Canberra, 2 August 1951
CONFIDENTIAL
In my letter to you to-day1 about the proposal to hold a meeting of Commonwealth Finance Ministers early next January, I said that I would be writing separately about a ministerial meeting before or after the meeting of Finance Ministers.
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The Department of External Affairs were consulted informally a few weeks ago with regard to a proposed meeting of the Consultative Committee, and the United Kingdom authorities have expressed their appreciation of the views and those received from other Commonwealth countries the United Kingdom Government would now like formally to suggest that a meeting of the Consultative Committee at the ministerial level should be held early in January, either immediately before or immediately after the proposed Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting.
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This meeting of the Consultative Committee could, amongst other things, approve the draft annual report which would, as the United Kingdom sees it, have been put into final shape by a short meeting of officials immediately prior to the Ministerial Meeting. There is a better chance that by this time the United States Administration will have its mind clear about the appropriation and will be able to play a more positive part than would be the case if there were a meeting during the Autumn.
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It is expected that a good deal of preparatory work on the Annual Report will have to be done this Autumn (for example, agreement on its general form, completion of questionnaires, etc.) but the United Kingdom Authorities doubt whether a meeting of officials for this purpose is necessary or practicable. If Commonwealth Governments agree with this view the United Kingdom would be prepared to circulate in the early Autumn some suggestions regarding preparations for the report.
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It is hoped that the above proposals will be generally acceptable to the Australian Government. Similar approaches are being made to other participating Commonwealth Governments and to the Governments of the United States, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, and the United Kingdom would like also to inform the International Bank if there is general consensus of agreement that a meeting should be held in January.
[NAA: A462, 587/22]
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Not published. ↩