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THIS DOCUMENT
IS T H E P R O P E R T Y
Printed
OF H I S BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S
for the War Cabinet.
GOVERNMENT
December 1 9 4 3
SECRET. Copy No.
W.M. ( 4 3 ) .
163rd Conclusions.
W A R C A B I N E T 163 (43).
CONCLUSIONS
of a Meeting of the War Cabinet held at 1 0 Downing
S.W. 1, on Monday, 2%th November, 1 9 4 3 , at 5 - 3 0 P . M .
Street,
Present:
The Right Hon. C. R.
ATTLEE,
M.P., Deputy P r i m e Minister (in the Chair).
The R i g h t Hon. Sir J O H N A N D E R S O N ,
M.P., Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The Right Hon. O L I V E R L Y T T E L T O N ,
M.P., Minister of Production. The Right Hon. E R N E S T B E V I N , M.P.,
Minister of Labour and National
Service.
The Right Hon. H E R B E R T M O R R I S O N ,
M . P . , Secretary of State for the
Home Department and Minister of
Home Security.
The Right Hon. L O R D
WOOLTON,
Minister of Reconstruction,
The following were also present-:
The Right Hon. S. M. B R U C E , Representative of the Government of the
Commonwealth of Australia (Items.
- 1-4).
'
The Right Hon. V I S C O U N T C R A N B O R N E ,
Secretary of State for Dominion
Affairs.
,
The Right Hon. L O R D
Lord Privy Seal.
BEAVERBROOK,
The Right Hon. A. V. A L E X A N D E R ,
M.P., First Lord of the Admiralty.
The Right Hon. Sir A R C H I B A L D
Bt., M.P., Secretary of
SINCLAIR,
Stale for A i r .
Major the R i g h t Hon. G . L L O Y D
G E O R G E . M.P., Minister of Fuel and
Power (Item 4 ) .
The Right Hon. L O R D C H E R W E L L ,
Paymaster-General.
The Right Hon. W . W H I T E L E Y , M.P.,
Joint
Parliamentary
Secretary­
Treasury (Item 5 ) .
A i r Marshal N. H . B O T T O M L E Y , Deputy
Chief of t h e A i r Staff (Items 1 - 3 ) .
The Right Hon. L. S. A M E R Y , M.P.,
Secretary of State for I n d i a and
Secretary of State for Burma.
The Right Hon. Sir J A M E S G R I G G ,
M.P., Secretary of State for W a r .
The Right Hon. S i r S T A F F O R D C R I P P S ,
K . C . , M.P., Minister of Aircraft
Production.
The Right Hon. B R E N D A N B R A C K E N ,
M.P., Minister of Information.
The Right Hon. J A M E S S T U A R T , M.P..
Joint
Parliamentary
Secretary,
Treasury (Item 5 ) .
Sir O R M E S A R G E N T , Deputy UnderSecretary of State. Foreign Office
(Items 1 - 3 ) .
Vice-Admiral Sir N E V I L L E S Y F R E T ,
(Items
Vice-Chief of Naval Staff
1-3).
Lieutenant-General A. E . N Y E . ViceChief of the Imperial General Staff
(Items 1 - 3 ) .
Secretariat:
Sir
EDWARD
BRIDGES.
Brigadier E . I. C. J A C O B .
Lieutenant-Colonel L. J .
Mr.
[26530]
PHILIP
ALLEN.
CARVER,
W A R C A B I N E T 163 (43).
CONTENTS.
Minute
No.
1
Subject.
Naval, Militaiy and Air Operations....
....
....
....
Page
209
and
....
210
Air O p e r a t i o n s :
H o m e Theatre.
Mediterranean Theatre.
N a v a l Operations.
Military Operations:
Italy.
Dodecanese.
Balkans.
Russia.
Pacific.
2
Meeting of P r i m e Minister, President Roosevelt
Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek ....
....
....
Proposed Communique.
3
Red Army Day—1944
4
Coal
....
210
210
M a n P o w e r for t h e C o a l m i n i n g I n d u s t r y
5
Parliament
D e b a t e on t h e A d d r e s s .
211
N a v a l , Military
and Air
Operations.
(Previous
Eef erenee:
W . M . (43) 160th
Conclusions,
M i n u t e 1.)
Air Operations.
H o m e Theatre.
Mediterranean
Theatre.
Naval
Operations.
Military
Operations.
Italy.
Dodecanese.
Balkans,
liussia.
Pacific.
L
1. The Vice-Chiefs of Staff reported the. principal events of
the previous week.
The main efforts of Bomber Command during the past week
had been directed against Berlin, which had been heavily attacked
on three nights, and harassed by Mosquitoes on two others. I n all,
1,600 aircraft attacked Berlin during the week for the loss of
72 aircraft. Stuttgart had also been attacked. No photographs
had yet been obtained of any of the raids on Berlin, but reports
from neutral sources appeared to confirm that these attacks had been
most successful.
The United States Air Force had made a total of 1,750 sorties.
The heaviest attack had been against Bremen.
Coastal Command had made 580 sorties during the week and
had attacked 3 U-boats, of which 2 were possibly damaged. I n
attacks on enemy shipping one 10,000-ton tanker had probably been
sunk.
Fighter Command and Tactical A i r Force had made 3,250
sorties. Enemy activity had been veryjight.
Allied activity had increased slightly over the previous week.
United States Fortresses had made a successful attack on the U-boat
base at Toulon. United States Liberators had attacked Sofia
marshalling yards.
Shipping losses for the week by enemy action had totalled
17,000 tons, making a total of 98,000 tons during the month. Twelve
U-boats had been sunk or probably sunk during the month; this did
not include a number of attacks during the last 48 hours, for which
reports were still outstanding.
The first of the resumed Russian convoys had arrived without
loss at Murmansk at the beginning of the week.
An attack had been made by a large number of U-boats on a
convoy homeward bound between Gibraltar and the United
Kingdom, but all had been driven off by the escort vessels and the
convoy had proceeded undamaged.
During an attack by aircraft on a convoy off the North African
coast one ship carrying United States troops had been sunk; it was
feared that casualties were high.
I n an action in the South-West Pacific United States light
forces had claimed to have sunk 5 out of a force of 6 Japanese
destroyers; an American aircraft had probably sunk a Japanese
submarine which was engaged in rescuing survivors.
By the end of the previous week the weather had cleared
sufficiently to enable the. 8th Army to launch a full-scale attack
across the Sangro. This was proceeding as well as could be expected.
On the 5th Army front enemy resistance showed no signs of
weakening.
The Germans had occupied Samos on the 22nd November, after
the successful evacuation of almost the whole British garrison, the
regular Greek troops, about one-third of the Greek guerrilla forces
and one-third of the original Italian garrison.
The position of the guerrillas in Greece and Yugoslavia was
deteriorating.
The Russians had had considerable success north of Gomel and
had continued to advance north-west of that city and along the
lower reaches of the Rivers Beresina and Pripet.
German counter-attacks against the Kiev salient had so far
achieved only limited successes, and the Russians now appeared tc
have the situation in hand. Reports indicated that weather anc
ground conditions were deteriorating in this sector.
Sattelberg in New Guinea had been captured by the
Australians, and the Japanese had been forced to withdraw with
heavy casualties.
American forces had completely occupied one atoll in the
Gilbert Islands and had established themselves on two others.
The W a r C a b i n e t Took note of these statements.
26530]
Prime Minister,
President
Roosevelt and
Generalissimo
Chiang
Kai-shek.
^ " ^ S i t
2. The W a r Cabinet had a short
communique regarding the war against,Japan^ ThiisRecorded m
the Secretary's Standard File of W a r Cabinet Conclusions.
^
Proposed
Communique.
R e d Army Day,
1944.
(Previous
Reference:
W.M. (43) 16th
Conclusions,
M i n u t e 8.)
3. The W a r Cabinet had before them a Memorandum by the
Minister of Information (W.P. (43) 533) asking whether Red Army
Day, which was to be celebrated in the Soviet Union on the
23rd February, 1944, should be signalised by an officially organised
demonstration in this country.
The Memorandum gave particulars of the official celebration
of Red Army Day organised in February 1943 and summarised the
considerations for and against arranging a similar celebration i n
1944. The conclusion of the Minister of Information was that the
Government should refrain from organising any official demonstra­
tions; but that there might be some relaxation of the rule of
boycotting demonstrations arranged by private organisations.
The Home Secretary and Minister of Home Security pointed
out the practical difficulties involved in making any such relaxations,
and said that, on general grounds, it was his view that some large­
scale demonstration ought to be organised by the Government, even
if it were not on quite the same elaborate lines as last year. The
exploits of the Red Army since the last/celebration had been even
more striking than before, a n d we should take the opportunity of
publicly demonstrating our friendship with the Soviet Union. The
absence of an official celebration would leave the way open to the
Communist P a r t y of Great B r i t a i n to exploit the occasion for their
own purposes, and he did not attach much importance to the
arguments that any Ministerial speeches would have to repeat the
theme already fully dealt with last time, or that a second year's
observance would tend to make the celebration - an annual event,
pointing out that, in any case, this need only apply until the end of
the European war.
I n discussion, there was general agreement with the views of
the Home Secretary and Minister of Home Security, although it was
suggested that the celebration could properly be on a smaller scale
than last time, since on that occasion the 25th anniversary of the
foundation of the Red Army was being celebrated. I t was suggested
that it would meet the situation if there was one organised demon­
stration in London and one demonstration each in Scotland, Wales
and Northern Ireland.
Various detailed suggestions were made as to the form which
these demonstrations might take.
The W a r C a b i n e t Decided that official demonstrations should be organised
to celebrate Red Army Day in 1944, although on a less
elaborate scale than in 1943, and invited the Minister of
Information, after consultation with the Departments
concerned, to submit detailed proposals as to the form
which these celebrations should take.
Coal.
M a n - P o w e r ' f or
the Coalmining
Industry.
(Previous
Reference:
W . M , (43) 162nd
Conclusions,
M i n u t e 1.)
4. A t their meeting on the 26th November the W a r Cabinet
had approved proposals made by the Minister of Labour and
National Service for selecting by ballot fit men of military age for
compulsory call-up to the coal-mines. The question had then been
raised whether persons who had volunteered for, and had been
accepted by, one of the Services before reaching the age of
compulsory military service would be excluded from the ballot; and,
subsequent to the meeting, it had been suggested that there was
doubt whether men accepted for the Services could legally be brought
within the ballot, and that for this reason it might be necessary t o
restrict the acceptance by the Services of young men volunteering
before reaching the age of compulsory military service.
The Minister of Labour and National Service said that it was
clear that volunteers who were accepted and became members of the
Armed Forces ceased to be liable to the National Service Acts, even
though they might be placed temporarily on a reserve. In these
circumstances, he asked that approval should be given to the
following formula, namely, that it would be necessary to restrict the
acceptance of young men, apart from the special classes referred to
at the previous discussion, who volunteered for the Services before
reaching the age of compulsory military service. Such an agreement
would not affect men who had already been accepted by the Services,
but it should safeguard the future. I t was essential, for the success
of his scheme, that the classes excluded from the ballot should be
limited to the minimum, and he could not contemplate an arrange­
ment whereby a young man could secure exemption from the ballot
merely by securing his acceptance as a volunteer for the Services at
the age of 17.
In discussion, i t was suggested that these proposals would put
a stop to volunteering at the age of 17 in order to secure the enrol­
ment for the coal-mines at the age of 18 of only a comparatively
small percentage of the youths concerned. Importance was attached
by the Services to the present arrangement whereby they obtained
a continuous flow of volunteer recruits of a good type, who entered
the Services at the age of 17.
I t was suggested, that it might be practicable to arrange for
youths who wished to volunteer for one of the Services at the age
of 17 to have their names entered on a voluntary register, on the
understanding that they would not be formally enrolled (unless they
belonged to the specialist classes) until the result of the ballot was
known.
The Minister of Labour and National Service said, however,
that the administrative difficulties in the way of such an arrange­
ment were insuperable.
The Secretary of State for War drew attention to the fact that
under the Minister of Labour's formula it was intended only to
" restrict," and not abolish, the acceptance of young men who
volunteered before reaching the age of compulsory military service,
and, in view of an assurance given by the Minister of Labour and
National Service that the scheme would be administered with
flexibility, he said that he was prepared to accept the proposal. In
giving this assurance, however, the Minister, of Labour and National
Service again emphasised that he was not prepared to consider any
arrangement which would allow a young man to escape the ballot
merely by getting himself accepted as a volunteer by one of the
Armed Forces.
The W a r C a b i n e t Accepted the * proposal of the Minister of Labour and
National Service that, as a necessary corollary of the
scheme approved at their last meeting, it would be
necessary to restrict the acceptance of young men, apart
from those going into certain special classes, who
volunteered for the Services before reaching the age of
compulsory military service; and invited him to work out
the necessary detailed arrangements forthwith in consul­
tation with the three Service Ministers.
5. The War Cabinet further discussed the course of the Debate
on the Address.
Tuesday, 30th November.
The W a r Cabinet discussed the line which the Minister of
Production should take in dealing with matters affecting town and
country planning, with the Uthwatt Report, and with control of
industry in the transition period.
Wednesday, 1st December.
The W a r Cabinet decided that in the Debate on the suspension
of the Detention Orders in the case of Sir Oswald Mosley and Lady
Mosley the Home Secretary and Minister of Home Security should
speak early in the afternoon, and the Attorney-General should be
invited to wind up on behalf of the Government.
Thursday, 2nd December.
It was understood that an amendment on Dominion co-opera­
tion was likely to be moved. I n this event, the Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs would speak early
in the Debate and the Deputy P r i m e Minister undertook to reply
for the Government towards the end of the Debate.
It was suggested that the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of
State for Dominion Affairs should make a statement on Newfound­
land, and should indicate that the Government would be prepared
to find further time for a discussion of this issue at a later date.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Dominion
Affairs was invited to ascertain from the authorities of the
House whether this procedure was in order.
Friday, 3rd December.
If the amendment in regard to pensions of State servants was
moved, the Chancellor of the Exchequer undertook to speak on
behalf of the Government.
I t was understood that an amendment dealing with food
shortages and agricultural matters might also be moved on this day.
Tuesday, 7th December.
I t seemed likely that the Labour P a r t y amendment might be
moved on this date. A decision as to the Government Spokesman on
this occasion was deferred for a few days.
Offices of the War Cabinet, S.W. 1, 2Qth November, 1943. NO C I R C U L A T I O N
RECORD
4
g
n
(Flimsy to Sir Alan Lascellesl47
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The circulation
of t h i s p a p e r h a s b e e n s t r i c t l y
"
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I t i s i s s u e d f o r t h e p e r s o n a l u s e of
MOST SECRET-
Copy
No.
W.M. (43) 1 S3RD CONCLUSIONS. MINUTE 5
(29th November, 1943 - 5,30 p. m. ) DEFENCE
THE HOME SECRETARY AND MINISTER OP HOME REGULATION 18B SECURITY said that a number of requests had been made that Sir Oswald and Lady Mosley should once more he (Previous
put in detention.
He assumed that the War. Cabinet Reference:
agreed that there could be no question of this being W. M. (43) 156th done.
Incidentally if he were to act on these lines Conclusions,
his action in again detaining Sir Oswald and Lady Mosley Minute 4 ) .
would be open to challenge by the courts. The War Cabinet endorsed this view. .-
THE HOME SECRETARY referred to a telegram from the Prime Minister (FROZEN 145) which suggested that, in the debate on the Address, the Government Spokesman might advance the view that we were anxious to dispense with our powers under Regulation 18B.
The Home Secretary said that, in his view, it was essential to retain these powers, at least until the war in Europe was over. The Home Secretary said that certain articles had appeared in the Press, stating that the action which he had taken in this matter had been taken against the advice of one member of the War Cabinet. He referred to this matter with some reluctance; but he assumed the War Cabinet would take the line that be must refuse to be drawn on this point,, The War Cabinet endorsed this view and pointed out that, in any event, proceedings in Cabinet could not be revealed save with the consent of His Majesty , The King. THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND NATIONAL SERVICE
stated that he regretted that he did not s e e h^s way
to support the action taken by the Home Secretary.
He regarded the Mosleys as among the worst enemies of this country.
He would not feel able to vote in support of the action which the Home Secretary had taken; and as he would not have recourse to the subterfuge of abstaining from voting if the matter came to a division, he felt that his only course might to be resign from the Government. THE CHANCELLOR OP THE EXCHEQUER said that
he felt as strongly as the Minister of Labour in
regard to the Mosleys; hut he did not think that the
suspension of the Detention Order had resulted in
Sir Oswald Mosley escaping frou the kind of control to
which he ought to he subjected.
Further, he reminded
the War Cabinet that action taken in this matter was
the personal responsibility of a particular Minister ­
the Home Secretary,
The Home Secretary 's colleagues
in the War Cabinet did not share his responsibilities
in-[hi 3 matter in trie same sense as in other matters
which were the subject of War Cabinet decisions.
In
a matter of this.kind the War Cabinet were entitled
to learn from the Home Secretary the action which he
proposed to-take, and to put to him such considerations
as occurred to them
The decision, however, was the
Home Secretary's personal decision; and all that the
War Cabinet could then do was to make up their minds
whether the Home Secretary had exercised his discretion
properly..
0
The Chancellor of the Exchequer added that the decisions taken by the Home Secretary; in matters of this kind, were very similar to the decisions taken by the Attorney-General as to whether to proceed with or abandon a prosecution in a parti cular oaos.
On
such occasions his Ministerial colleagues had to forbear
from bringing pressure to bear on the Attorney-General in favour of, or against, a particular course of action.
But when the decisions had been taken, the Government might have to consider whether they could, support a Law Officer who had exercised his discretion in a particular way
D Continuing, the Chancellor of the Exchequer said that, as he understood the medical evidence, he thought that the Home Secretary bad taken the only course which he or any other Minister in his position could have taken,
The Chancellor concluded by saying that if, when he had been Home Secretary, he had allowed'his judgment to be'over-ridden by the Cabinet in deciding what people should be detained under Regulation I8B, then"his action would have been liable to have been over-ridden by the Courts
n THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER and other Ministers spoke in the same sense, in support of the views put forward by the Chancel lor of the Exchequer, Offices of the War Cabinet,' S, W. 1,