§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary whether he will now submit to the House the return for September stating the particulars of detentions and releases of persons detained under 18B; and of the cases in which the recommendations of the Advisory Committee have been set aside?
§ Mr. H. MorrisonThe report to Parliament for the month of September will be made in the course of the next few days.
§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that it frequently occurs that detainees wishing for family or health or other reasons to remain at Brixton or Holloway are nevertheless sent to the Isle of Man, whilst at the same time others who are anxious to be sent to the Isle of Man are often retained in London prisons; and will he, in view of the fact that conditions of detention are intended to be as little punitive as possible, consider the wishes of detainees in this regard?
§ Mr. MorrisonAccount is taken of the wish of the individual, but it cannot always be the decisive factor. There are other considerations to which weight must be given.
§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary how many men aged 42 and over, with British-born parents, are now detained under Defence Regulation 18B; how many of these fought in the last war and how many of them were wounded?
§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary how many men who were conscientious objectors between 1914 and 1918 are detained under 18B?
§ Mr. MorrisonThis information is not available.
§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary on what date, and for what reason, instructions were sent to the senior medical officer at Brixton prison to the 2288W effect that he was at liberty, systematically, to disregard the conditions laid down in Command Paper 6162, for detention of persons under 18B?
§ Mr. MorrisonI know of no such instructions.
§ Captain Ramsayasked the Home Secretary on what dates instructions were sent to the Governors of Brixton, Liverpool, Stafford, Winchester and Holloway Prisons, to the effect that persons detained under 18B were to be prevented from writing to their Members of Parliament; and whether similar instructions were sent to the Governors of any other prisons; and, if so, which?
§ Mr. MorrisonBefore October, 1940, the rule was that facilities for correspondence were only intended to enable a detained person to keep in touch with his relatives or personal acquaintances, but, as I stated in reply to a Parliamentary Question on 17th October, 1940, it was then decided that in future letters to M.Ps. should be allowed regardless of the consideration whether the writer has or has not any personal acquaintance with the Member.