Evening star., 1939-06-11
England Will Shift
Government From
Whitehall in War
Only Key Officials Will
Remain in London;
Details Kept Secret
BY the Associated Press.


LONDON, June 10.-Into the
broad pattern of its war prepared
ness program the British govern
ment is working an emergency plan
to shift the bulk of its administra-
tive machinery from Whitehall to
safety zones in the country.
The plan would send 100000 Of
ficials to temporary department
headquarters. Only key officials
would remain in London, working
and sleeping in bomb-proof office
Easements.
Since Germany's absorption of
Bohemia and Moravia last March
every British government depart
ment has had its basement REIN
forced against bombing
Additional brick partitions have
been built, walls lined with sand
bags and every basement room
stocked with anti-gas materials and
other emergency" equipment.
Details Closely Guarded.
Details of the plans to move the
government Offices from London are
a closely guarded secret. Some OBJ
servers believe that oxford, ancient
university town. SO miles from Lon
don, has been selected as Britain's
wartime capital. But others think
the government would scatter its
many departments over wide area
in event of war, to lessen the danger
of a single mass air attack putting
the entire administration out of
action
In an emergency some officials of
each government department imme-
diately would be sent out of London
to establish temporary headquar-
ters Others, whose duties are list
ed as essential" would stay
away from their London Offices for
two or three days to relieve the
traffic congestion that would be
bound to be a major problem in
the early stages of war.
Oficlals drafting plans for the
Whitehall exodus say the govern
ment officers probably won't be al
lowed to use their automobiles
Many of them now drive to work
from modest homes in the London
suburbs
Gas Sales Would Be Limited.
Most cars probably would be COM
mandeered for official use. Sales of
gasoline also would be limited strictly
to those employed in essential pub
lie services.
Families of the government Off
cials would be treated just as other
citizens. If the men we're assigned
to areas not already earmarked to
receive refugees from the capital,
wives would be permitted to follow
them to their new headquarters.
They would have to make their own
travelling and housing arrangements.
Wives of government officials sent
to districts selected as evacuation
receiving areas" for refugees, and
those who preferred to remain in
London would get government living
allowances, like wives of men called
for defense duty.
Will Work in Easements.
Women in government service
would receive no special considera-
ton. Those in key positions-confi-
dental secretaries-would have to
carry on their work in the White
hall 'catacombs," as government Of
fcials call the emergency basement
Offices
officials sent out of London would
be billeted by the government in
homes in the district where their
wartime headquarters was set up.
Many country mansions and en-
tire office blocks in safe provincial
cities and towns have been ear
marked as possible emergency gov
ernment Offices Stocks of food for
crisis use are being accumulated.