P.M. 13/1959.

VISIT OVERSEAS BY THE PRIME MINISTER

Statement by the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister (Mr. Menzies) will leave Sydney on 28th April, 1959, in s.s. "ORCADES” for San Francisco.

At Auckland on Friday, 1st May, Mr. Menzies will meet the Prime Minister of New Zealand (Mr. Walter Nash).

In North America, Mr. Menzies will make visits to Ottawa, Washington and New York. On Thursday, 21st May, he will meet the Prime Minister of Canada (Mr. John Diefenbaker) for personal discussion, and subsequently meet the Canadian Cabinet.

During his Washington visit, which will be from 22^nd to 27th May, he hopes to have discussions with the President (Mr. Eisenhower) and other administration leaders on matters of foreign affairs and finance. Discussions on similar topics will also be held in New York.

The Prime Minister will fly from New York to London towards the end of May and in the United Kingdom he will hold discussions with the Prime Minister (Mr. Macmillan) and members of the United Kingdom Cabinet. These discussions will cover much the same topics as those in North America and will include, in addition, domestic matters of Commonwealth interest.

Mr. Menzies will be accompanied by Dame Pattie Menzies his Private Secretary (Miss Hazel Craig), his Special Assistant (Mr. Robert Kennedy), and Miss I. Dalton of his personal staff. An officer of the Prime Minister's Department Mr. K.N. Jones) will join the party in North America.

Details of the Prime Minister's return to Australia by air are not yet determined but will be announced as soon as possible. The probable date of return is early July.

CANBERRA.

15^th April,1959.