QUESTIONS ASKED IN HOUSE OF COMMONS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18946, 17 December 1929, Page 9

QUESTIONS ASKED IN HOUSE OF COMMONS.

(United Press Assn.—By Electrlo , Telegraph—Copyright.) (Received December 17, 11.30 a.m.) RUGBY, December 16. The Foreign Secretary was asked in the House of Commons whether he had any communication from the Egyptian Government regarding the proposed draft treaty submitted by the British Government. Mr Henderson replied in the negative and said that he did not expect to receive any further communication on this subject until after the Egyptian elections and the restoration to the Parliamentary regime. He was asked whether he agreed with the statement made by the member of the Government in the House of Lords that these proposals were not to be considered as draft treaty, but merely as proposals. He replied that the proposals never were intended as a draft treaty. They were merely proposals submitted to be negotiated subsequently by any Govemment elected by the Egyptian people. League Commitments. Mr Ayles (a Labour member) asked the Prime Minister whether Britain had commitments to the League of Nations or the British Empire, which prevented the House of Commons itself coming to any conclusion it desired on disarmament ? Mr MacDonald replied that Article 8 of the Covenant of the League of Nations enjoined on member States, and consequently on the British Government, a reduction of their armaments to the lowest point consistent with national and the enforcement, by common action, of international obligations. Another article of the Covenant imposed obligations to join in action for the common enforcement of certain undertakings. Britain’s commitments, as regarded the British Empire, were dictated by needs of selfdefence.

Mr W. H. Ayles asked whether the Government believed there was still a margin, so far as Britain’s own armaments were concerned, that she could reduce down to what the Prime Minister had said was the level of national safety; and, if not, why should Britain go into the Disarmament Conference?

The Prime Minister replied: “It is because there may be that margin, discoverable only by international agreement, that we are going into that conference.”

China. Mr Henderson stated that, so far as his information went, the forces opposed to the Nanking Government in China had been defeated near Canton and had made no further progress on any of .the other main lines of attack.

The situation at Nanking and Shanghai appeared to be quiet. Naval forces available for the protection of British nationals in case of danger were five cruisers, one aircraft carrier, eight destroyers, five sloops and eighteen gunboats. The available military forces consisted of three battalions at Hong Kong, two in Shanghai and two at Tientsin, with a small detachment at Peking and Weiheiwei. Other foreign Powers had an aggregate naval strength in Chinese water which was approximately the same and about 8000 troops, mainly at Tientsin and Shanghai.