HC Deb 16 November 1916 vol 87 c998W
Mr. BYRNE

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland by whose authority a Report on the conditions of the Irish prisoners interned at Frongoch, contained in the weekly newspaper "New Ireland," was prohibited from publication; whether he is aware that this number of the paper was, in the ordinary course of events, submitted to the Irish Censor on Wednesday, 8th November; that the Censor informed the editor of "New Ireland" that the Report in question must be submitted to Dublin Castle; that the authorities in the Castle gave no decision whether the Report might or might not be published until twelve o'clock on Thursday, 9th November, although the normal time for dispatching to newsagents would have been at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, 8th November, and that in consequence of their delay it was impossible to publish the paper before the morning of Saturday, 11th November; whether it is the policy of the Irish authorities to suppress all evidence in the public Press of ill-treatment of the Irish prisoners; and, if not, will he say on what grounds the Report above referred to was suppressed?

Mr. DUKE

I am informed that the facts generally as to the prohibition of the publication of the article referred to by the Press Censor are as stated in the hon. Member's question. The reason for the action taken was that the article contained statements likely to cause disaffection. The editor was at liberty to publish the paper on Wednesday, the 8th November, if he had then chosen to omit the article.