HC Deb 19 May 1947 vol 437 cc1977-9
1. Mr. Piratin

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has replied to the Note forwarded by the Polish Ambassador to the Prime Minister on 15th April; and if he will inform the House of the terms of his reply.

The Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Mayhew)

Yes, Sir. A reply was despatched to the Polish Ambassador on 12th May, the terms of which will be circulated in the OFFICIALREPORT.

Mr. Piratin

Can the Under-Secretary state whether the Foreign Office acknowledges the statement made by the Polish Embassy to the effect that these Polish troops are still in uniform and wearing badges appertaining to the Polish Republican Government and whether steps are being taken to abandon that position?

Mr. Mayhew

Perhaps the hon. Gentleman will read the reply, which is very long.

Following are the terms of the reply.

YOUR EXCELLENCY,

In your Note JM/No. 34/88 of the 15th April you expressed the concern of the Polish Government at the continued existence of some units of the Polish Armed Forces under British Command and especially of those units at present outside the United Kingdom.

2. I have the honour to inform Your Excellency in reply that His Majesty's Government are no less anxious than the Polish Government that the demobilisation of all units of the Polish Armed Forces should be accomplished at the earliest possible moment. The difficulties are of a practical nature. In particular the desperate shortage of accommodation in this country has greatly complicated the formation of the Polish Resettlement Corps and the placing in employment of those men who do not wish to return to Poland and has also delayed the withdrawal of the Polish Armed Forces from Germany and the Middle East which is now being arranged.

3. As I am sure you realise, it is essential that the demobilisation of the Polish Armed Forces should take place in an orderly and regular manner; otherwise the economy of this country would be dislocated and the men demobilised would also suffer considerable hardship. This, as has been already explained to the Polish authorities, is the sole reason for the formation of the Polish Resettlement Corps for those who do not wish to return to Poland.

4. Meanwhile a great deal has already been done to disband the Polish Armed Forces and to encourage their repatriation.

5. As Your Excellency is aware, all Polish service men who have been, or will be, brought to the United Kingdom for demobilisation, are given the choice of volunteering either for repatriation or for enlistment in the Polish Resettlement Corps. Fifty-nine thousand, two hundred and thirty-nine Polish service men have up to the present date been repatriated to Poland and the rate of repatriation has now been raised, by agreement between our two Governments, to 15.000 a month. At this rate the number of men awaiting repatriation will be reduced to only a few thousand at the end of June. Volunteers for repatriation are coming forward at the rate of about 4,000 a month and repatriation will continue in close co-operation with the Polish authorities.

6. Meanwhile, 96,700 men of the Second Corps, i.e., almost all those who have not previously volunteered for return to Poland (together with over 10,000 of their dependants) have already been brought to the United 'Kingdom for disbandment. Many have, I am glad to say, since volunteered for return to Poland. About 2,500 Polish soldiers and airmen who have married Italians have been demobilised in Italy with effect from 1st May. The liquidation of the military prison to which you refer is being arranged by His Majesty's Embassy in Rome with the Polish Embassy there. The problem of Polish soldiers in Italy is thus virtually liquidated.

7. The Polish Armoured Division is at present being brought to the United Kingdom from Germany for disbandment, and their move will, it is expected, be complete by the 1st June. His Majesty's Government intend in the same way to bring here the members of the Polish Armed Forces under British Command still in the Middle East, as soon as accommodation is ready for them and shipping can be arranged to bring them here.

8. The "Polish Military Liquidation Mission" and the unit of Polish military police in Brussels which you mention have been required for administrative purposes which Brussels was on the lines of communication of the Polish Armoured Division in Germany. They will thus no longer be required when the latter is withdrawn and their disappearance is imminent. Meanwhile, I have no evidence whatever to support the allegation mentioned in Your Excellency's note that the mission has been "spreading lawlessness" or "facilitating criminal activities" among Poles. Majesty's Government have received no complaints on this score and the object of the mission is precisely to aid our own authorities and the Belgian authorities in preventing such developments. If you have any precise evidence, I shall be glad to have it examined.

9. The publication "Orzel Bialy" to which you refer is, I understand, published by a Belgian firm. I am informed that it is not financed from military funds but is run on a purely commercial basis and none of its equipment is military property. Since you have drawn my attention to it, steps are being taken to confirm that none of the members of its staff retain any official connection with the Polish Armed Forces under British Command.

10. The Polish Mission of Liquidation in France which Your Excellency also mentions was set up in order to regularise the demobilisation in France of certain members of the Polish Armed Forces under British Command, who have had close connections with France. The number of Pole administered by it has already been reduced from many thousands to about 5,000. As soon as these few men have been disposed of, the Mission itself will be withdrawn.

11. The demobilisation of the Polish Armed Forces under British Command is being proceeded with as rapidly as the circumstances permit. It is in the British interest to reach as soon as possible thereafter a situation in which the members of the Polish Resettlement Corps have all either returned to Poland or been placed in civil employment here or overseas. It will, however, be obvious to Your Excellency that this must, inevitably, be a lengthy process.

I have, etc.,

(Signed) ERNEST BEVIN.

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