HC Deb 15 June 1944 vol 400 cc2293-300
Captain Cunningham-Reid (St. Marylebone)

With very few exceptions, hon. Members of this House will agree that the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Epping (Mr. Churchill) is invaluable to the successful prosecution of this war. The people of this country, and of all the threatened nations, remembering what he was able to do for their morale in the darkest hours, are inspired, now that the horizon has cleared and he is still at the helm, to put all they have got into bringing this war to an early conclusion. The ever-present figure of a human bull-dog perpetually smoking a cigar has become a symbol of tenacity of purpose and a mascot of good luck to the freedom-loving world. The repercussions could be far-reaching and serious if anything were to happen to him. He has created quite enough anxiety already by his illnesses. The Prime Minister should not risk his life unnecessarily, and I consider that this is a matter of urgent public importance, because, unless discouraged, he may be off again as soon as he gets out of the sight of his anxious friends in this House.

The time will come when the area of liberated France will be large, no longer just a beachhead upon which enemy bombs and shells can be concentrated, and where snipers and quislings can lie in wait. Surely, that will be a more prudent occasion for the Prime Minister to visit France should he intend to do so again. It would be futile now to put forward the argument that there was little risk attaching to his visit, because those of us who have been reading the newspapers, and all the interesting facts which war correspondents have told us, are well aware that the destroyer on which he went over actually went into action on that crossing. Of course, he remained on the bridge. He saw enemy bombs dropped, and I have here a Press photograph—and a very good one too—of the right hon. Gentleman standing in the open, looking at enemy planes overhead. There was also the danger of enemy shell fire and unexploded mines, but to my mind the greatest folly was to allow him to tour around in an open jeep.

All the time, we have been hearing stories of snipers behind our lines, who roam around, move their position at night, some wearing civilian clothes, to say nothing of the quislings, and also those French girls we heard about through the Press yesterday who, out of the blue, fired upon our soldiers and killed many. [AN Horn. MEMBER: "German girls."] Well, it would not make very much difference to me, if I were killed by a girl sniper, whether she was German or French, but the Press certainly said yesterday that they were French girls. However, put it this way: Was there ever such a good target as the one presented by our not inconspicuous Prime Minister perched up high on a jeep? Nobody could have mistaken or missed that massive figure, complete with cigar to identify him. What an opportunity that presented to his enemies to murder him.

Now let us look at this excursion from a somewhat different aspect—an aspect which may possibly concern the Minister of Information. I am not quite clear why it is that the Minister of Information is taking this Debate. I should have thought that matters that concerned the Prime Minister, if he was unable to be here himself, would have been taken either by the Leader of the House, the Deputy Prime Minister or a Member of the Treasury. But, anyhow, I think I am able to give him a reason for being here, other than the one that he always enjoys, which is "having a go" at me. When this country heard that our Prime Minister had gone to the Normandy front, the first reaction of the average person, before soberer thoughts set in, was "Good old stout-hearted Winnie!" That is all very fine and large, but what would the public say if disaster had resulted, or if disaster resulted in the future from a similar adventure? So far as our European battle front is concerned, the Supreme Commander has absolute jurisdiction. In the circumstances that I have suggested, it is he who would be blamed for having allowed the Prime Minister to go to France. The Supreme Commander is an American. Would such a situation, had it occurred, or should it for any unfortunate reason occur, be to the advantage of friendly relations between the two nations? I think not, and I think that is a consideration that ought to be taken into account.

At this stage of the Second Front those in charge of our invasion fleet, and the commanders who are in the field in France, have quite enough headaches with invasion problems and with looking after the safety of their men to the best of their ability without having responsibility for the Prime Minister's safety added to their worries. It is stated that General Montgomery hung around for the Prime Minister on the beach for over an hour waiting for him to land. Every moment of General Montgomery's time is of priceless value during this crucial period. The Minister of Information will, no doubt, correct me if that is not so.

The Minister of Information (Mr. Bracken)

If the hon. and gallant Member gives me time.

Captain Cunningham-Reid

I propose, bar interruptions, to give the right hon. Gentleman very nearly a quarter of an hour. His interjection reminds me that it is quite a long time now since I had the pleasure of being replied to in Debate by him and, if my memory serves me right, on the last occasion he avoided the issue in question, a question of propaganda in America, by gushing forth a spate of personal abuse against myself. We all know that it is a very old and rather second-rate Parliamentary trick, that is sometimes resorted to by second-rate Ministers—I am not, of course, being personal—to cover up a bad case or to side-track attention from the matter that has been raised. I must get on though, because no doubt the right hon. Gentleman wants time to continue that technique for which he has become so famous in this House.

To return to the beaches of Flanders. Subsequently, during the visit in question, the Prime Minister, General Montgomery, Field-Marshal Smuts, General Sir Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, and, in all probability, the Supreme Commander and other key men—I notice that the Supreme Commander went over that same day—got into a huddle. I do not think the following would be an unreasonable argument to put before the House: spies or quislings could have got back word that the Prime Minister was around, that he was, practically, unescorted, and that he was located at such-and-such a spot, with a covey of men indispensable to the United Nations —in other words, the target that the Nazi bombers and gunners have dreamed about.

I cannot understand, and I think there are quite a number of people who cannot understand, why in heaven's name the Prime Minister decided to take this trip, fraught as it was with the possibility of so many serious repercussions. I trust that he did not go just for the fun of the ride. Certainly nobody would try to insult the troops, by even hinting that their morale required the visit. The troops were, of course, delighted to see him and, to quote a correspondent who saw him land, A Tommy said, with a tinge of anxiety in his face, 'God help any sniper who gets one near him.' Men on the spot knew the danger he was running. In spite of what the Minister of Information might say to the contrary, this was the opinion of our soldiers out there and it is the opinion of quite a number of people at home.

Was his journey really necessary? If not, ought not this House to get an undertaking from the Prime Minister that he will not go off to France again until the factor of risk over there is considerably diminished? The trouble, I believe, when we get down to it is that when this old war horse smells powder he cannot keep out of the fray. The fighting blood of the Marlboroughs is up, but the Prime Minister must curb his personal feelings, for if ever a man has a duty to mankind in this war it is he. Therefore, he must not take unnecessary risks with his life. I warrant that this is the opinion of millions. He inspired freedom-loving peoples to fight on, and we demand that every human precaution is taken to ensure that now that he has got us the tools he remains the foreman who finishes the job.

The Minister of Information (Mr. Brendan Bracken)

The synthetic solicitude for the Prime Minister shown by the hon. and gallant Gentleman has never been supported by votes in the Lobby, or by any action outside or inside this House. He has chosen this occasion to make some remarks about General Eisenhower's relationships with the Prime Minister, and he has come forward, in a rather greasy way—

Captain Cunningham-Reid

Here we go again.

Mr. Bracken

—to show us the best method of establishing proper relationships with the United States. I tell the hon. and gallant Gentleman that he has no qualifications for soothing relationships between England and the United States. I must remind the hon. and gallant Gentleman that the Prime Minister is also Minister of Defence, and that in the latter office it is his duty to see things for himself. It would be difficult to over-estimate the benefits that Britain has gained from the Prime Minister's journeys, to which the hon. and gallant Gentleman objects. The House will remember that, as a consequence of one of his visits to the Middle East, Generals Alexander and Montgomery were brought into that theatre of war. This decision was taken by the Minister of Defence, after he had had an opportunity of examining on the spot the problems of our Armies in the Middle East. No one doubts the wisdom of his decision. No one who knows anything about the facts of the case will say that that decision could have been taken from an office in London. I could tell the House of Commons many other great advantages which we have derived from the Prime Minister's journeys but I had better not usurp the functions of the historians.

If the Prime Minister errs in making these journeys, he errs in the best company. Look at the record of the Prime Minister of South Africa. Field-Marshal Smuts has gone to more battlefields than the Prime Minister of Great Britain, and his visits have enabled him to give the sagest advice to those responsible for the waging of the war. Again—and as we have some Scots Members here, I must be very careful—everybody recognises that the Scots are a gallant but cautious race. Let us examine the record of that splendid Scot, the Prime Minister of New Zealand. He has only just come back from seeing the New Zealand Forces, who are playing such a noble part in chasing the Germans out of Italy. The Germans celebrated Mr. Fraser's arrival by dropping plenty of shells near him. I am told that he thoroughly enjoyed the experience and that his New Zealand troops are very proud that their Prime Minister was with them under fire.

I think it is a good thing for Prime Ministers that they should go into the front line and see the troops, and the soldiers, who matter most, like to see them. I daresay some hon. Members of this House remember that, in the last war, some suggestions were made by timid French Ministers to M. Clemenceau that, owing to the Germans having a big gun that shelled Paris, they should leave that city for a safer place. They discovered for the first time that the old Tiger was amenable. He said, "Yes, let the Government leave Paris. Let it go to the front," and it was a very sound piece of advice. If men like Clemenceau lived in this generation, France would not be in its present predicament.

I will give another reason why the Prime Minister should renew his vitality by visiting the fighting men. I doubt whether anyone in this House has any knowledge of the appalling burden of work borne by the Prime Minister. He labours over 16 hours a day, and I should say that his daily routine is more dreary and arduous than has ever fallen to the lot of any man. There are, I suppose, degrees in risk-taking, but I hold that working long hours in a frowsy office is much more dangerous to a man's health, than going to sea under the protection of the Royal Navy, or being wafted to far countries by the Royal Air Force. There are other risks in leading a sedentary life. A sizeable number of bombs have been dropped very near the Prime Minister's office home in Whitehall.

Captain Cunningham-Reid

Surely there is an air-raid shelter there?

Mr. Bracken

The hon. and gallant Member has no information on the subject. If he can find the Prime Minster in an air-raid shelter he will better Dr. Livingstone as a great discoverer.

Captain Cunningham-Reid

Then he certainly should make use of it.

Mr. Bracken

The conclusion of the whole matter is that, in war, no one can avoid risks. For this reason, the Prime Minister's colleagues are always pleased when he gets out in the fresh air, and gladdens his heart by contact with the fighting men. The Prime Minister has run risks in this war, and he may have to run many more. There is no sacrifice of health or of comfort that he will not make in the service of Britain. He has been the leader of a brave nation, in the darkest hours of its history, and no one can deter the Prime Minister from taking risks if he feels that, by doing so, he can do something to save the precious blood of our fighting men, who are our saviours and, I hope, will be our redeemers.

Neither the hon. and gallant Member nor anyone else can persuade the Prime Minister to wrap himself in cotton wool. He is the enemy of flocculence in thought, word or deed. Most humbly do I aver that, in years to come, a grateful and affectionate people will say that Winston Churchill was raised to leadership by destiny. Men of destiny have never counted risks. The best way of answering the speech the hon. and gallant Member made to-day, and I do not complain of it except that I thought that in one or two parts it was in rather bad taste—he says I am his constant opponent and he is quite right to have a little crack at me—is to repeat the words of a young friend of the Prime Minister's who gave his life for his country in the last war. I am referring to Captain Julian Grenfell, who wrote: Through joy and blindness he shall know, Not caring much to know, that still Nor lead nor steel shall reach him, so That it be not the destined will. And now I must abandon poetry and come back to the harsh facts of our present life. I tell the hon. and gallant Member that nothing said here to-day will make me take the unnecessary risk of trying to persuade the Prime Minister not to take risks.

Question, "That this House do now adjourn," put, and agreed to.