§ Mr. J. Dugdaleasked the Home Secretary whether he can now state what organisation or individuals were responsible for the wilful damage to the memorial to Lenin?
§ Mr. Woodsasked the Home Secretary whether he has anything to report as a result of his investigation into the damage to the Lenin memorial; and what further steps he proposes to take to prevent such acts of vandalism?.
§ Mr. H. MorrisonThe outrage to the Lenin memorial took place on the 3rd February, between 9.5 p.m. when the constable on the beat noticed that the memorial was in its normal state, and 9.50 p.m. when he discovered the damage. The houses in Holford Square are uninhabited and the square was at that1354W time dark and deserted. There was very little chance that the offenders would have been seen. Immediate inquiries were, however, made of local wardens and other people in the neighbourhood, but without result. Fingerprints found on a bottle of paint left near the memorial did not correspond with any in Scotland Yard records. In the absence of any direct clue the police could only make inquiries among persons whose records suggested that they might have some knowledge of the outrage. This they have done and very thorough investigations have been made, including the search of a number of premises and the comparison by chemical analyses of samples of materials found on the site and samples taken from the premises searched. Unfortunately these investigations did not produce any definite indication of the identity of the persons responsible, and in the absence of satisfactory evidence it is impossible to take criminal proceedings. I can assure my hon. Friend, however, that any fresh clue which may come to light will be followed up with the greatest energy, and that the police are on the alert to prevent and detect acts of vandalism of this kind.