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Brig. Ronnie Stonham

Discussion in 'Roll of Honor & Memories - All Other Conflicts' started by GRW, Aug 26, 2014.

  1. GRW

    GRW Pillboxologist WW2|ORG Editor

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    "BRIGADIER RONNIE STONHAM, who has died aged 87, enjoyed a distinguished career out of the public spotlight in the Royal Signals, but in August 1985, after his retirement, found himself at the centre of a political storm when he was “outed” as the so-called “Christmas Tree man” — the liaison between the BBC and the Intelligence services.


    At the time the Corporation was struggling to contain a “crisis of credibility” following the BBC governors’ decision to cancel the broadcast of a Real Lives documentary about extremism in Northern Ireland. The decision had been interpreted as government censorship; staff went on strike in protest.


    A few days later, The Observer carried a story based on a leak, claiming that MI5 secretly controlled the “hiring and firing’’ of BBC staff members in a vetting process known as “colleging” or “the formalities”.


    The article cited a number of instances in which the careers of journalists, directors and others had purportedly been blighted by blacklisting; and it identified Stonham, whose official title was “special assistant to the director of personnel”, as MI5’s man in the Corporation.


    Unsuccessful applicants’ security files were said to be stamped with a triangular green tag known as the “Christmas Tree” on the grounds, for example, that they “had a subscription to the Daily Worker” or “associated with communists and CND activists”.


    In its response to the revelations, the BBC, which had previously denied that vetting took place, admitted that it had been going on since 1937, but claimed that the checks were necessary in case of a national emergency.
    The Observer’s allegations, it insisted, were “greatly overdramatised”. “There are about eight people who are positively vetted, including me,” claimed the BBC’s then director-general, Alasdair Milne. “And a number of other people, particularly in Bush House, for reasons to do with information and access to the War Book (which lays down rules for wartime broadcasting) who are vetted negatively.” The Corporation refused to be drawn on whether MI5 was involved — or to discuss the role of Brigadier Stonham.
    One of The Observer’s main claims — that the system was much more wide-ranging than seemed to be justified by national security – was borne out in 2006 when The Sunday Telegraph got hold of confidential BBC documents under the Freedom of Information Act.
    At one stage, the Telegraph found, MI5 had been involved in vetting 6,300 different BBC posts — almost a third of the total workforce. “The BBC’s reliance on MI5 reached a peak in the late 1970s and early 1980s at exactly the same time as millions of viewers were tuning into the fictional adventures of George Smiley in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Smiley’s People,” the article went on, but senior BBC figures had covered up these links.
    Contrary to claims that those subject to vetting were involved in classified areas, the paper suggested that vetting had been used in a much wider context: “Thousands of employees were vetted because they were involved in live broadcasts, and the BBC was worried about the possibility of on-air bias or disruption.”
    The irony was, however, that Stonham, a kindly, gentle man, was in the process of carrying out a review into BBC vetting procedures when the story broke in The Observer. His recommendation was that the BBC should stop all security vetting except in two areas: members of staff involved in contingency plans for a wartime and emergency broadcasting service; and members of staff in the External Services. In addition, staff would no longer be asked to sign the Official Secrets Act.
    The leak to The Observer was a great annoyance to Stonham, not only because he had not been responsible for any of the cases mentioned, but also because it meant that his reforms, which were announced later that year, looked like a response forced on the BBC. Moreover, the disclosure of his identity brought a threat from a terrorist source and he was worried for the safety of his family.
    Drawing on his military training, Stonham acted calmly and decided to remain silent until the row blew over.
    Ronald Leonard Stonham was born on July 9 1927 and educated at Portsmouth Grammar School, from where he joined the Post Office Engineering Department in 1944. In 1948 he was granted an Emergency Commission in the Royal Corps of Signals and posted to 2nd Divisional Signal Regiment in Germany. At the end of his National Service in 1949, he joined the Territorial Army with 3 (Line of Communication) Signal Regiment."
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/military-obituaries/army-obituaries/11038585/Brigadier-Ronnie-Stonham-obituary.html
     

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