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8. In 1904 Mr. Balfour considered that the matter was one which should come before the Committee of Imperial Defence, and a paper was prepared embodying the views of the General Staff, the Admiralty, and the India Office. This paper (39–13) was discussed at the 61st Meeting of the Committee, on the 9th December, 1904, and it was recommended that-

“A Draft Bill should be prepared at once, and kept in readiness for submission to

Parliament when an emergency arises."

This decision of the Committee was communicated to the Treasury on the 23rd December, 1904, and a Bill was then drafted entitled the "Publication of Naval and Military Information Act, 1905." The text of the Bill was communicated to the Committee of the Newspaper Society, but no other steps were taken to further its enactment.

9. In 1906 the question was again considered by the Committee of Imperial Defence, and the following extract from the minutes of the 93rd meeting, held on the 13th November, 1906, was transmitted to the War Office, Admiralty, and Treasury :-

"The Committee are of opinion that the powers of preventing the dissemination of news which would be valuable to an enemy during or just before the outbreak of hostilities are essential. They further consider that the means of applying such powers should not be delayed until the outbreak of war, and that the Government of the day should, therefore, be enabled to put the necessary resolutions in force by Order in Council at a moment's notice. The question is, however, one which must be left to the discretion of the Cabinet."

10. In the course of the same year Sir George Clarke, then Secretary of the Committee of Imperial Defence, entered into negotiations with the representatives of the Press, and at a conference which took place on the 21st June general approval was given to his proposals; a Sub-Committee of the Newspaper Society being deputed to consider such legislation as the Government might propose to initiate.

".

In 1907 it was arranged that the Admiralty should take up the question of legislation, and a Bill* “to provide for the control of the publication of naval and military information in cases of emergency was drafted by the Parliamentary Counsel on the lines suggested in C.I.D. Paper No. 82-B, dated the 7th July, 1906. The draft was communicated to the Sub-Committee of the Newspaper Society, who proposed various amendments and additions. At a conference, however, of the newspaper representatives, held in February 1908, to consider the redrafted Bill, the Secretary of the Newspaper Proprietors' Association, without warning, read a paper strongly condemning the proposed legislation, and, in view of this hostile attitude, the Newspaper Society suspended all further action.

In consequence of this disappointing result, though the Admiralty and War Office still considered that legislation was desirable, no direct steps were taken to proceed on the lines first proposed.

It may be observed that throughout the negotiations with the Press, which have continued intermittently since 1903,† the journalist body has almost universally agreed that some form of control is logical and necessary, but has generally objected to the statutory powers contemplated, when they were set forth in detail.

Proceedings of the Sub-Committee, 1910.

11. The present Sub-Committee was appointed by the Prime Minister on the 1st March, 1910, as a result of the following_recommendation in the Report of the Sub-Committee on Foreign Espionage (C.I.D. Paper 47-A, approved at the 103rd meeting of the Committee of Imperial Defence, held on the 24th July, 1909) :-

"That a Bill for the control of the Press should be proceeded with, having for its

object the prevention of the publication of certain documents information."

• Vide Appendix III (C)

or

In 1905 an individual appeal was made by Mr. Sydney Brooks to nearly 200 editors of the leading London and provincial newspapers, most of whom replied that they were in favour of legislation.

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