Publicity Agent For Premier

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28894, 14 May 1959, Page 15

Publicity Agent For Premier

(Rec. 11 p.m.) LONDON, May 13 For the goodwill visit to Britain in July of the Japanese Prime Minister (Mr Kishi) the Japanese Ambassador had done something which was “surely not in the book of honourable customs.” a “News Chronicle” columnist said today He said the Ambassador had hired a London publicity agent. The reason would have to remain a mystery of the Orient, the columnist added. He quoted the Japanese Press Attache (Mr Hideki Nasaki) as saying: “It •has been arranged at a very high level.”

A team of experts, led by an Australian, Professor H. S. W. Massey, professor of physics at London University, i s to go to Washington to discuss possible British-American co-operation on space research.

The British satellite might be put up by American rockets, or it might be decided to use combinations of British military rockets for that purpose. Mr Macmillan said designs for modification of the military rockets would be made in case it was decided to use them.

The “Daily Herald” complained that Britain would .be spending too little on space research. “Yet it is vital for Britain not to be left out of the know-how of the space age.” it said.

“The Government’s policy on space has. a sensible and businesslike sound. But. alas, its significance is deplorable.” the newspaper said.

“It means that Britain is still without an effective space programme. It still surrenders the leadership in space research to the Americans and the Russians,” it said.

The “Daily Telegraph” said there was still a “marked vagueness” about official statements on the British plan after six months of discussion in Whitehall. It said the spirit of the comments of the Lord President of the Council (Lord Hailsham) at an explanatory press conference and Mr Macmillan’s statement “was demure rather than adventurous.”

“The Times” said: “The Government is right to count the cost carefully and in particular to investigate what may be the opportunities of co-operation with others, but to leave launching entirely to others can be dignified with the name ,‘co-opera-tion’ only with difficulty. “It will be strongly hoped that co-operation can mean something more than this, and also that something will come of the proposed consultations with other Commonwealth countries,” it said. The “Scotsman” said that Mr Macmillan had done the sensible thing in limiting the extent of the British contribution to space research

The “News Chronicle” suggested that Britain should also seek full co-operation with the Western European states. The “Manchester Guardian” considered the programme “merci--1 fully harmless enough.”