POLICY COMMITTEE
11th June 1940

Present:

D.G.

D.D.G.

D.S.

Lord Perth

Sir Kenneth Clark

Mr. Kirkpatrick

Mr. Macadam

Mr. Peake

Mr. Wellington

P.P.S.

Mr. Gates

Mr. Tree

Mr. Wiltshire (secretary)

1. SOME MORALE

The Director General stated that the Treasury had now given sanction for £100,000 to be expended on a campaign maintaining home morale to run over the next two months. It was now proposed to regularise the procedure in the Office for dealing with the subject. The Director General would see some of the members of the Policy Committee to-day, and after further discussion with the Minister, take the subject up again at the next day's Policy committee. Mr. Kirkpatrick emphasised the importance of propaganda by film. He referred to a German film in which an extract from a scene in an opera had been given on conventional lines until at the end an incident had been turned into a piece of anti-waste propaganda. The Director General asked whether various methods of producing the “anger” theme could be worked out. It was suggested that we should obtain an outside consultant, R.H.S. Crossman, but decision was deferred until the next day.

2. POSITION OF ITALY AND THE BALKANS

It was noted that Italy still remains the responsibility of the Ministry and not of Sir Campbell Stuart. It would be necessary to explore whether there was any possibility of getting material to Italy through Switzerland or by other means. It was suggested that the best means of propaganda might be to ship Italians in this country back to Italy in large numbers. Lord Perth, however, did not feel confident that some of the Italians so treated might nevertheless not influence Italy against us. It was noted that there were at present no air services under our control operating in the Mediterranean and that the cables, although at present in order, might be interrupted at any moment. There were wireless links with Athens and Istanbul which would be used for agency messages, Kmpax telegrams, etc. It would be necessary to rely largely on the new centre at Istanbul which would be fed by the link. The Communications Division was directed to study all the means by which the Balkans could be reached in the present circumstances. The possibility of producing newspapers in Cairo or other places in the Eastern end of the Mediterranean was noted. It was agreed that Mr. Kirkpatrick should consider what plans for producing propaganda in the Balkans and the Near East might now be advanced.

ADDENDUM TO MINUTES OF JUNE 6th, Paragraph 1.

The papers circulated were examined. Sir Walter Monckton said that the courses open were either to adopt a compulsory censorship or the alternative scheme put forward by Mr. Radcliffe (circulated). If compulsory censorship were adopted there must be lag after the decision was taken since some hundreds of recruits would have to be obtained and trained. This would take some weeks. He referred to Mr. Lints Smith's objections that a compulsory limitation of sources would damage public morale, and Mr. Lints Smith himself emphasised the importance of obtaining the co-operation of Mr. Will's Committee and of the proprietors of the newspapers in any measure we had to take. Mr. Radcliffe referred also to the difficulty of securing uniformity amongst many censors spread over the country and agreed that the inauguration of compulsory censorship would be a lengthy matter.

After discussion the Minister decided that a paper should be prepared for the cabinet explaining on the one hand what measures would be required to bring about compulsory censorship and how long it would take, and on the other hand outlining Mr. Radcliffe's alternative proposals. We should mention that we had been strongly urged by the French to bring in some form of compulsory censorship, and we should put the objections raised by Mr. Barrington Ward and others to a compulsory limitation of sources. We should ask for a decision whether powers might be taken now to bring in Mr. Radcliffe's scheme when any crisis, such as evacuation, required, and we should also suggest that we should begin to prepare now the necessary training of staff for compulsory censorship.

It should be explained .......