§ Mr. James Johnsonasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on leaks about confidential Army memoranda critical of the British Press in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. MasonI have been asked to reply.
An extensive search in official files has revealed no trace of either of the alleged "confidential Army memoranda" referred to in Tuesday's article in The Times. However, the memorandum attributed to "a Lieutenant Colonel at the Army's headquarters at Thiepval Barracks in Northern Ireland" is, I understand, a document written by a retired officer after he left the Army. It is, therefore, in no sense an Army document and has no official status. It goes without saying that the contents of the alleged memoranda do not reflect Government policy.