REPLY BY MINISTER

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 153, 25 March 1938, Page 11

REPLY BY MINISTER

No Recent Change In Policy CLOSE CONTACTS KEPT (Received March 24, 5.30 p.m.) London, March 24. In his reply, Mr. MacDonald said he agreed that the closest contact should be maintained between Britain and the Dominion Governments regarding international affairs, in informing the Dominions of comments on them by diplomatic representatives, and on the Government’s policy views. “We fulfil this adequately and to the satisfaction of the Dominions, which at any given moment are fully seized of any information we have regarding international affairs and our opinions and policy thereon,” Mr. MacDonald said. “Mr. Mander rightly suggested that if the British Government was contemplating any important change in- foreign policy it should give the Dominions good warning before it was published. I accept that principle in its entirety, but where I quarrel with Mr. Mander is where he said there had been a recent change of policy. - Mr. Mander: I did not say it was recent. Mr. MacDonald: Its having taken place over a considerable period somewhat modifies the necessity for specially communicating with the Dominions regarding it in the more recent past. Mr. Chamberlain’s statement on February 22 of the Government’s attitude toward the League was not representative of a recent change in policy. Those views regarding the inability of the League as at present constituted to fulfil all the functions we once hoped have been held by the Government for a long time. Statements by Ministers. “Ministers have said the same before, indicating this policy for some time past,”- Mr. MacDonald continued. “The former Foreign Secretary, Mr. Anthonj’ Eden, in June,, made a statement the substance of which was exactly silimar in sentiment to Mr. Chamberlain’s statement on February 22. Mr. Eden declared that by the defection of some of its more important members the area of the League’s cooperation had been restricted, its ability to fulfil its original functions reduced, and because of that it could not achieve all -that had been hoped. “I have been in touch with the Dominions about this policy throughout the past 18 months. There has been a complete exchange of views since the League Assembly at Geneva in 1930, and the question was considered by the Imperial Conference last year,” Mr. MacDonald said. . “The very words of Mr. Chamberlain regarding the League were immediately telegraphed to the Dominion Governments. If that speech had represented a change of policy it would have been indicated that it was a matter for consideration, but the very opposite was the case.”

Mr. MacDonald was proceeding to say that the New Zealand Government’s views had. been well known when the House automatically adjourned.