◆ SpookStack

“That does not guarantee ainst future disaster,” said nthony, “but it does give rongest assurance that I hie f ne eer this House that we Ve ww have epne all we think we can within the law.” The Premier then looked around him, putting away his notes, taking off his tortoiseshell glasses. “Would the House like the Jaw altered ? Would it agree that the law snotid allow any SByitish subject to be detained an‘ sus- picion?- (Some murmurs of “ No.) _,° pWUSTICE “Would you be willing that ple“should be held indefinitely eee | eT te avidiannras = BV the mice Whiie @ViGence 15; collected ? Of course not. “British justice over the centuries has been based on tne principle that a man is to be pre- sumed innocent until he can be’ .. proved guilty. Have we to aban- don that principle ? Worst of! i AT ic ey it are we to max an exception . rT itical offences ‘The. last thing I would wh SUSPICION to see ‘in this country is tpe Mr. Macmillan said that Security Service having the powpr to do some of the things whigh. some of our’friends in the Press. do not seem to realise would How ifjpm such a policy.” nd Sir Anthony declared: “J abuld never be willing to be Prime Minister of a Government which Sgspicion had becn cast on officials who knew of the decision. Byt eVidence by Vladimir Petrov, the Soviet spy who deserted in Aus- tralia, indicated the flight had heen planned wel] before that date. Of Mr. Harold Philhy—the former Foreign Office man who aked those powers of Wis) Was named in the House by House”. a. -- ae Colonel Marcus Li ton last month 5 S5ibie td Man—Mr. oe THIRD MAN { Macmil an said :— r an naya no reason to conclu a In the debats the three men who were Foreign Secretaries during the Maclean-Burgess case --Mr. Morrison, Sir Anthony, and Mr, Macmillan—told their versions of the story. , . But they still left the bi gest iO; ' question unanswered : wos the Third Man who tipped of the diplomats ? Mr. Macmillan sald: “The circumstances of Maclean's dis- appearance were certainly ex lai able in the terms of a tip-off, but it is quite possible that other circumstances aroused suspicion.’ The authorities, he said. are still investigating the possibility of a tip-off. How many people knew of Mr. on as Foreign Secretary on May 25, 4951, beifayed ‘the interests of His coumtry, or to identify him wi thdt Mr, Philby has at a thegso-called Third Man.” Herbert Morrison's decisi to investigate Maclean ? Mr. Macmillan did not disclose. j But Mr. orrison himself) widened the fiejd by saying that on that day—ead he diew att | t tin to the “#oincidence” thht tlas was the very day the diplp~ mdts fled—-the ,Security Servige, made a report to the offige e Prime Minister, Mr, Attlee. als of Mh " | my erm HIS DoUBT\ REMAINS | M®. MACMILLAN’S speech on the missing diplomats is skilful. In parts it is also reassuring. The checks on aspirants for the Foreign Service and on its members appear to. have been ‘immensely strengthened. . They ‘may well have reached the point where, as. Mr. Macmillan contends, the gaps in security have been plugged as tightly as they ever can be in a free untry. ' But all these chepks pend on the efficiency of) . the security service. : ‘And there Mr. Macmillan’s account is not 60 Satis tory. — Is this efficiency ? ACCORDING to Mr. Macmillan, who com- fac mends and congratulates "se Larabee the security service, Maclean was spotted out of a fleld of 6,000. But nothing like that mumber can have handled the particular information found to havé leaked. And anyway, ihe case puils up against him was not made solid enough for. Meantime Burgess: EE GL Ae antinn “1s missed altogether. It ‘further appears at aclean’s house could pot even be watched for feaq of arousing suspicion. he public demands ft OBODY wishes jto damage nationla} phestige by belittlikg! British security. But what evidence is offered. of its increased efficiency ? |_Mr. Macmillan’ mérely admits that the Third Man has not Veetew Vaswe pw reee be etekeee arte pee been found atid is still being sought. Sir Anthony Eden Proposes an Informal gathering of Privy Councillors to have a general look-round ati security matters. It does, the Government credit to yield thus to public opinion. But nothing so half-hearted will restore confidence either at home r abroad. The only way to o that is to hold/a orough inquiry. The publie will co kanraak, OFF to demand it, Abin ei nte titan