The next day the War Office announced that the Army Council had ordered a court of inquiry into the disclosure of highly secret information relating to anti-aircraft defences.
The House of Commons Committee of Privileges ruled that a breach of privilege had been committed by summoning Mr. Sandys to the military inquiry, but passed no reflection on the action of the court.
The Select Committee issued their first report on September 28, stating that here was no doubt that the document from which the figures were aken was of a secret character.
When the Select Committee met, Mr, Neville Chamberlain produced a letter, marked "secret" which he had received from Mr. Here-Belisha, regarding the information possessed by Mr. Duncan Sandys on the defences of London.
The letter stated that the following écmment had been made by the General Staff:
"We are greatly concerned that Mr. Sandys should have been in possession of such information. Not only does it appear that he was conversant with the details of a secret scheme, but that he was kept up-to-date in the subsequent changes agreed to by the.O.C.-in-Chíet.'
Mr. Chamberlain was questioned at considerable length by Mr. Wedgwood Benn, a member of the committee, particularly about an interview between Mr. Sandys and Sir Donald Somervell the Attorney-
General, "Do you know that the effect of ihe Interview of the Attorney-General on Mr. Sandys was to frighten him?" asked Mr. Wedgwood Benn.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.