§ 33. Colonel Gomme-Duncanasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, in view of the fact that the most recent appointments of Mr. MacLean and Mr. Burgess have been proved to be most unsuitable, what disciplinary action he is taking against the officials in the personnel department of the Foreign Office who recommended these appointments.
§ Mr. NuttingNo disciplinary action was taken against individual officials or would have been appropriate.
§ Colonel Gomme-DuncanIs my hon. Friend aware that this will still further add to the disquiet in the public mind that somebody is being shielded about this matter? Will he not go into this question, which could never have happened in a Service Department, where the officials concerned would have been severely reprimanded?
§ Mr. NuttingNo, Sir. Nobody is being shielded in this matter at all. I have said often enough in the House, surely, that the reason why we do not wish to have public inquiries or to publicise more details than we have about this case is that we do not wish to give information about the methods of inquiry or to disclose other confidential matters.
§ Mr. W. R. WilliamsWill the Minister not agree that allegations of unreliability come rather badly from the hon. and gallant Member, having regard to experience of him in a recent statement which he made?
§ Colonel Gomme-DuncanIs my hon. Friend aware that what has been suppressed is not something which will affect security, but is a matter of the appointments. It has nothing to do with the disappearance of these people but has to do with their appointments. No question of security arises.
§ Mr. NuttingThe answer to the question, in that case, is that I am not prepared to lend myself to a witch hunt of this character.