HC Deb 11 May 1950 vol 475 cc89-90W
112. Mr. Blackburn

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what circumstances and on what conditions permission is being granted to representatives of the American Federal Bureau of Investigation to interview Dr. Fuchs.

Mr. Ede

It is provided by the Prison Rules, 1949, that an officer of police may visit any prisoner who is willing to see him on production of an order issued by or on behalf of the appropriate chief officer of police, such visit being additional to the prisoner's normal entitlement of visits. This provision is intended to relate to visits by officers of British police forces and I am not aware of any precedent for such a visit by police of other countries. The Government of the United States has, however, recently made a request that a representative of the Federal Bureau of Investigation should be allowed to visit the prisoner Klaus Fuchs, and in the exceptional circumstances of this case the request has been granted. In accordance with the usual practice the visit will take place in the presence of a prison officer and will be subject to the usual conditions governing the interviewing of prisoners.