Confidential report from John W. Dulanty to Frederick H. Boland (Dublin)
(Secret Report No. 20)

As I mentioned on the telephone just now, Mr. Noel-Baker thinks that it will be necessary for his colleagues to consider carefully our Aide Mémoire of October 20th.¹ He is not sure that it takes sufficient account of certain of their difficulties. In a few days he will see me again.

Last evening Lord Jowitt expressed his personal regret about the differences between our two Governments on the forthcoming repeal of the External Relations Act. He repeated his former statements about the desire on his part and his colleagues, to find some way of meeting us. 'If we were dealing with Ireland in isolation, it would be better for us, but here, at one and the same time, we have India remaining inside the Commonwealth, asking us to do certain things, and your people from outside the Commonwealth also asking us to do certain things.' He appreciated our claim on the basis of traditional exchange of rights but feared that that was only one aspect and was, in itself, not sufficient to meet their difficulties with foreign countries. His tone was despondent.

Later in a separate, brief, talk with Mr. Aneurin Bevan,² I was surprised to find him rather critical of our position. 'It would be difficult' he said, 'to persuade people here that Ireland was not trying to have it both ways'. Whilst he admitted in relation to the Commonwealth, no foreign country stood, from reasons of history and political and economic development, in the same position as Ireland, he said that was of small avail unless it could be given a legal framework and he doubted whether this could be done unless some link - he didn't care how slight it was - was forged with the Commonwealth.

Mr. Louw now thinks it may be towards the end of November, or beginning of December, before he can visit Ireland.