ATTACK ON SANDYS
Labour Alleges
“Leak”
(Rec. 930 p.m.) LONDON, July 2. The Prime Minister (Mr Macmillan) today defended his Defence Minister (Mr Duncan Sandys) from Opposition attacks for his remark on weapons policy made at a foreign service attaches* luncheon party lart week Mr Sandys was reported to have said that* an important decision on the Government’s weapons policy was impending. When asked about this in the House of Commons yesterday. Mr Sandys said it was a joke. Today Labour’s spokesman on defence, Mr George Brown, said it was a curious episode. The effect of such a joke was only to convince the service attaches that it was a very serious matter. Mr Macmillan said Mr Sandys had said: “The decision,' which we have not yet taken, has already been formally ‘ announced in the newspapers.”
The Prime Minister commented: “This, of course, was a joke which I agree is dangerous but not yet an unconstitutional practice.” The Leader of the Opposition (Mr Gaitskell) asked If the “decision” that Mr Sandys had referred to had been taken and if not whether it was going to be taken. Mr Macmillan denied there was any kind of leakaga The statement had been only made in a jocular way.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28938, 4 July 1959, Page 13
Word Count
206ATTACK ON SANDYS Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28938, 4 July 1959, Page 13
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