Nearly all the interned 'friendly enemy aliens' were refugees who had fled Hitler and Naziism, and nearly all were Jewish. When Churchill's internment policy became known, there was a debate in Parliament. Many speeches expressed horror at the idea of interning refugees, and a vote overwhelmingly instructed the Government to "undo" the internment. Because of this vote, the British internment period for 'friendly enemy aliens' generally lasted only a few months, until they were 'processed' by the government and released. But the damage to an internee's life by being uprooted into internment was often very great.