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S E C R E T

• THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HER BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT H

79 I H ! C 0 P Y N' C C f » ̂

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CABINET

CONCLUSIONS of a Meeting of the Cabinet held at 10 Downing Street on

THURSDAY 28 APRIL 1983 at 10.30 am

P R E S E N T

The Rt Hon Margaret Thatcher MP Prime Minister

R tJ ! Hon William Whitelaw MP The Rt Hon Lord Hailsham H e°retary of State for the Home Department Lord Chancellor

Rt H . The Rt Hon S i r Keith Joseph MP 1 ST o fW t a * ° y n \ ? • s e c r e c y Ctw I T StateC for Foreign and Secretary of State for Education and

^ w e a l t h A f f a i r s Science n H

Kt H „ ,n „ . The Rt Hon Michael Heseltine MP H o i n eSen -lames Prior MP * L . r npfence f n 6 C r e t a r y f State for Northern Ireland Secretary of State for Defence 0

e? Rt Hon r v MP The Rt Hon Nicholas Edwards MP H o nSen* George Younger MP f r i r . l p s c. f D uC r e t a r y of State for Scotland Secretary of State for Wales e? R t n o Hon p v • , T i • MP The Rt Hon John B i f f e n MP nSep>. Patrick Jenkin MP . . , ... „ m n n r i l C r e t a r y o f s tate for Industry ^vd President of the Council e? Rt Hon n. i i MP The Rt Hon Norman Fowler MP - I un i l l cserv ° David Howell MP . B * . »« f „ , Corial Services • C t e t a ry 0 f State for Transport Secretary of State for Soc i a l

^ * H°n Leon B r i t t a n QC MP The Rt Hon Baroness Young H l 6 £ L o r d P r i v * S e a l Secretary, Treasury6 R t? Hon i T MP The Rt Hon Norman Tebbit MP

e S e ^ a r 0 ; 0 M ^ - 0 r n E n P e r g y Secretary of State for Employment •t a t

^ t Hon C e c i l Parkinson MP The Rt Hon ̂ ord Cockfield H e U o r o fC the Duchy of Lancaster and Secretary of State for Trade

t e^ s r General

The Rt Hon Tom King MP Secretary of State for the Environment

ALSO PRESENT

The Rt Hon Michael Jopling MP Parliamentary Secretary, Treasury

S E C R E T

'. SECRETARIAT

S i r Robert Armstrong Mr A D S Goodall (Items 2-4) Mr D F Williamson (Items 2-5) Mr D H J Hilary (Item 1) Miss J A Lewis-Jones (Item 1)

C O N T E N T S

Subject Page HHIH

PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS 1

2. Housing and Building Control B i l l 1

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Middle East 2

United States 2

Falkland Islands 2

Soviet Union 3 3.

COMMUNITY AFFAIRS 3

Federal Republic of Germany 3

Steel • 4

4,Community Budget

CAMPAIGN FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT

4 I K

Disarmament and Arms Control 4 • I 5'.

INDUSTRIAL AFFAIRS London Dock Strike 5

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S E C R E T

C O N F I D E N T I A L

1. The Cabinet were informed of the business to be taken in the House of Commons during the following week.

T H E L 0 K D P R I V Y S E A L s a i d t h a t t h eB u Hdi S Government had been defeated in the Contro ̂ Committee Stage of the Housing and Building Control B i l l in the

House of Lords on 26 A p r i l , when a motion to delete Clause 2 had been carried by 182 votes to 96. The clause would have amended the Housing Act 1980 so as to confer the right to buy on c e r t a i n secure tenants of charitable housing associations and housing t r u s t s . I t would have applied only to dwellings which had been provided wholly or overwhelmingly with public funds, and about three-quarters of the e x i s t i n g stock of charitable housing associations would have been exempt from i t s provisions. But many Conservative Peers were personally involved i n charitable housing associations, and t h e i r votes had been larg e l y responsible for the Government's defeat. The element of retrospection in the clause had weighed heavily with them. She was s a t i s f i e d that nothing more could have been said or done to avert defeat. She had contacted a l l the newly created Conservative Peers and many others, and an unusually large number of the Government's supporters had attended the debate. The Secretary of State for the Environment and the Minister for Housing and Construction had explained the effect of the clause to a number of the Government's supporters. The Minister for Local Government had made a persuasive speech at the end of the debate, which had changed the views of about ten Conservative Peers who had intended to vote against the Government. Nevertheless, 36 Conservative Peers and 41 cross-bench Peers had voted against the clause; only two cross-bench Peers had supported the Government. A number of Conservative Peers had been unable to attend because of other commitments, but t h e i r presence would not have enabled the Government to avoid the defeat, which c l e a r l y i l l u s t r a t e d the d i f f i c u l t i e s of ensuring a Government I majority i n the House of Lords. I t was hoped to complete the Committee Stage of the B i l l that day. I t was intended to complete the remaining stages of the Energy B i l l in the House of Lords on 9 May and the Third Reading of the Social Security and Housing Benefits B i l l on 13 May. The Third Reading of the Housing and Building Control B i l l could then take place on 19 May.

THE PRIME MINISTER, summing up a short discussion, said that there was no prospect of reversing the defeat on Clause 2 of the B i l l i n the current Session. I t would be a disappointment to the tenants concerned, and i t would be helpful i f they themselves mounted a campaign in favour of the provisions in the clause. The decision not to seek to r e i n s t a t e the clause could be announced that afternoon, but i t should be made clear that t h i s decision was without prejudice to the in c l u s i o n of equivalent provisions in a future B i l l .

The Cabinet -

Took note.

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C O N F I D E N T I A L

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C O N F I D E N T I A L

« 2' T H E F 0 R E I G N AN0 COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY said that the

United States Secretary of State, Mr Shultz, was heavily engaged i n t b e Middle East. He was at present in I s r a e l and would be going on

to Beirut. With the B r i t i s h Government's encouragement, he was concentrating in his discussions on trying to secure agreement to a

mutual withdrawal of foreign forces from the Lebanon.

THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY drew attention to President Reagan's address to Congress the previous day on the

United St ates Administration's p o l i c i e s towards Central America. This w a s a n important statement which had been prompted by the arms build-up

ni Central America and President Reagan's determination to stem the growth of Communist influence i n the area. I t was l i k e l y to have been

well received by the American public; but f i r s t indications suggested that i t had not convinced the opponents of the Administration's p o l i c i e s i n Congress.

The Cabinet ­

1. Took note.

THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY said that the Government's eff o r t s were being directed to deterring Senor Destefanis and his party of

Argentine next-of-kin from s a i l i n g for the Falkland Islands, following t h e s t a t e m e n t yt h e° International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

d i s s o c i a t i n g themselves from the venture. An approach had been made to t b e Argentine au t h o r i t i e s through the Swiss and p a r a l l e l approaches n a < ^ been made to the United States, B r a z i l i a n and other Governments to persuade the Argentine Government to prevent Senor Destefanis from s a i l i n g . The Permanent Under Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, S i r Antony Acland, was seeing the Secretary General of the United Nations, Senor Perez de Cuellar, at Heathrow Airport that morning and would ask him to use h i s influence with the Argentine auth o r i t i e s i n the same sense. Meanwhile the Foreign and Commonwealth Office was issuing a public statement designed to make the B r i t i s h Government's position c l e a r : t h i s would emphasise that the Destefanis venture, which had been disavowed by the ICRC as contrary to the p r i n c i p l e of n e u t r a l i t y , was not acceptable; but that the Government would put no obstacle i n the way of a genuinely humanitarian v i s i t organised and supervised by the ICRC. I f Senor Destefanis's party set s a i l , t h e i r ship would be intercepted as i t entered the Falkland Islands Protection Zone with a view to getting i t to turn back; but no force would be used. Further consideration would be given to the action needed to prevent a landing i f the ship continued on course for the Falkland Islands. Meanwhile units of the Argentine f l e e t were at sea i n connection with the anniversary of the sinking of the Argentine* c r u i s e r General Belgrano, which f e l l on 2 May, the date on which Senor Destefanis's ship was l i a b l e to be intercepted.

C O N F I D E N T I A L

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THE PRIME MINISTER, summing up a short discussion, said that i t would be important to get across to public opinion both at home and abroad the fac t that the ICRC had dissociated i t s e l f from Senor Destefanis's venture, which appeared to be e s s e n t i a l l y propagandistic rather than humanitarian in character; and that this was why the v i s i t was unacceptable to the B r i t i s h Government; and to make i t c l e a r that the B r i t i s h objections had never applied to a v i s i t by bona fide Argentine next-of-kin organised and supervised by the ICRC. These points were being stressed i n the statement by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

The Cabinet ­

2. Took note.

THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY said that there had been a helpful press reaction to the v i s i t to Moscow by the Parliamentary

Under Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 0 1 1^ I 0 * 1 Rifkind, who had been having talks with his Soviet counter­

parts. His v i s i t marked the resumption of low-key p o l i t i c a l contacts between the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom. I t was important that

the United Kingdom should not be thought to be closing off the East/West dialogue in the period leading up to the Al l i a n c e ' s deployment of intermediate nuclear forces in December, or to be getting too far out of step with i t s other a l l i e s , whose contacts with the Soviet Union were more intensive. Mr Rifkind would be reporting the outcome of h i s talks on hi s return; meanwhile i t was cle a r that they had been useful and had given him the opportunity to r a i s e a large number of outstanding human rights cases with the Soviet a u t h o r i t i e s , including that of Professor Sakharov, whom the Soviet Government were now reported to be ready to allow to leave the country.

The Cabinet ­

3. Took note.

3. THE PRIME MINISTER said that the v i s i t to London the previous week by the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr Helmut Kohl,

a n d n ^ s senior colleagues had been outstandingly s u c c e s s f u l . The atmosphere in a l l the meetings had been genuinely friendly and Dr Kohl

himself had performed more impressively than on previous occasions. I t was evident that there was a wide measure of agreement between the two Governments which augured well for the Williamsburg Economic Summit. The v i s i t had been good for Anglo-German r e l a t i o n s and for Europe. I t had however been necessary to remind the Germans of the undertaking to find a solution to the problem of the B r i t i s h 1983 budget contribution before t h e i r current Presidency of the Community expired at the end of June; i t was cle a r that they were finding i t d i f f i c u l t to l i v e up to this undertaking. THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDUSTRY said that the recent v i s i t to the ' United Kingdom by a group of high-level businessmen from the Federal Republic of Germany headed by Herr Rodenstock, the President of the Federation of German Industries, had also been a great success.

3

C O N F I D E N T I A L

C O N F I D E N T I A L

A l l the German representatives had been of unusually high c a l i b r e and, in a concluding press conference Herr Rodenstock had gone out of his way to be complimentary about the B r i t i s h economy and i t s prospects. I t was hoped that his remarks would be widely reported in Germany. I t would be important to ensure that members of any team of senior B r i t i s h businessmen which might v i s i t the Federal Republic under si m i l a r arrangements were of the same quality.

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THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDUSTRY reported that the meeting of the Council of Ministers on st e e l on 25 April had been somewhat acrimonious. I t had been possible, however, to persuade the Council to c a l l for

further proposals from the Commission which would take account of restructuring. This should give more f l e x i b i l i t y on the existing quotas, which would help small firms. There was no chance that other member

states would give up quotas and, since an o v e r a l l increase was not desirab l e , i t was best to aim for greater f l e x i b i l i t y . Domestic s t e e l orders were r i s i n g but this was partly i n a n t i c i p a t i o n of price increases which the B r i t i s h Steel Corporation was bound to make.

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THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY said that he had spoken to the President of the European Commission, Monsieur Thorn, and to

Vice-President Tugendhat about the need to leave s u f f i c i e n t room in the 1984 draft budget for the United Kingdom budget refunds. They intended to keep headroom a v a i l a b l e , although they wished to disguise the methods

by which t h i s was being done. There would now be further discussion of t n e budget problem at the informal meeting of Foreign Ministers at Gymnich on 14/15 May. He would press the United Kingdom's case, in preparation for the Council of Ministers' meeting on 24 May, but the reception from other member states so far was d i s t i n c t l y cool.

The Cabinet -

Took note.

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4 - THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR DEFENCE said that the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) had been su c c e s s f u l l y thrown on to the

defensive by the action taken to identify the l e f t wing a f f i l i a t i o n s ° ̂ s o m a n y °f i t s leading members; but many of the rank and f i l e supporters ° ̂ t n e m o v e m e n t were not l e f t wing in t h e i r p o l i t i c a l orientation and i t

was important that th e i r s e n s i t i v i t i e s should be respected. There was no truth i n the current press reports that p o l i t i c a l approaches had been

made to church leaders to persuade t h e i r members to leave the CND. T H E H 0 M E S E C R E T A R Y s a i d t h a t the publication that day of the new

C i v i l Defence Regulations would no doubt provoke strong c r i t i c i s m from cbe CND and others; but the regulations i n t h e i r revised form were r e l a t i v e l y uncontroversial and the c r i t i c i s m should be containable. ,

4

^C O N F I D E N T I A L

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C O N F I D E N T I A L

The Cabinet - wm

Took note.

lNDUSTRUL \ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT said that the ***** ldvi ™ y C o n a t i o n and Arbitration Service was arranging med.at.o , i h the London dock s t r i k e .

nd°°n Dock t r i ke The Cabinet ­e v ious„ Took note.

^ s i o n s ,

Cabinet Office

28 A p r i l 1983

C O N F I D E N T I A L

> ̂ 139 •