§ Mr. Prittasked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he is aware that a pamphlet entitled "Twenty Questions about Russia," composed almost entirely of abuse and misrepresentation of the U.S.S.R., was offered for sale at half-price to men attending the Roman Catholic Church, R.N. Barracks, Chatham, on Sunday, 1st October, and strongly recommended to the troops by the Chaplain conducting the service; and whether he will take steps to see that conduct of this sort is not permitted, or alternatively, to provide to those who believe in friendship with our Soviet Allies an equal opportunity for counter propaganda.
Mr. AlexanderI am glad to assure my hon. and learned Friend that if the pamphlet to which he refers was sold in the vicinity of the Roman Catholic Church at the R.N. Barracks, Chatham, on 1st October, this was done without the consent or knowledge of the Roman Catholic Chaplain or the naval authority in charge of the barracks. The reference in the Chaplain's sermon was to a Catholic magazine of 20 years' standing which is now printed for the Forces only. The article in question with the title "Can a Catholic be a Communist?" could not by any stretch of imagination be described2394W as abusive or offensive to our great Ally. Communism is here treated as a philosophy of life incompatible with the theological concepts of Roman Catholic Christianity.