NO-CONFIDENGE MOTION

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23771, 17 October 1942, Page 4

NO-CONFIDENGE MOTION

VIEWS OF MESSRS MASSpY AND WILKINSON

(From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, October ;16. ■Reasons why they intended \pting against the National Party’s no-confi-dence motion on the question of the Waikato strike were given by Messrs J. N. Massey (Franklin), a member of the party, and Mr C. A. Wilkinson (Egmont), an Independent, who has usually voted with the Opposition, in the closing stages of the debate this morning. ' . . ... “In my opinion there is no justification . for any no-confidence motion against a Government carrying on the conduct of war, except when the Government has failed in its duty in the prosecution of the war,” said Mr Wilkinson in the final stages of the debate. He did not think that the G9Vernment had failed in its prosecution of the war. Rather had the war been prosecuted almost relentlessly, and many people were of the opinion that the Government had gone too far. Imprisonment of the miners would have done immeasurable harm and the withdrawal of Opposition members from the War Cabinet was a sad mistake. If it were inadvisable to have an election in the near future, every effort should be made to form a truly national Government, declared Mr Massey, who was the last speaker. When ’the war administration was formed and important portfolios were given to members of the Opposition he thought the Opposition could make a, valuable contribution. No one was more astounded than he when an Opposition section withdrew because of the handling of the Huntly strike, even though in his opinion the strike was badly handled at the start. He was convinced, however, that the only course the Government could have taken in settling the dispute was .in making arrangements with coal mine owners so that coal could be produced.