Lieutenant Colonel Julian Layton

To understand the process of release for Italian internees, it is important to mention Julian Layton and his role as liaison officer for the Aliens Department of the Home Office (Great Britain) in the Commonwealth of Australia.

Major Julian Layton arrived in Sydney, Australia on the 25th March 1941. He had been sent to Australia to deal with the 'Dunera Situation' and to work toward remedying the mistakes made with regards to the internment of refugees and enemy aliens in Australia. To this end he assisted internees in obtaining compensation for loss of property during the Dunera voyage; worked toward reclassification of refugees from their 'internee status' to 'refugee status'; arranged for refugees to return to the UK to join the Pioneer Corps (1941/1942); liaised with Australian authorities to release medically fit internees to work of national importance with the Civil Aliens Corps (1944) and release those without medical clearance for forestry work to work in industry aligned to their occupations (1944); liaised with authorities to release men to an Australian non-combatant military unit: 8th Employment Corps (1942); and was intermediatery between the Italian internees and the Home Office for release under the guidelines of the Home Office's White Paper (August 1940).  

The White Paper with subsequent revisions was a guide outlining: Procedure to be followed in Applying for release. Release to free movement in the UK however was not a foregone conclusion and was a protracted process. Major Layton interviewed internees and made recommendations based upon individual circumstances. It was then the prerogative of the Home Office to accept Major Layton’s recommendations. If a request was approved, approval was only for a return to UK to appear before the Advisory Committee and have your case heard. Upon arrival in the UK the men were re-interned until such times their case was heard.

In an interview in 1979, Major Layton stated that the Italian situation was ‘delicate’ as many Italians had sons serving in the British forces in the UK.

By December 1941, fourteen Italian internees had returned to UK. Before the Italians left Australia, they had to sign a Certificate of Willingness to Travel, such was the precarious nature of shipping from Australian to the UK. Major Layton also reported that he would offer those returning to the UK, the opportunity to write a letter to a loved one, in the event of a shipping tragedy. After the MV Abosso (1942) and the SS Waroonga (1943) were torpedoed and sank with loss of life, some Italians who had permission to return to the UK, would not sign their Certificate of Willingness to Travel.

When Major Layton was asked why some of the first Italians released to industry in Melbourne were released to work at the Menzies Hotel, Major Layton replied: 'the Menzies is where I reside'. Major Layton was well aware that some of London's finest Italian chefs were interned at Tatura Camp. Nicola Cua remembered that on a visit to Tatura Camp, Major Layton complimented the men on the lunch he was served and quipped that he'd be hard put to eat so well at the Savoy in London. Nicola Cua replied, 'Lucky for you that you can go to the Savoy Hotel.' Yet, there was Major Layton seated in an internment camp eating a meal prepared by chefs who had previously worked in the Savoy. The irony of the situation would not have escaped the Italians.

In 1944, Major Layton would become a member of the Overseas Internees Investigation Board. The board was established to hear individual internee cases and determine their suitability for release for work within Australia. Those internees who were considered a 'security risk' remained in camp until repatriation.

Major Layton was initially sent to Australia for one year which stretched into four years. During this time he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.