‘COVER-UP’ ALLEGED ALLEGED BY FADDEN

Greymouth Evening Star, 14 October 1948, Page 8

‘COVER-UP’ ALLEGED

ALLEGED BY FADDEN

(Rec. 11.50 a.m.) CANBERRA, This Day.

Letters exchanged between the Prime Minister, Mr Chifley, and the leader of the Country Party, Mr Fadden, concerning the allegedly secret documents quoted by Mr Fadden in the Hcuse*of Representatives, offer no solution to the impasse which exists between the Government and the Opposition.

Mr Chifley’s letter' says that the purpose of the visit by security police to Mr Fadden was merely to inspect the documents and rejects the claim that this was a breach of parliamentary privilege. It urges Mr Fadden to allow the papers to be inspected. In reply, Mr Fadden accuses the Government of implying that he did something wrong in order to protect himself after making untrue statements on the vital question of atomic secrets. “There can be. no freedom of debate under the shadow of the secur-ity-police,” he adds. Mr Chifley had stated that all that had occurred was that two officers of the Commonwealth investigation service, charged with ascertaining whether the documents were either stolen or forged, asked Mr Fadden in a voluntary interview that he should allow them to examine the papers. This was a preliminary step to enable them to determine the'direction of their inquiries. “The Opposition is compelled to the conclusion that the Government is less concerned with ascertaining the authenticity of the' documents, or the alleged leakage of confidential information, than it is to cover up the misleading information given by the Government on a vital question touching security in this country,” replied Mr Fadden. “It is abundantly clear that, if the quotations made by me are genuine extracts from authentic governmental documents, the Government is guilty of giving false information to the people of this country.”