When speaking to you on Sunday evening last, I mentioned that the London Editor of the Manchester Guardian was of opinion that the reference in last Sunday's Observer article to the possibility of a statutory pledge on the question of Partition being included in the forthcoming Bill at Westminster, was well-founded.

I have since spoke to two usually well-informed Journalists and they take the same view.

A Member of the Government, whose name I can give you later, told me today that the Whitehall attitude was that in view of our action in passing the Government of Ireland Republic Act, the British had no choice but to give some form of statutory undertaking to the North-Eastern Government. He doubted, however, whether that Government would induce the British to do much, if anything, on the question of voting rights.