SECRET
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Wednesday, 5th March 1941

Warning to Public in the event of Invasion

1. The following matter was raised at a meeting at the Ministry of Home Security on February 27th, 1941, at which Sir George Gater presided.

2. The Metropolitan Police had raised with the Lord President of the Council the desirability of some form of warning in the event of invasion. The case for such a warning was based on the need to prepare for the possibility of an attack on London by, among other forces, air-borne troops landed by the enemy on the outskirts with the intention of making an attack on the centre of London and attempting to paralyse the nerve centre of the country.

3. In this eventuality, the G.O.C. London Area would ask the police to clear the streets in the segments stretching from the area on the periphery where the enemy troops had landed to the centre of London.

4. The Police hold that they cannot carry out this order effectively and rapidly unless, as a result of some audible warning signal, the public are warned to stay indoors.

5. In the discussion which followed, the following points emerged:

(a) The undesirability of any general nation-wide warning which would bring work to a standstill and start rumour and speculation. In the absence of official news, this might be highly undesirable.

(b) The difficulty of localising any audible form of warning.

(c) The fact that there was no cause for any warning anywhere except London, and possibly some of the other larger cities.

(d) The impossibility of maintaining essential services after a warning had sounded, including repair to damage caused by the heavy bombing which is likely to precede invasion. The Post Office and Ministries of Food and Transport raised this objection.

6. The bearing of the discussion on the new version of the Invasion leaflet was considered, and Mr. Leslie and I have put this in a note which Sir Kenneth Clark has received.

7. On the general point, I took the line that we should not feel satisfied if the first warning of invasion to reach the public was the prolonged wailing of the banshee. The effect of this on the nerves of the public at a time of considerable strain might be unfortunate. We should prefer to issue warning of invasion in the form of a carefully prepared official news bulletin, issued so far as possible through the normal channels.

8. The meeting decided to recommend against a genera [illegible] agreed to consider at a later meeting the special case [illegible] The G.O.G., London Area, was asked to prepare a case [illegible] the Metropolitan Police undertook to supplement thi[illegible] their requirements.

9. Two points arise which directly affect this Department:

(a) Does the Board agree that it is desirable that news of invasion should reach the public in the form of an official news bulletin and not, as a signal such as some variation of the Air Raid siren?

(b) Bearing in mind the fact that the attack will presumably take place at dawn, is there a plan for the compilation of a news bulletin in the early hours of the morning, and should we not draft in outline the type of bulletin which would be suitable and consider what means should be used for its dissemination?

[N/6/9]

I.S.M.

28th February 1941