asked the Minister for External Affairs if he is yet in a position to state the result of his Department's efforts to secure the repatriation of seamen Thomas Dixon, Patrick O'Neill, Bernard Goulding, Christopher Deering, Thomas Phelan, Thomas Cadogan, and two others—all citizens of Ireland, whose ship was blown up in the battle of Narvik, and who have been interned in neutral Sweden since July, 1940.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Interned Irish Seamen.
My information does not bear out the suggestion that these men are interned. They entered Sweden when the merchant ships on which they were serving were sunk in Narvik Harbour, and the reports I have received speak of their kindly reception by the Swedish authorities.
The difficulty about the repatriation of these men is one of finding a suitable route and means of transport. The efforts which we have been making to arrange their transport back to Ireland have not yet yielded a result, but efforts are still being continued.