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wet teens eae sede cere OE L ae ee eae oc ee \STEPS TO STRENGTHEN? f d tee ee ot mo From Our Political Co; respondent = ' ‘The conference of Privy Councillors, set up at the time of the House of Com- mons debate on Burgess and Maclean last November, to examine security pro- dures in the public service, have found at there is nothing organically wrong of unsound in the Government's security afrangements, = ° : They make, however, certain recom- mendations designed to strengthen the system, and the Prime Minister told the House of Commons yesterday that the Government have decided to give effect to all the proposals. The conference recommend that no additional powers should be sought to detain suspects or prevent them from leaving the country. A statement of the findings of the con- ference was published yesterday as a White Paper. This summarizes the con- tents of the report in so far as if can properly be made public, and it therefore’ Futfls an if : an undertaking given by the Prime Minister last November that if there were “steps which could be made public as a result of the conference, there would be a report to Parliament. Some of the proposals deal with what may be called the relation between security risks and defects of character and conduct. The conference recognize that to-day goat ects, i tance must be paid io character de asFactors tending 10 make a man unreliable orfexpose him 1o blackmail or infiuence by ign agents. They say there is a duty o Flments Lo inform tbemselves of serio LONDON, ENGLAND “THE TIMES" . 23/9/56 “Sp, tig PelOyCole2 "i yp € wt ts vw my a od . . rn nae -— + / aa faijdgs such as drunkenness, addiction to drjfgs, homosexuality, or any Joose ling | ai may seriously: affect a man’s reliabglity. COMMUNIST FAITH | NORMAL LOYALTIES ~~ . *QVERRIDDEN ” | -.- .>« The White Paper continues: “ There is a Batural reluctance to make adverse reports ; on colleagues and nothing could be worse than to encourage tale-bearing of malicious ! gossip. Nevertheless, it is important to impress not only on heads of departments _ but on supervisory officers gencraily that it ‘ is their duty to know their staff and that they | must not fail io report anything wh affects security. : . “ This covers both evidence which suggests Communist associations or sympathies and also serious defects or failings which might, jeopardize the security of the section of the public service in their charge. The Govern- ment accept this recommendation, although _ they recognize that the measures necessary ; to give effect to it will require very careful { consideration.” . . 4 e conference recommended that kt. should be recognized that the fact that 2% blic servant is 2 Communist not only } may also in some department have an uo- favourgble effect-on his - prospects of ars his employment on secret duties but 7 nor inn Pooh. 1 They aiso make a series of recommerida-' ! giens which turn on the risk presented by those in regard to whom there is no evidence of Communist party membership, bot evidence of Communist sympathies or gta meassociation with party members, abe conference are of the opinion that, in these difficult and often borderline cases, Nn is got ro continue titing the balance in favour of State security rather than individual rights : recommend that an individual woo with a wife or husband who is a fiving ; gmunist of a Communist sympathizer may. Yor that reason alone, have to be mov from secret work, and tha! the same prinrinl sbould bs applied in other cases of « like we ct a AEF ee PE eee a ee ACTER DEFECTS © ~: but Pr oe er asa ah Ra malin ail ete altos abe te a at aan ke Premier Rear renrane yo wen ae eS et ee