SINKING OF PARTY

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 291, 4 September 1933, Page 10

SINKING OF PARTY

Formation of National Government LABOUR’S REFUSAL Dominion Special Service. Christchurch, September 2. An emphatic reassertion of his contention that the Labour Party was invited to join a national government and refused was ma.de by the Minister of Lands, Hon. E, A. Ransom, when speaking in the Lyttelton by-election at Sumner last evening. He said he was present at the meeting of the Parlia-’ mentary Inter-party Committee when the Prime Minister made- the offer tb the Labour representatives, and he was there when the Leader of the Labour Party, Mr. H. E. Holland, declined the offer. < In the first place, the Minister said, Mr. Howard had stated in a letter to “The Press” that the Labour Party had not been invited to join the Coalition Government, and he made no reference whatever to the national. government which was proposed by the Prime Mini-, ster. The Minister asked his audience to note that fact particularly as it was very significant. He agreed quite readily that the Labour Party was never asked to join the Coalition; but it was very, definitely invited to join a national government, which would have been far better than a coalition. (Hear, hear.) . Inter-party Committee. When the full effects of the depression were being felt in the Dominion, various members of Parliament, among whom one of the prime movers was Mr. J. McCombs, endeavoured to, bring all parties in the House of Representatives together in conference. Eventually an inter-party committee was established, and it sat with the object of,finding some way of overcoming some of the country’s troubles. The personnel of this body Included the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, Sir Apirana Ngata, and the speaker, representing the United Government, the then Leader of the Opposition, Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, the Hon. W. Downie Stewart, and Mr. >D. Jones, representing the Reform Party, the Leader of the Labour Party, Mr. H. E. Holland, Mr. M. J. Savage, and Mr. J. McCombs, and an Independent, Mr, C- A. Wilklnsofl. Even an Independent was given a seat in order to co-opt all sections in the House, although the ■small band of Independents wielded little influence. ' v This inter-party committee sat for a long time, and the evidence of outside authorities was called as it had been on the exchange rate question 1 ' later. After numerous sittings.and many arguments the Prime Minister discovered that the committee was not getting anywhere in its discussions. One morning Mr. Forbes told the committee that he was determined to adopt one of two courses.' He said he would secure the formation of a national government or ask the Governor-General to dissolve Parliament in order to bring about an election. . Unwilling to Join. ( . Mr. Ransom said he Was present'at .the meeting and heard Mr. Forbes make ’ the statement. Before the members of the committee separated that morning Mr. Holland, without consultijig his party, but only his colleaguesf on the committee, said that Labour would not join a national government. Mr. Coates suggested that, as the question was one of considerable importance, he should have time to think it over. The committee then adjourned for three days. At the end of that time Mr. Coates announced that the Reform Party would be prepared 'to< join a national government. Mr. Holland said his party was not prepared to join, and the committee was thereupon disbanded. Mr. Howard had said that the speaker had made statements which were, contrary to fact. “I say he is not in a position to say what took place at that committee, for he was not there,” Mr. Ransom said. .“I was. That is just the difference. . No member of the Labour Party who was on that committee will deny what I am saying. I know them too well for that; they are too honourable.” Mr. Howard had said he would submit the evidence relating to the interparty committee’s transactions to Dr. J. Hight and let him decide whether the Labour Party was asked to join the - Coalition. All the questions referred to I by Mr. Howard related to events subsequent to the time the Leader of the Labour Party rejected the Prime Minister’s proposal to join a national government. Standing by the Facts. As there was no chance of establishing a national government, the opportunity was given to Mr. Coates to join the Coalition. The evidence Mr. Howard referred to was all in Hansard, but it related to the formation of a coalition. These were the facts, and he , would stand by them, the Minister concluded. At question time, Mr. Ransom was asked whether he could substantiate his statements by written records of the committee’s transactions. Mr. Ransom said no minutes had been kept by the committee. It had never reported and.it probably never'would. The records referred to by Mr. Howard had nothing whatever to do with the national government offer. A Voice: Then it is Mr, Holland’s word against yours. Mr. Ransom: Mr. Holland never said so. Ido not think he ever will. I think I know Mr. Holland and Mr. Savage well enough to know they will never deny the truth of what I said.

“BY HIS OWN WORDS” Mr. Holland on National Government By Telegraph.—Press Association. Christchurch, September 3. The Hon. E. A. Ransom, Minister of Lands, replying at Opawa on Saturday night to Mr. H. E. Holland’s statement, declared that Mr. Holland, by his own words, had proved his, Mr. Ransom’s, statement correct. Mr. Holland’s words, “In any case, every demand for a National Government was accompanied by the demand for election postponement,” proved that the invitation was made. Mr. Ransom read, a telegram from the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates and Sir Aplrana Ngata, who had been members of the Inter-Party Committee, stating that the opportunity to join the National Government was offered, but Mr. Holland and his party refused to join. Mr. E. J. Howard and Mr. Holland had both said that Labour had not been invited to join the Coalition, said Mr. Ransom. This was true, but the Coalition was an afterthought and all negotiations concerning it took place after Mr. Holland had refused to join a National Government,