Oral Answers to Questions — Mauritius – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 26 Tachwedd 1964.
Mr James Johnson
, Kingston upon Hull West
12:00,
26 Tachwedd 1964
asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what date has been fixed for constitutional talks upon the future date of independence for Mauritius.
Mr Anthony Greenwood
, Rossendale
In discussions last February with the noble Marquess, the former Minister of State for Commonwealth Relations and for the Colonies, Mauritius party leaders agreed that the next conference to discuss future constitutional developments should be held at a convenient time after October, 1965. A definite date has not yet been fixed.
Mr James Johnson
, Kingston upon Hull West
Is the Secretary of State aware of the keen desire for early independence in the island, which has a long history of a good educational system and mature politicians? Would the right hon. Gentleman consider advancing the date or giving a target, say, at the beginning of 1966 and advancing the talks to early in the summer of 1965?
Mr Anthony Greenwood
, Rossendale
The date after October, 1965, was generally agreed in the discussion in February of this year. I have had representations from the Premier of Mauritius and also from a number of his colleagues on this point, but before we could agree to bringing the date forward we should have to be quite certain that this proposal was generally accepted by all the parties in Mauritius to the agreement reached in February.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
