asked the Home Secretary for what reason it has been found necessary to prohibit marriages between aliens in internment; and whether he will reconsider his decision in cases where both parties are at present interned, in view of the newly established mixed camp?

A decision to allow marriages between parties of whom both are interned could not properly be taken without considering whether marriages are also to be allowed in cases where one of the parties is interned and one is free. Any general policy of allowing persons who are detained to marry would give rise to difficulties, and while I recognise that hard cases may sometimes occur I think the general rule must be that deprivation of liberty includes deprivation of liberty to marry.

Will my right hon. Friend be prepared to reconsider this matter in a few months' time?

I am always willing to reconsider a matter, but, frankly, I would not like to hold out any optimistic prospects.

Will my right hon. Friend realise that there is nothing against these people to show that they have done wrong?

Yes, Sir, but we are at war, and the country has a right to detain foreign people, and certain consequences follow. The consequences may be unpleasant and inconvenient. We make them as little as we can, but it must not be assumed that because there is no specific charge against an enemy alien, therefore we have particular obligations to do things that are very awkward to do.

asked the Home Secretary whether the signing by refugees interned in Canada of a form that they did not desire to return to this country, as they hoped to go to the United States of America, will be held to prejudice their right to come back to this country should they find it impossible to enter the United States of America?

The mere fact of the signing of such a document would not prevent the return to this country of an internee whose release I was prepared to authorise.