have followed.