CRITICISM IN COMMONS

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 30, 3 August 1940, Page 11

CRITICISM IN COMMONS

WAR SOCIAL SURVEY

HOUSE-TO-HOUSE CANVASS

DEFENDED

(British Official Wireless.)

RUGBY, August 1

An interesting debate took place in the House of Commons tonight on the question of the war social survey of Britain which is being conducted by investigators making house-to-house visitations at the instance of the Ministry of Information. The main criticisms were that such action was an invasion of the privacy of the ordinary householder and housewife.

The process was described by one speaker as "snooping and spying around the homes of citizens." He said that members of Parliament themselves were quite competent to represent public opinion as revealed in their constituencies.

On the other hand, some members congratulated the Ministry of Information on adopting a new and scientific method of social survey to discover the opinion of British people, stating that it was not a novel idea, having been successfully used for many years by the 8.8.C. and the Post Office.

Lady Astor said that many ordinary housewives were leading very anxious lives at present, and answering questions gave them something to talk about.

The Minister of Information, Mr. Duff Cooper, said it was of the greatest value to the Government to know the state of mind and condition of the people. For two and a half months the system of obtaining information had been in active operation, and there had been only one complaint. Information of great value was being obtained by a method which was working well and caused no perturbation in-the public mind.

The Minister said that the information obtainable through members of the House was. limited. Its accuracy and modernity were limited and the qualifications of members of the Commons were limited.

"The campaign of criticism is a Press stunt," Mr^ Cooper said. "If there are snoopers in the world they are employed by the Press. Unhappy would be the ', Government if it relied solely on the Press for information. The investigation began in the middle of May. Ido not blieve*4oe survey is disturbing the popular mmd, and I advise the Government to continue it"