CIVILIANS IN WAR

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22467, 30 July 1938, Page 15

CIVILIANS IN WAR

BRITISH PLANS EVACUATION FROM CERTAIN AREAS IMMEDIATE ACTION PROPOSED (BRITISH OmCUX WIRELESS.) (Received July 29, 7.30 p.m.) RUGBY, July 28. The report of the committee appointed to consider the evacuation of the civil population from certain areas in the event of war will be published in the near future. In announcing this in the House of Commons, Sir Samuel Hoare (Home Secretary) paid a tribute to Sir John Anderson and his colleagues for the expedition with which they had completed their survey of a difficult problem. Sir Samuel Hoare said that the report was long, and the recommendations raised important questions of policy, some of which Parliament might wish to discuss. He proposed, however, not to delay action on certain work that could usefully be undertaken at once on the lines recommended by the committee, and which did not raise matters of policy. For example, he must increase the staff of the Air Raid Precautions Department to enable it to deal adequately with this large problem. Sir Samuel Hoare also observed that as the committee had pointed out, the provisions it recommended for evacuation in no way detracted from the necessity for the provision of other means of passive defence. Essential industries and services, which were mainly concentrated in vulnerable areas, must be carried on, and that meant that essential persons must remain, and plans be made for their protection.