HC Deb 10 June 1942 vol 380 cc1047-8
32. Mr. Baxter

asked the Minister of Information the circulation of "Die Zeitung," the newspaper printed in Britain in German; to whom the newspaper circulates; how many pages it averages; and how much newsprint is allotted for its production?

The Minister of Information (Mr. Brendan Bracken)

The required details, as supplied by the publishers of this weekly newspaper, are as follow: There is a circulation of about 16,000 copies of each issue; it is on sale to the public at home and overseas and the average number of pages per issue is 12. I understand that this represents paper consumption at the rate of about 10 tons per quarter.

Mr. Baxter

Is my right hon. Friend aware—and I am sure he is—that 12 pages is larger than any existing British newspaper? Would it not, in his opinion, be better if these people took their views from our own newspapers as they all speak English fairly well? This is a waste of valuable paper.

Mr. Bracken

This paper cannot be compared with a daily paper. It is really a weekly magazine and as such is certainly no larger than any other magazine which is published. It is a quarter the size of a weekly illustrated paper. As to the question whether all emigrés in England can speak English, that, I think, is a matter for speculation, but I do not want to cut down the small amenities of this little community.

Professor Savory

Is not my right hon. Friend aware that some Englishmen like to keep up their German?

Miss Rathbone

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that this paper is of very special value as being one way of bringing our point of view to the largest group of Germans in this country who will, we hope, be the leaders of the new Germany after the war?

Mr. Bracken

The real reason why we provide this paper is, as the hon. Lady says, to give Germans in England an opportunity of reading the various points of view expressed here and also information from their own country.