asked the Minister for External Affairs whether he has seen copies of the communications which passed between the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in the British Government and Lord Lloyd, the British Government's representative at Cairo, respecting the projected Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, and particularly the despatch No. 6 in the British White Papers, dated November 24th, 1927, indicating in paragraph 2 that subject "to the concurrence of His Majesty's Governments in the Dominions and India which, as had already been explained to Sarwat Pasha, the British Government considered necessary," and in paragraph 9 indicating that, as the required concurrence had been obtained, they were prepared to accept the Draft Treaty then prepared; and to paragraph 2 in the despatch dated February 5th, 1928, repeating the statement about the Draft Treaty upon which Sarwat Pasha and Sir Austen Chamberlain had agreed, "and to which the Dominion Governments had given their assent"; and further, whether his attention has been called to the reply on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Dominions to a question in the British House of Commons on 5th April, 1928, stating that "the Dominion Governments were kept informed of every stage in the negotiations with Egypt, and as soon as the text of a Treaty had been agreed with Sarwat Pasha its terms were communicated to the Dominion Governments by telegraph, and their concurrence was sought in the proposal to present it to the Egyptian Government, and the replies to this telegram made it clear that the policy of His Majesty's Government in Great Britain was satisfactory to all the Dominion Governments," and in view of the implications in these statements that the Government of the Irish Free State has concurred in and assented to the British policy involved in the proposed Treaty, he will lay on the Table copies of the communications relating to this subject which passed between the Executive Council and the British Government.
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - THE ANGLO-EGYPTIAN TREATY.
I have seen the documents referred to by the Deputy which were communicated to all the members of the Commonwealth. Only one communication was sent on behalf of the Executive Council to the British Government respecting this Treaty. In that communication I stated on behalf of the Executive Council that they "have learned with pleasure that His Majesty's Government in Great Britain and Egypt are negotiating with a view to establishing an alliance between the two countries and they hope that an agreement acceptable to both sides will be speedily reached."
Mr. O'CONNELL
Are we to take it that the policy of Great Britain in regard to Egypt is not approved definitely by the Saorstát Government?
I have nothing to add to the answer I gave to the British Government.