ELECTION PLANS OF MACMILLAN

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28537, 17 March 1958, Page 17

ELECTION PLANS OF MACMILLAN

“When We Judge Suitable Time” (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, March 14. The Prime Minister (Mr Macmillan) made it clear today • that the Conservative Govern-; ment has no intention of allow-! ing itself to be stampeded by j unpopularity into an early | general election. Speaking within a few hours • of the Government’s latest re- i .verse —the loss of a seat to Labour in the Parliamentary' by-election at Kelvingrove. Gias-1 gow—he told a London audience: 1 “A general election will come 1 when we judge it to be a suitable time. It will come at a time when many of these policies with which we are now engaged, necessarily rather difficult to understand, sometimes rather unpopular, will have worked themselves out to fruition, and we shall reap the reward of our courage and determination.” The reference to “unpopular” policies was taken to mean particularly the Government’s new Rents Act, widely accepted as the main cause of the current slump in Conservative support. It means higher rents and the end of security for hundreds of thousands of Britons, some of whom are threatened with eviction.

Mr Macmillan was addressing the Central Council of the National Association of Conservative and Unionist Associations.