asked the Minister of Defence what consideration has been given to putting some British overseas combined headquarters afloat.

If the hon. Member is referring to the Unified Headquarters in Aden and Singapore, I do not think that there can be any question of establishments of this size and complexity operating afloat.

Would my right hon. Friend not agree that it would be wise to con sider the American development of a headquarters ship? Might that not well be used to house the operational and communications side of a joint headquarters, such as in the Middle East?

I am certainly prepared to consider the matter of headquarters ships, but the headquarters at Aden and Singapore, which I am discussing here, are on a rather larger and more complex scale.