§ Mr. Byersasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is aware that the Military Government in Schleswig-Holstein has withdrawn the licence for the publication of the newspaper of the Free Democratic Party; and if he will make a statement on the circumstances in which this was done and when the licence will be renewed.
8W
§ Mr. BevinIt is not the case that the licence of a newspaper of the Free Democratic Party has been withdrawn. "Der Freie Demokrat," this Party's periodical, which in its normal form does not require a newspaper licence, began to appear in the format and with the contents of a newspaper in contravention of the rules applying to periodicals. When, despite warnings from Military Government, the publisher persisted in producing what was in fact a newspaper, he was ordered to stop publication.
The newspaper of the Free Democratic Party which at present circulates in Schleswig-Holstein is the "Hamburger Freie Presse." The Party has recently applied for a licence for a separate newspaper in Schleswig-Holstein. The decision on whether or not to license the paper will rest with the German authorities subject only to formal confirmation by Military Government.