Message of Thanks to the Lords (Hansard, 24 October 1950)

§ The Lord President of the Council (Mr. Herbert Morrison)
I beg to move, That this House again expresses its grateful appreciation of the courtesy of the House of Lords in placing their Chamber at the disposal of His Majesty for the occupation of this House after the destruction of the Commons Chamber by enemy action in 1941; warmly thanks Their Lordships for so readily consenting to this continued use of their Chamber up to the present time, and recognises that their example of self-sacrifice and goodwill in the face of danger and difficulty was in accord with the highest traditions of Parliament. Partings are always sad, and the pleasure of the House at returning to premises of its own will be tempered with regret at leaving the Chamber which, with great generosity, their Lordships placed at its disposal more than nine years ago and in which so much that will live in history has taken place. It was on 10th May, 1941, that our old Chamber was destroyed in one of the culminating raids of the first Nazi blitz on London. The noble Lord has referred to the efforts that were made by various people to protect these Parliamentary buildings, and I thank him for his kindly reference.
I recall previously asking Mr. Speaker and the Lord Chancellor to meet me, as Home Secretary and Minister of Home Security, to consider the civil defence of Parliament, and we all remember with gratitude the response of Members of Parliament, officers of the House and, let me add, Parliamentary journalists in faithfully doing all they could for the protection of our Parliamentary institutions; and so it was with the more professional Civil Defence Services that assisted us from outside.
However, the blow came, but, true to the spirit of the nation and the people of London, we did not allow the incident to interrupt the continuity of our proceedings. For a few weeks, during which this Chamber was being made ready for our use, we met in what, for reasons of security, was called the Annexe—in other words, Church House—until, on 19th June, the then Prime Minister, now the right hon. Gentleman the Leader of the Opposition, informed the House that, in the words of the Journal of the House: He had received the command of His Majesty to acquaint the House that the House 2712 of Peers having expressed their willingness to place the Chamber appropriated to their use at the disposal of this House, he had given directions that that Chamber should be made available for the Sittings of this House. The House at once passed a Resolution of warm appreciation of the courtesy of the House of Peers, but security considerations made it impossible to acknowledge our indebtedness publicly and no reference could be made to it in HANSARD or in the Press. Our inability to do then what we should have liked adds to our obligations now.
We first met here on 24th June, 1941. and, as guests sometimes have a way of doing, we have stayed far longer than was expected. That will have this advantage: should hon. Members in various parts of the House ultimately be elevated to their Lordships' House they will not feel so strange in that Chamber as might otherwise have been the case. But their Lordships have shown themselves perfect hosts and as far as I am aware, they have never given the slightest indication that we have outstayed our welcome; and this is despite the fact that, while on the whole relations between the two Houses have been harmonious, there have been one or two spots of bother.
But, more seriously, every Parliamentarian will appreciate that it has been of inestimable advantage to us through these critical years that we have been able to use the only alternative meeting place in which we could easily maintain the traditional character and atmosphere of our proceedings. That means more in the conduct of Parliamentary business than most people who have never sat in Parliament can easily realise.
The years during which we have been in residence here have not been uneventful, and I like to think that, during them the British Parliament has, if this is possible, even grown in strength and reputation. It was within these four walls that some of the historic Debates of the war took place and that the right hon. Gentleman, the Leader of the Opposition. made some of his greatest war speeches. This House was also the home, throughout, of the House of Commons which was elected in 1945 to deal with the critical problems of the peace. I do not wish to be controversial but, in my own opinion, the Parliament of 1945—and I am speaking of the Parliament as a whole—will be 2713 looked upon as one of our great Parliaments, and I do not think that any who disagree with that view will deny, at any rate, that few Parliaments in our history have been more important.
Many of the present Members of the House will not have sat in any other Chamber but this. For them the parting will be more of a landmark than for the rest of us and the memories which they will take with them will be especially dear. But, even for senior Members, nine-and-a-half years is a large slice out of most Parliamentary careers. Few of us will leave this Chamber without a measure of regret, few without memories which we shall always value, and none, I am sure, without a sense of real gratitude to their Lordships for the self-sacrifice and good will they have shown. We thank our hosts. As Leader of the House of Commons I regard myself as privileged and honoured to move the Motion and I have no doubt that it will have unanimous support.

§ Mr. Eden (Warwick and Leamington)
I beg to second the Motion.
I gladly associate myself and my right hon. and hon. Friends with the Motion. I believe time was when, if this House wanted to send any message at all to another place, it was necessary that it should be delivered by what was described as the men in charge of business. That must have been a rather cumbrous proceeding, interrupting the work both of this House and of another place, and I do not know that we should think it a very good idea to revive it for ordinary use now, but it is appropriate that the exception should be made on this occasion and that the men in charge should go to another place to express the thanks which hon. Members in all parts of the House sincerely feel.
The right hon. Gentleman referred to the night, fresh in the minds of many of us, when our old House was destroyed. For my part I always thought it was singularly obliging of the enemy to chose for their operation a period of time when none of us was there, however, that may be looked upon by the nation apart from ourselves. We can all recall those homeless days and the generous act which first placed Church House at our disposal, and we can also recall many discussions we had, including some in the War Cabinet 2714 which my right hon. Friend will remember, as to when we could leave Church House; not because we were ungrateful but because all Parliamentarians like to be in the Palace of Westminster if they possibly can. There was always the security consideration—whether we could leave that place for the many-windowed building in which we now are.
I hope that those who lent us this building do not feel that we have stayed here too long. We have certainly been here quite a while but, if we recall those days in Church House, it is strange how, when we are in the Palace of Westminster, we realise that no other building, however skilfully adapted, could quite meet our needs. I remember one thing about Church House which used to distress me very much. The Front Benches were very much too close to one another and the consequence was that we saw very much too much of one another; and I am quite sure that if that had gone on too long it would have had very unsatisfactory consequences. Those, and a score of other features, are what make the life of the Palace of Westminster in contrast to other buildings.
We have been here very long. To their Lordships' House it must sometimes have seemed an eternity—even longer than the definition of eternity which the late Lord Balfour once gave—"It is a man you invite for lunch who stays for tea." Even longer than that we have lingered in this House, but it has been through the kindness of another place that we have been able to do our work; and so, when we thank them, we are thanking them not only on our own behalf but also on behalf of those who send us here. As the Leader of the House indicated, they may not at all times agree with everything we do. At least, however, they have done everything that in their power lay to enable us to discharge our task efficiently in the conditions which the enemy imposed upon us. For that and their other acts of kindness in connection with our occupation of this Chamber we shall be ever grateful.

§ Mr. C. Davies
On behalf of my colleagues and myself I rise to support this Motion. Those of us who were present in Parliament in 1941 will never forget those years of trial and tribulation. As the years move on we shall 2715 probably remember them with advantage. I am not at all sure we are not already remembering them now with advantage.
It was not only right and proper, but it was our bounden duty to remain in Westminster, and we are proud that we were enabled to do so. Indeed, as the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Warwick and Leamington (Mr. Eden) has already said, we are deeply grateful to the Church of England for so readily lending us the use of Church House. But, quite frankly, none of us was at his ease there. It did not seem to be the right place for us.
Then came the suggestion, first put forward at a meeting of the House by that much beloved and warmly revered gentleman, the late Mr. James Maxton, that an approach might be made to their Lordships; and it was that suggestion that was readily taken up by the then Prime Minister. We are deeply grateful to their Lordships for so readily consenting to give up the use of this their Chamber, and so enabling us to return to the Palace of Westminster. We have, thanks to their generosity, occupied this Chamber during some of the most historic and momentous years during the long life of Parliament.
But I also believe that their Lordships have also benefited by their own generosity. If they have, it is just as it should be. A generous act, like the exercise of the quality of mercy, should be twice blessed, and bless those who give as well those who receive, and I think the quality of their Lordships' Debates and of their deliberations has been enhanced by the greater intimacy of the small Chamber His Majesty graciously placed at their disposal. Certainly it seems to me that the high standard of their Debates 2716 has had a greater and increasing influence both upon policy and upon thought. In leaving their Chamber and returning to our new one so that they may return to their old one we offer to them our warm and sincere gratitude for their act of generosity and courtesy.

§ Mr. H. Morrison
Mr. Speaker, I have to report that I and the other right hon. Gentlemen appointed by the House have been to the Lords according to order and communicated to the Lords the Resolution of the House this day, and that the Lords have given the following answer: This House deeply appreciates the message of thanks brought up from the Commons this day. It will always be a source of satisfaction that it was the privilege of this House to assist the other House when its Chamber was destroyed by enemy action in 1941, and to share with it the honour and the burden of maintaining the institutions of parliamentary government through the perilous times of the Second World War and during the arduous years of reconstruction.