HON. T. A. BRASSEY ON IMPERIAL FEDERATION.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 3, 3 January 1903, Page 4 (Supplement)

HON. T. A. BRASSEY ON IMPERIAL FEDERATION.

HIS "HOME RULE ALL ROUND"

SCHEME.

Stripped of a deal of introductory and irrelevant talk about the Imperial Federation League, and of a rehash of Seddonian talk on preferential tariffs and Imperial defence, the Hon. T. A. Brassey's paper, "Steps to Imperial Federation," read at the first meeting this session of the Royal Colonial Institute last Monday, was a frank plea for the Liberal policy of "Home Rule All Round." The key-note of the paper was this sentence printed in italics. "The establishment of Federal Government in the United Kingdom is an essential preliminary to Imperial Federation." At present owing to the overwhelming pressure of business in the House of Commons power is rapidly passing from Parliament to the Cabinet and tlie great depaxtments of State, Parliament cannot effectively exercise its power of control over expenditure, the absorption of the time of Parliament in Imperial questions necessitates the neg-

lect of social and domestic questions.; Two other evils incidental 'to our present system of Imperial Government are: (1) J Imperial business and domes., tic business each require special training, study and aptitudes. The training of school board, county council or trade union may be admirable for one who. seeks take jpart in domestic legislation; something more is required from the member of a Parliament dealing with questions of Imperial and colonial pol. icy. , , (2) Under present conditions, when an appeal is made to the country, Imperial and domestic questions are submitted to the electors in a con. fused issue. \ Parliamentary government has broken down because Parliament has too much to do Mr Brassey's remedy—in putting forward which 'he is no doubt touting for support for the Liberal League—is the establishment in the United Kingdom of a federal form of government similar to the Canadian, the Imperial Parliament handing over to subordinate legislative authorities domestic questions, while retaining in its own hands all Imperial business, as well as all matters of common interest to the whole of the United Kingdom. In this policy he finds "a solution of the constitutional difficulties in granting selfgovernment to. Ireland alone." This plan, Mr Brassey says, was advocated by Mr Chamberlain during the discussion on the Home Kule Bill of 1886. In conclusion Mr Brassey declared that our ultimate goal must be an Imperial Parliament in which every part of the Empire will be represented either by elected or nominated representatives. The discussion that followed was as usual more or less irrelevant. Each of the more or less distinguished men who spoke, after compliments to the reader of the paper, proceeded to ride his own particular hobby in any direction but the course marked out. Dr. Parkin gave us an impassioned discourse on the municifient philanthropy of Mr Rhodes, Professor Harrison Moore was severely legal in his remarks oa the operation of the Constitution of the Common wealth, a member of the audience protested against a slur being cast on the Manchester School, the object of his uprising being to mention the fact that 25 years ago he moved a resolution somewhere or other, and Mr George Beetham deprecated Mr Brassey's, pessimism with regard to the possibility of our being starved out in case of war with America.

Professor Moore was careful to point out that the Federation ol Amstralia was not accomplished as a step to Imperial Federation, and likened the present friction, which he said could be easily exaggerated, to the jarring- of the component parts of the ship that found herself. By the time the first voyage of the good ship Commonwealth was over all its units would be sworlring- harmoniously together.