FOREIGN POLICY.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 196, 17 August 1920, Page 5

FOREIGN POLICY.

LABOUR'S BID FOR CONTROL. LOCAL COUNCILS OP ACTION. : STRIKES TO PREVENT WAR. (By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright.) (Received 10.30 a.m.) LONDON, August 16. ( The Council of Action, formed by lead- ] era of .the Labour party, is holding daily , •lttmgs in piivate, and is issuing official \ statements to the Press. A proposal for ', the formation throughout the country of local councils was promptly carried into effect in the industrial areas. Such bodies have already been formed in Sheffield, Plymouth, Gateshead, North- ( ampton, Leicester, and elsewhere, while j sub-committees Aave been appointed to , carry out stri™. arrangements. Tie National Socialist party has approved of ( a strike to prevent war, but rejected , an amendment pledging every aid to the J Council of Action, on the ground that , that body might declare a strike for the j recognition of the Soviet Government. Speaking in tl_* House of Commons to- ' day, Mr. Lloyd George stated that Labour dictation by industrial action would be resisted with the utmost force of the Government. The Council of Action has received a telegram from the Russian Central Council of Trade Unions thanking the British workers for their practical sympathy in forcing the hand of the British Government. This would forge a new . 'ink between the workers of Britain and Russia, uniting them in a strong frater- < nal union against which no international I bourgeoisie could prevail. i There is some mystery over the de- i parture of Mr. W. Adamson, leader of i the Labour party, and Mr. Harry Gos- • ling, president of the Transport Workers' Federation, who were to have gone to France, but who have not left London. Some of the French newspapers resent the British Labour party dictating to French workers on matters of foreign policy. They go so far as to suggest that the French authorities i should prohibit their landing. — (Reuter) , An attempt to dictate policy to the ; Government or Parliament by indus- j trial action struck at the root of the |; democratic constitution of Britain, and ; would be resisted with all the forces at i the Government's disposal. i Mr. Bonar Law, in moving the ad-1 j journmeht of the House until October, with a provision that it might be con- j . vened earlier if desirable, said nothing •' had occurred since the adjournment except what appeared in the newspapers. The Government's policy regarding the Polish-Russian question had been laid down in the clearest possible manner by the Prime Minister. There was _rot the slightest foundation for the suggestion that that policy had been altered - by any expression of public opinion or 1 action of -the body calling itself the 1 Council of Action. There had not been - the slightest deviation from the begin- ' ning in the British attitude towards the ' Polish-Russian war. He stated that the I Government's message to the British representative \n Warsaw for conveyance to Poles'laid-it down that we would not interfere if the Russian tei-ms were genuine, and it went no further than that. The message was communicated simultaneously to the Allies, and the Italian Government telegraphed its entire approval of the step taken.— (Reuter.) . SWING OF SI-DGE-HAMMER _ f AT THE OPEN DOOR. 1 ] (Received 1 p.m.) 3 LONDON. August 16. j In the House of Commons, Mr. Per- t berton Billing drew attention to the resolution 'threatening a general strike ■ in the event of military measures being i taken against Russia, which he described i as tantamount to Labour dictatorship i under the name of a Council of Action. Mr. Billing asked if the time had not come to terminate the organisation of industrial disturbance for the purpose of achieving political ends. Mr. Lloyd George said the Govern- - ments policy appeared in no wise to ' suffer from the Labour conference. This ' swing of the sledge-hammer at the open !, door was only intended for display.— ( (Reuter.) , GERMANS FOLLOW THE LEAD. [ TROOP TRAINS HEED UP. (Received 11 a.m.) BERLIN, August 16. A Silesian newspaper reports that German workmen, in order to enforce their demand that' the movement of Allied _ troops should cease during the Russo-1 < Polish war, sidetracked a number of ( French troop trains in Upper Silesia, and placed a guard over them to prevent _ them proceeding.—(Reuter.) '_ " " 3 SPREAD OP THE FEVER. , ( (Received 11 a.m.) : SYDNEY, this day. The Marine Stewards' Union has recommended the Australian Transport Federation to call all affiliated bodies to refuse to transport any men overseas in the event of England declaring war on Russia.—(A. and N.Z. Cable.) - 3