WAR DESPATCHES (Hansard, 27 March 1945)

50. Mr. Bellenģer
asked the Prime Minister whether he will publish in HANSARD a list of the despatches received from commanders-in-chief during this war, with the dates of their receipt.

§ The Prime Minister
No, Sir.

Mr. Bellenģer
Would my right hon. Friend give any explanation of why he is not prepared to give this information in HANSARD?

§ The Prime Minister
I see no particular purpose in giving a list of these various despatches. I have studied the best of them, and, if there is any general desire for their printing, it could certainly be granted.

§ Earl Winterton
May I ask if my right hon. Friend can make it clear that the fact that the dates and contents of the despatches are not being published during the war, does not mean that the usual principle will be departed from that there will be full publication after the war?

§ The Prime Minister
That is quite true. These despatches have passed away, in many cases, from the sphere of immediate action. Nevertheless, they are an extremely important contribution to the history of the war, and it is certainly the intention of the Government to make them public, but I do not think this is the best time, when our eyes are fixed upon the extremely rapid development of military events. I think it is much better that, in some moment when there are no new facts to be recorded about the progress of our Armies, that should be the period when they should be published.

Mr. Bellenģer
Might I ask my right hon. Friend whether these despatches are for the information of the War Cabinet 1311 or whether this House has not some interest in having them published, as was indeed done on every occasion during the last war?

§ The Prime Minister
The despatches are, of course, to His Majesty's Government. There might easily be things in them that would not be suitable for publication. It might give great information to the enemy. We have nothing to fear from any disclosures, I can assure the hon. Gentleman, and if it would give him satisfaction that a list of the despatches should be published, I should be quite ready to alter the sense of my answer and meet his wishes and have them published, but I think I should like to hear from him that he really does consider that it is a necessary step to take.