§ 32. Mr. Oliver Stanleyasked the Minister of Food whether he will arrange for the publication of the letter written on or about 12th February, 1950, by the Minister of Food to Mr. Gollancz, as a result of which publication of a book commenting on some aspects of the work of his Department was abandoned.
§ Mr. StanleyWill the right hon. Gentleman give no reasons? Would it not be fair to the Secretary of State for War that a letter which is being so freely referred to in the Press by the recipient should be published in full, so that everyone may know what it contains?
§ Mr. WebbI can only repeat my previous answer to a similar Question. There is no record in my Department of any letter of this description. In any event, the letter from Mr. Gollancz in "The Times" of 22nd March shows there is no need for publication.
§ Mr. StanleyIs it not a strange fact that all trace of a letter written by the former Minister of Food has disappeared from the Ministry of Food? Cannot the difficulty be got over by asking the Secretary of State for War whether he happens to have a copy?
§ The Secretary of State for War (Mr. Strachey)I think that I can explain this very readily. There is no record of the letter in the Ministry of Food because all 24 this happened during the election, and I wrote from Dundee. There is, of course, no suggestion of separating my personal and official capacities in the matter. It was a perfectly proper letter for me to write while I was Minister of Food.
§ Mr. StanleyAm I to gather from that reply that the right hon. Gentleman is telling his successor that he has no objection whatever to this letter being published?
§ Mr. StracheyIt would be for me to publish it. I see no reason whatever, as the contents of the letter have been described by me to the House, and that description has been confirmed by the recipient of the letter, to publish my correspondence at the behest of the right hon. Gentleman.
§ Mr. StanleyMay I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether it is not a fact that in the account which he gave to the House he never told the House he had written a letter at all? What he said was "I told Mr. Gollancz." Would it not, therefore, be much better to let us have the full contents?
§ Sir W. SmithersThey dare not publish it.