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Cambridge Five Spy Ring — Part 15
Page 50
50 / 83
* service
Burgess, bf Thay Be. iiche-
anecone ia Whe Foreign Office
May 23 you had authorized
* vesiona, QP course, it was
+ Foreign Office knew, that
Enew as well.
AL INQUIRY
f these unhappy and beastly
in view of public appre-
cn misunderstanding, there
inquiry into the administra-
nt, and premotion in - the
That shoild inclpde the
heavy burden thag fell on
of State in m times.
‘ could be made % select
- some other sui body.
tlsao a case for ‘examining
in the light of the’ Burgess
acidents and partly io be
’ security services were good.
7. not be a public inquiry,
‘eport be published. They
he divulgence of the secrets
counter-espionage. There
- sation by a Judge or Judges
ig & private report to the
Both: subjects might be
‘ommittee of Privy Coun-
"ing both sides of the House
‘ace that madé them speci-
. these matters. But there
. ary, The country would not
jout an inquiry of some
‘g an adequate field, for the
ght to know that adequate
. 3 vaken, arising out of an
as disturbing and worrying
ING CONFIDENCE
MME - DUNCAN (Perth
hire, €.) asked what con-
' . between Burgess and Dr.
- western German security
_ ed to the Communisis in
“ary to ensure that such a
rgess and Maclean affair
‘1 again. As long as the
for security at that time
1 positions, he doubted if
f Britain would be main-
“AN (Coventry, East, Lab.)
‘fending the Foreign Office
iad put it far deeper into
‘t four years, this tissue of
hs and contradictions was
uld produce, then the im-
“cover up" was more
ated than ever.
em of the Foreign Office
but whether the reforms
is ago had produced the
sears was just about, the
- inquiry into the effects
. which cut the Foreign
he rest of the Civil Ser-
. ‘aomous and badly under-
. it services of the Foreign
NED SERVICES
SPEIR (Hexham, C.) said
» «St four years the security
much maligned. It would
_ Airy if there was some
adequacy of -our intelli-
seemed that they could
uproved.
_ OMNEY (Hammersmith,
_ that the White Paper was
rover up something within
. oS in the Foreign Office,
* ay from their follic¢ and
_ Usjudgment and areglect,
, Was an independent in-
--tkings of Foreign Office
irtly Services there would
~
* SON (Epsom, ©.) said
‘am the White Paper that
‘< covering up by bureau-
! ‘he feeling that the two
j vlonged to the service.
- 1 MACPHERSON (Stir-
+ ab.) supported the plea
» the methods and sources
the Foreign Service.
Y¥ NICHOLSON (Farn-
ae fid_pot knew. Borgen
‘the girl’s clothing down
not hava the borcign Service for
one weech.
IncompatY
MR. A.J. IR ‘Liverpool, Edgehill,
Lab.) said that too atense a loyalty to a
department and to one's colleagues had
been allowed to persist up to the point at
which it was incompatible with the
National interest, and that could best be
cured by an extension of the sources of
recruitment to the department.
LIEUT..COL. CORDEAUX (Notting-
ham, Central, C.) said that the particular
failure of the securily services about Bur-
gess and Maclean was bad enough, but it
could noi be considered in isolation. There
should be an inquiry into the securily ser-
vices; the faith of the people in them had
been badly shaken. Mr. Macmillan should
reconsider the decision that an inquiry was
nol necessary.
LIEUT.-COL. LIPTON (Brixton, Lab.)
said that the two men, for reasons apart
from the Official Secrets Act, had proved
themselves unfiited for the Foreign Service,
Did the Government have to wait for other
information before getling rid of drunks
or homosexuals or people who were
admittedly unfitted by reason of character
to have posts in a Government department?
MR. DAINES (East Ham, North, Lab.)
said that Lieut.-Cot, Lipton had made a
charge against Mr. Philby in a question.
He owed it to the House to give the
sources of the information on which that
charge was based.
LIEUT.-COL, LIPTON, afier some other
interruptions, said the siatement he had
made concerning Mr. Philby on October
25, was quite a serious one, and he was
convinced that in making it he was serving
the public interest by forcing the Govern-
ment, and in pariicular the Fore: n Secre-
tary, lo provide much more information
than had been provided hitherto,
MR. NUTTING, Minister of Siate for
Foreign Affairs (Melion, C.).— Will the hon,
member be good enough to forward to the
Foreign Secretary the evidence upon which
he is basing his charges against Mr.
Philby ?
LIEUT.-COL. LIPTON .—No. (Laughter.)
1 am prepared to forward that information
to a judicial member of the Privy Council
who, it has been suggested, should carry
Out an investigation into the operations of
the secret service.
When the verbal niceties of the Foreign
Secretary’s speech have been examined it
will be found I am justified in not making
a withdrawal at the present time. :
CONDUCT IN CAIRO
MR. ROBENS’S CHARGES
MR. ROBENS (Blyth, Lab.) said the
public and many M.P.s were sure that
there was a close circle of people in the
Foreign Office who covered up for their
friends, How else could it be that a couple
of drunks, a couple of homosexuals, well
known in London, could for so long have
occupied imporiant posts in the Foreigs
Office 7 (Cheers.)
The White Paper stated, of an incident
that had occurred while Maclean was in
Cairo,
In May, 1950, while serving at his
Maijesty’s Embassy, Cairo, Macican_ was
guilty of serious misconduct and suffered
a form of breakdown which was altri-
buted to overwork and excessive drinking.
But what were the facts about this onc
case ? He was nol going to talk about a
fight Maclean had with -an Egyptian guard
or the breaking of the leg of a colleague
while on a boating trip, Maclean and a
friend, both in a drunken state, had gone
into the flat of a gir] who was a librarian
at the United States Embassy in Cairo,
The girl was absent. They had forced their
way in and taken all the drink there was
available. They had then pushed a lot of
the lavatory,
smashed a table, knocked into the bath “a
heavy slab of marble fixed as a shelf over
the radiator and broken the bath.
. 4 “SHOCEIIC goons |.
aot
E LOYALTIES
took vim home. Did the Whi aper reveal
half of that shocking Ory cume
anxictics, fears, misapprehciscos
fusion there was a larger quest
SAFEGUARDING LIBI
POWERS OF SECU!
x _ SERVICES
How far the continued) are wi
pursuit of great security at the «
essential liderties of the British
(Cheers.) Some have said that Bi.
Maclean should not have bec
lo escape. Under the law as
to-day they could not have been
from escaping unless a charge c.
been preferred. No charge could |
preferred,
Would the House like that law
Would the House agree that the |:
allow any British subject to be de
suspicion ? (Cries of “* No ! ").
to face these questions. (Chee:
there is no evidence on which am.
charged would ihe House be wi
people should be held indefinitel
police while evidence is collecte
them ? In this case detention wx
been justified. But who could
whether Maclean was innocent o
POLITICAL OFFENCE:
British justice over the centuries
based on the principle that a m:
be presumed innocent until he
Proved guilly, Have we got to aba
Principle ?
Perhaps worst of all, are we io
exception for political offences ?
thing 1 would wish to see in thi
is the security services having: t
to do some of the things which
our friends 3n the Press. do not
realize would flow from what they
(Cheers.)
It may be true that if the sec
vices had such powers Burgess and
would not be where they are
think it is true. But what wa
been the consequences for British
and for the rights this House hi
always determined to defend ? |
make one thing quile clear, I we
be willing to be Prime Minister of :
ment which asked those power:
House. (Loud cheers.)
The motion was, by leave, wit!
The Expiring Laws Continuanc:
read-a second time.
The House adjourned at 29 min
10 o'clock.
hack fo this country a “ss given six
months’ jeave of absence, 007, OVer=
strained, over-worked gentl .n, and he
was then given a job at the Foreign Office.
Disgraceful behaviour of that kind by
Maclean in Cairo, Washington, and this
country should have been dealt with years‘
ago. (Opposition cheers.)
Ihere should «be two inquiries. One
should be into the Foreign Office organizs-
tion, its recruitment, and whether a closed
circle existed or not, and whether covering
up took place. The other inquiry should
be in relation to security,
SIR ANTHONY EDEN said that this
had been a sad day for the Foreign Service
and for this country, The reputation of the
Foreign Service was part of our national
tépulation, He agreed with Mr. Morrison
that, whatever mistakes might or might not
have been made, one thing was certain—
that nobody at the Forcign Office at any
ume covered up any form of disloyalty to
the State. If any mistakes were made, they
were not of the kind even remotely tinged
with disloyalty. .
The suggestion that the Foreign Service
should be made part of the Civil Service
was absolutcly unworkable. The memoers
of the amalgamated Foreign Service under-
took to accept service at home or abroad,
‘That could not be asked ot the meniocis
of the Civil Service.
Several members had asked why, once
Maclean's behaviour in Cairo gol so bad,
he was not dismissed the service. He (the
Prime Minister) did not know about this
bchaviour; he was not then in the Govern-
ment: but it was an arguable proposition,
and he would not say what he would have
done had he been Foreign: Secretary at the
time. It would have been an appallingly
difficult decision to take.
Thank Gad J did not have to judge it (he
said). Ail | can say is that it is rather
harsh to say that there is nothing to be
said at all in favour of giving anybody a
second chance. That is a doctrine about
which this House should hesitate before it
lays it down.
DISAGREEABLE MEASURES
I was interested to watch the mood of
the House as the Foreign Secretary was
describing the new measures—positive
“vetting, as it is called. Personally. 1
think it is right, and I think it is inevitable,
but I do not pretend that I like it very
much. I really do not—this going along
lo the tutor of someone and saying. “ What
did you really think of so-and-so when he
was in your college 7°" and so on, It is
teally disagreeable to the ordinary British
instinet, bur I think we just had to do that
much. This I think is the minimum we had
lo do, and also the maximum we can do
within the existing law. Therefore L think —
we have acted rightly, in the spirit of what’
the House would wish. + .
There waS no reason to suppose there! ’
was any connexion between the departure? og .
of. Burgess’ and the defection of Owto-John + ; Sem OS
to the east. “ J
PARLIAMENTARY NOTI
HOUSE OF LORDS
To-pay, ar 2.30
Aliens’ Employment Bill, report,
Motion by the Earl of Swinton callinz
the organization of the Service departme:
fighting services.
HOUSE OF COMMONS
| A
He could not explain in deiail how the nego ttt on tak
security services had followed and dis-,% oN ae
covered Maclean’s activities. That was7 ™. aad r Te
H - ee ’ t*
something that had been concealed from oy Os at a
the House, and must be concealed for good Ee ie Ba ae
reasons, That the investigation had covered beg pag here og ah
6.000 people and had been narrowed down
to one indicated the care and efficiency WithB ve it we. othe gee
which it was pursued. It also indicated th : es
afk
oti:
continuing information on which it resicd ree wa
More than that he was not prepared to say Tele :
- Ik was agreed that every justifiable pref 47 ee aie
caution should be taken to ensure that”. +2 °.°:
every man and woman in the public service
did not work against the security of the
State. He therefore proposed to the Leader
of the Opposition that a small informal
conference of Privy Councillors from both }.
sides of the House should be convened
to examine together the security procedures
which were now applied in the public ser-
vices, and also to consider whether within
the law any further precaution could pro-
peily be taken to reduce the risk of trea- |, «Nee ee
chery such as had been discussed by the | Pant ata e atx, ea
ee eA Ia
Peon ee m
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