HISTORY has not been kind to the former Labour prime minister Harold Wilson. Communist conspiracy theories have clung to his administration down the years and as the release of documents under the 30 year rule shows, the theories may hold some truth.
In 1966, after the escape from Wandsworth Prison of the British agent George Blake, Mr Wilson, it seems, urged his ministers to appoint the head of MI5 to chair an official inquiry into the escape.
But as head of MI5, Sir Roger Hollis was under suspicion from other sections of the intelligence services that he too was a Russian spy. The chairman of the inquiry, Lord Mountbatten, agreed, and the then home secretary, Mr Roy Jenkins, also had his reservations.
A memorandum to Mr Wilson explained that the role of the security service under Sir Roger's guidance would be examined. It said: "He [Hollis] would probably not be able to contribute a great deal to the work on prison security." Whether this was a direct reference to the suspicions concerning Sir Roger is unclear.
Despite the Labour government's preoccupation with communist infiltration, the head of MI6, Sir Dick White, remained resolutely by Blake. He told Mr Wilson that even if Blake defected to the Soviet Union (which he did) he could not damage the country's national security any further than he had already done.