SECRET
For discussion at Policy Committee on Thursday, January 30th
B/102

COVERING NOTE FOR PAPER ON EXTENSION OFTHE B.B.C's OVERSEAS SERVICES

1. The attached paper was prepared by the B.B.C. at the request of the Ministry of Information. It sets out in outline a plan for the expansion of the service of overseas broadcasting which the Ministry and the B.B.C. regard as an essential and pressing development of British war effort. It is a difficult and costly scheme to carry out (though less costly than building one battleship), but broadcast propaganda is one of the basic weapons of total warfare. Hitler's bloodless conquests of Austria and of Czechoslovakia were largely achieved by the use of propaganda. The collapse of France was due as much to the disintegration of the French nation, as a result of powerful and persistent propaganda, as to the force of German arms. Great Britain must similarly attack the enemy nations, and must build up and sustain resistance to the invader among the conquered nations, together with increasing resistance to the enemy on the part of those people who are as yet free. If this is done with skill and determination the war may well be shortened by months, and it is against this background that the broadcasting expansion scheme must be judged and its needs pressed. It is sound economy to spend a sum which would finance the war for half a day if by so doing the war can be shortened by a week, let alone by months.

2. Clearly, any such scheme will require Cabinet sanction and support. The scheme cannot proceed unless effective priority is obtained for

(a) the building of transmitters, involving the expenditure of American dollars;

(a) the erection of buildings to house the transmitters, involving the supply of material and of labour;

(b) the recruiting of a large staff by extraordinary methods, including the release of specialists serving in the Forces;

(c) the provision of adequately protected buildings to house this staff.

3. It is essential to act rapidly in this field. If the necessary work were begun tomorrow and were pressed with all speed it would still be eighteen months or two years before the expanded broadcasting service could come into being.

4. On Thursday, 23rd January, D.G., D.D.G. and Mr. Ogilvie saw Sir Alan Barlow at the Treasury to discuss the financial aspect of the Canadian transmitter proposal. The Treasury had previously intimated to D.G. and D.D.G. through Sir Horace Wilson that it would not be possible to provide the whole amount of dollars required to establish the Canadian transmitter. In place of £300,000 in dollars all that Sir Horace thought we could get would be £50,000 plus £10,000 per annum for maintenance and working. The B.B.C. took the, view that for technical reasons any sum which was not of the order of at least £200,000 would be wastefully employed on starting a Canadian transmitter, and preferred that whatever was available in dollars less than the £200,000 should be used for the major scheme of development referred to in the accompanying paper. It is impossible to ask the Treasury for a block grant to be allocated as the Ministry and the B.B.C. wish to propose for consideration whether the Cabinet ought not to be asked to approve both the Canadian transmitter at full cost, i.e. between £200,000 and £300,000 and the scheme propounded in the attached paper. If we are permitted to have the use of the dollars for which we ask, it means that some other Department or Service will not have the dollars to be expended by them. In other words, like the question of men and materials the question of money is one of priorities and the Cabinet ought, it is submitted, to be asked to give priority to both the schemes of expenditure on broadcasting as a matter of high policy.