§ 5.51 p.m.
§ LORD SALTOUN rose to ask His Majesty's Government whether they will not consider a change of system in order greatly to diminish delay and to give additional certainty in the conferring of honours on combatants in war time. The noble Lord said: My Lords, your Lordships may not be surprised to know that in the First World War, when he served with the Red Cross, the late Lord Donoughmore got as near the front as 568 he could, and that the French always used to supply him with a very good woman driver who, as he did, always tried to get as near the front as possible. Unfortunately, it happened that one day this poor woman was shot, and she died that night in hospital. Before she died, a French General standing by her bedside said to her: "Madame, vous êtes blessée pour la patrie," and he pinned the Legion of Honour on her breast. She died happy. That is the way I feel that honours ought to be granted. I realise that the other point of view is held in this country; that honours ought to be very carefully scrutinised before they are granted. I realise that that argument also has great force, and I entirely agree with it. But I should like to add that honours, once granted honestly, should never be withdrawn.
§ Let me take the case of one young man I know who, after being wounded and getting two Military Crosses—the citation for the first was one of the most extraordinary I have ever seen at last received from his General the D.S.O. ribbon with a letter saying: "My dear boy, at last you have got what you deserve. You will put this up at once." He was cited in orders as having received the D.S.O., and he put it up. Nine months later he read in orders that he had received only the Military Cross, and he was told to take down the D.S.O. Your Lordships will not be surprised at the consequence of that. The next thing was a letter asking to resign all his honours. Bearing in mind this story, which I had only just heard, I went to dine with a colonel who had commanded a battalion in Burma during the last war. He had just received a letter from one of his officers saying: "My dear Colonel, you will remember that I was present at a divisional parade in Burma when the divisional commander conferred on me the D.S.O. My right to wear this is now being challenged, and I have been told to take it down." That sort of thing is something that should never be allowed to occur.
§ I suggest that one of the best ways out of this business is to give officers commanding-in-chief on any front a certain number of honours which they themselves can confer, and which can be kept as a reserve for cases of this kind. I also wish to suggest that the greatest expedition should be used in assessing the actions of the Army, Navy and Air 569 Force and in assigning awards, because I believe teat, during the last war, in a large proportion of cases in which honours were granted the persons who received them were dead before knowing that they had won hem. I think those two aspects are most important. That is the foundation of my second Question this afternoon.
§ VISCOUNT ALEXANDER OF HILLSBOROUGHMy Lords, we have considered these points which have been put down by the noble Lord, Lord Saltoun. His Majesty's Government are not aware that there are any good reasons for recommencing any change in the system relating to the grants of honours for combatants in war time. I am afraid that some delays are unavoidable, as in the course of operations recommendations which reach a Commander-in-Chief have to be co-ordinated and compared. However, I am sure your Lordships will be interested to learn that the number of immediate awards which may be made by the Commander-in-Chief, British Commonwcalth Occupation Forces in Japan, to United Kingdom Army Forces has recently, been increased. The noble Lord will appreciate that, where that special authority is given, there can be no question of any variation or withdrawal.
I will, of course, bring to the attention of the authorities the remarks made by the noble Lord, Lord Saltoun, but it would be Wrong for me to go further than to say that we have given this power to the Commander-in-Chief in the Far East, that we have increased the number of awards which are at his disposal, and that we will do all we can to expedite the consideration of such further recommendations as he or similar Commandersin-Chief may feel they must send home to be considered.
§ LORD SHEPHERDMy Lords, as your Lordships know, the hour has arrived for a Royal Commission. I suggest that it would be convenient that we should now adjourn during pleasure.
§ House adjourned during pleasure
§ House resumed.