§ Mr. W. GRAHAMasked the Secretary of State for War whether the only qualification for issue of the general service and Allied medals is the fact that recipients crossed the Channel; whether it is the case that men who worked on the roads, at the docks, or at the base received them equally with men who had faced all the dangers of the trenches; and whether, if the facts are as stated, there is any reason why these medals, or at least the general service medal, should not be issued to the home troops who defended these shores from invasion, the recruiting staff who raised the Armies, the medical staff in this country who received and treated the wounded, and the home supply departments which provided everything necessary for the comfort and the efficiency of the fighting forces?
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§ Mr. CHURCHILLThe British War Medal is awarded to those who entered a theatre of war on duty or who rendered approved service overseas. The main condition of award of the Victory Medal is service on the establishment of specified units in the theatre of war and within specified periods. The British Isles were not a theatre of war and no war medal can be awarded to those who did not leave them, but as I have previously stated, the question of the award of a medal in recognition of services rendered outside theatres of war is under consideration.