BRITISH LABOUR DECISION.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XLI, Issue 9290, 11 August 1920, Page 5

BRITISH LABOUR DECISION.

ULTIMATUM ;TO GOVERNMENT:

: August 9. The Labour-Conference, held in the House ; of Commons, passed the following, resolution:—' 'That this joint Conferfence, representing the Trades Union Congress, the ■ Labour Party, and the Parliamentary ' Labour' Party, feeling certain-a. war,is being engineered . s between ®fche Allied Powers and Soviet Russia over Poland, declares that such a war wiM be j l'an intolerable crime against humanity, and warns the Gov.erriment that-the whole of the industrial power of the organised workers wiilf be ,used; to; defeatl this, war; that, the Executive Committees; rof affiliv^«Vd; organisations throughout ■ the country be summoned to hold ■fiheiiiselyes ready to proceed immediately to London for a'National ' Conference ;' that they be advised to .instruct, their members to down tools on . instructions f^rom that National Conference;: that a Council be immediately constituted to . take such steps as maybe necessary „to. carry this decision into .effect."; . This decision' is unquestionably an ultimatum to the Government bhiit a new war will mean ,a- general strike all over the country., Prominent La bour leaders declare that the d?cis'on is not only a threat,. but that fhn deVision will materialise if necessary.

. LONDQN, August 10. The unanimous decision of the jrint political and industrial. Labour organisations is an action unprecedented in the history of the Labour movement. It means; that if Great Britain decides to institute war measures aga-inst Russia, a "National.; C6ngres&.,, cf . Trade "Unions willv-.be; held . within a. few hours to declare, .nil immediate general strike. involving 6,000,000 workers.. Sectional Labour protests continue. There 'is every indication; ; that the &reat mass of the forking'population is (united behind its leaders. ":