GERMAN PRISONERS OF WAR (Hansard, 17 October 1946)

§ Mr. Martin Lindsay (Solihull)
I wish this evening to raise the question of the possibility of encouraging selected German prisoners of war to remain in this country with, after a probationary period, the full status of British citizenship. I use the word "possibility" deliberately, rather than the word "desirability," because I have a very open mind on this question, and I shall be particularly interested to hear from the Minister whether the Government have given consideration to this matter, and what they think the pros and cons be.
The advantages of augmenting our labour force in this country by thousands of industrious, highly skilled, workers would appear to be obvious to anybody except, possibly, to trade union leaders. The decision of the mine workers to exclude Poles from the mining industry in this country was a retrograde and shocking one. I always understood that the party opposite called themselves internationalists, yet they are not prepared to have 200 Polish miners, who fought for us during the war, working alongside them in industry. It is an ironical thing that the political wheel should have turned so far that I, a Tory, should be recommending an over-generous gesture to foreigners, rather than the party opposite. I think that it is a very bad decision of the trade unions of this country that they will not have Poles and other foreigners. I can see that there would be great difficulty in persuading the unions, even many years ahead, to admit Germans. I think this is unfortunate. One could well understand it if we were faced with the problem of unemployment, but that is not the situation today. After all, has this country not elected a Government who are pledged to do away with unemployment? Ministers and trade union leaders must surely have some faith in themselves and in their Government.
The position today is that there is an acute shortage of skilled labour. If anyone doubts that, he has only to go to Birmingham or any of our great industrial 1111 cities. We all know how, when the land has been crying out for agricultural labour, Italian prisoners of war have been sent back to Italy, and some of them are now doing their best to come back to this country, which could well do with them. There must be many farmers who would like to keep German prisoners of war, who are now working on their land, and in many cases these men would wish to stay in this country.
There is another reason for considering such a course, and that is the ethnological one. We all know how much the United States have gained by the admixture of good, foreign blood. There are, today, in Great Britain no fewer than 200,000 surplus women of marriageable age between 20 and 40. I am one of those people who believe that it is a great misfortune for a woman to be unable to fulfil her natural biological functions because of the shortage of males, yet this is the prospect of 200,000 women in this country. I think that the actual figure is very much higher, because there is a considerable number of ex-Service men who are anxious to emigrate, and, in addition, a large number who desire to marry German girls. The figures are not yet available, but I understand that they will be available within about a month. We hear that in some units in Germany the proportion of British soldiers who want to, marry German girls is in the region of 20 to 25 per cent. So the actual figure of surplus British women is likely to be considerably higher than 200,000. A number of these would find husbands in due course, if we could get the best of the Germans to remain in this country. I would, therefore, make it a qualification for those who wish to remain that they should be batchelors.
I appreciate that there are many other nationals who should first be considered for naturalisation; that is to say, our friends who have fought with us, rather than those who have fought against us, but if there is any possibility of offering British naturalisation—and I do not believe we shall get the best of the Germans to stay in this country unless we do—a statement to that effect should be made now. It may be said that it is too soon after the war, that feelings are still too high, and so forth, but if there is this possibility and it is not made plain now, 1112 it will be too late, because soon these men will have gone back to Germany. I shall, therefore, listen with great interest to what the Parliamentary Secretary has to say to us as to whether this question has already been considered by the Government, and what are their views upon it.

§ Air-Commodore Harvey (Macclesfield)
I do not go as far as my hon. Friend in his approach to this problem, but I think that all of us feel that the German prisoners of war should be returned to their country, if they so desire, at the earliest opportunity subject to special considerations. The difficult food situation, as it now exists in this country, is such that we must look ahead for the next year or two to ensure that we get the maximum food supply from our own land. I feel that the danger will be next year, and if most of the Germans have returned to their country we shall be in for very serious trouble. A compromise in this matter is required. I feel personally that it is too early to consider giving naturalisation facilities to German prisoners of war, but that they should have the matter put to them, so that they can go back to their homes in Germany to rehabilitate themselves for a period, and see their families before they apply for naturalisation if we should require them.
I say definitely that before this matter is considered we should absorb our Allies, such as the Poles and others, who fought for us in the war, and give them the first opportunity of taking out papers of naturalisation. If this were done, I think that we would have to alter out attitude to the Germans in many respects. We must give them more facilities for correspondence with their families, and adopt altogether a more reasonable attitude towards them. I do not like the Germans, but I think that in our own interests we have to be broad minded in considering this problem.
I ask the Parliamentary Secretary to give this matter his full consideration, not as an immediate issue, but as a matter which should be brought to finality in two or three years' time. If we can get volunteers to stay for a period and help us through the next 18 months, much good will be done.

§ The Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mr. Oliver)
I should say at once—because the hon. Gentleman who raised this subject said he would like to know what consideration, if any, had been given by the Government to this matter—that no consideration whatsoever has been given to it. Apart from the knowledge that the question was being raised, I had no idea of the form of approach until I spoke to the hon. Gentleman tonight, and I had not the remotest idea of what he was going to say. I think it is right to approach the matter on these lines. The day is rather early for a consideration of the naturalisation of ex-enemies. Barely a year has passed since the war. From the controversy which there was in the House only last week on a very minor matter of air-raid sirens, it is evident that war memories are still fresh, and it would invite very severe criticism and censure if we were to suggest that German prisoners of war should be naturalised, although I readily understand that it is not proposed by the hon. Gentleman that the naturalisation should take place now, but that we should make some promise to them that if they are prepared to stay here that privilege, for undoubtedly it is a privilege, will be conferred upon them. I do not think it would be right of me to hold out the slightest hope of that being done at this time. There are approximately 30,000 applications for naturalisation at present, and they are coming in at the rate of between 40 and 50 a day. At present, we are naturalising about 7,000 people a year, and that means that it will take approximately four years to work off the arrears. In those 30,000, it is unnecessary for me to say that there is a large number of aliens who fought in the British Army, and, therefore, they must have preference—

§ Mr. M. Lindsay
I think the hon. Gentleman will admit that I said that. I quite appreciate that the Germans must be last in the queue if they are offered, eventually, naturalisation.

§ Mr. Oliver
I appreciate that the hon. Gentleman stated that. In the circumstances, it will be realised that four years would pass before consideration could be given to the question of naturalising any German prisoners of war. Therefore, I come to the question whether a promise 1114 can be given with regard to the prospect in the distant future, when the cases of those aliens who have already applied for naturalisation have been disposed of, that Germans might be considered. I would not like to make that promise tonight.. even looking over the distance of three or four years, because I feel that it might not be a promise which would be capable of fulfilment at that time. As the war recedes, passions will become assauged and memories will become dim, and the proposition may be much easier. If in two or three years' time the Government think that the proposal might be considered, that would be the time to do it. At the present time, I cannot hold out any hope whatever that the Government would consider the proposal. The hon. and gallant Member for Macclesfield (Air-Commodore Harvey) suggested that we should retain some of the prisoners of war for purposes of agriculture.

§ Air-Commodore Harvey
Volunteers.

§ Mr. Oliver
That might or might not at some future time imply naturalisation.

§ Air-Commodore Harvey
I suggested that we should ask for volunteers for a limited period to see us through what may be a crisis on the land.

§ Mr. Oliver
That opens up problems in the agricultural industry with which I would not like to attempt to deal. There is a large number of Poles in this country, and they will require to be settled, many of them on the land. It may well be that, when they are assimilated into the industry and trade of this country, they will provide a sufficient number, without holding out any prospect of German prisoners of war remaining here. If one asked German prisoners of war to remain here, they would, of course, have a right to expect that, by reason of the invitation, they would, at some future date, be considered for naturalisation. I should think that that would necessarily follow. As I have already said, I do not feel it would be the appropriate occasion tonight to make any promise that that prospect was open.