I have bad news for the House, which I think I should pass on to them at the earliest possible moment. A report has been received from Singapore that His Majesty's Ship "Prince of Wales" and His Majesty's Ship "Repulse" have been sunk while carrying out operations against a Japanese attack on Malaya. No details are yet available except those contained in the Japanese official communique, which claims that both ships were sunk by air attack. I may add that on our next Sitting Day I shall take occasion to make a short statement on the general war situation, which has, from many points of view, both favourable and adverse, undergone important changes in the last few days.