HC Deb 03 December 1953 vol 521 cc1305-6
19. Sir I. Fraser

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements have been made for mutual support and working together between Civil Defence units and the Home Guard in order to make the best possible use of available manpower in an emergency.

Sir D. Maxwell Fyfe

The general arrangements for assistance by the Home Guard to Civil Defence are now in process of being worked out in detail at regional and local level in conjunction with Army commands and districts. In many areas, joint discussions on deployment of forces have taken place; a number of local authorities have started to give instruction in Civil Defence to the Home Guard; and a beginning has been made with participation by the Home Guard in Civil Defence exercises.

Sir I. Fraser

Are the Government still of the opinion that these forces represent the most economical way of using these men and women?

Sir D. Maxwell Fyfe

Certainly. There is, in my view, no question of amalgamating two fundamentally different forces which deal with different aspects of the problems that might arise.

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