BONDS OF UMPIRE

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 91, 14 October 1926, Page 12

BONDS OF UMPIRE

DOMINIONS' POSITION

FOOLFaW TO BREAK mvvTTY

VIEWS OF MR. P. FRA.SKR, M.P.

The opinion that it would be ;i foolish thing for any of the selfgoverning Dominions to break uway from the British Empire was expressed last night by Mr. I. Fraser, M.P., in ;ni ■address at (he Trades Hall. In referrijig lo the Imperial Conferonce, Mr. Fraser said that the Labour Party did not have any objection, lo the Prime. Minister attending, but lie should go with instructions from Parliament. As a matter of fact, there were many important, subjects which had to bo discussed at such gatherings —immigration, foreign relations, the question of the East and China, which was not as it was represented to be in the- cablegrams, and other matters. Contrary to the view of >Sir James Parr, there were far more weighty subjects to discuss than picture films. There was the question of the relation of the Dominions to Ihe Commonwealth of Nations, for instance. The position of the Dominions in the League of Nations gave them a certain amount of independence, but that did not mean that it would benefit anyone of them to break away. That would be foolish. Ho believed that there could be a closer bond between the Dominions and the Motherland if all the great questions were faced in a proper manner. In regard to immigration it was necessary that the questions of housing and unemployment should be settled here first before more immigrants wore brought into the country. Then, again, a proper scheme of land settlement was wanted. It was no use bringing out poeple to be farm labourers if they could see nothing but farm labouring ahead of them for the rest of their lives. The British Commonwealth of Nations was not to be saved by ehoap sentiment, "flag-waving," or talk about trade within the Empire, because the people who one minute talked about trade within the Empire talked in the next about secondary industries, and how these could be built up. If the secondary industries were to be builtup it was for th-a people of this country to say whether that was the best policy to adopt or not. If we decided to adopt such a policy, then it meant curtailing the volume- of manufactured, imports from Great Britain. They were faced with realities when they got down to matters of that kind. No one could believe that the bonds of Empire could be drawn closer by talking about trivial matters. The Labour Party in Britain had faced the issues and had put forward proposals for bulk purchase of food products from the Dominions; it had at any rate hold out some hope of doing something to give the Empire stability in economic and social problems. While the Labour Party did not object lo the Prime Minister going to London it opposed his having a free hand. He should carry his instructions from Parliament. Mr. Coates had stated that New Zealand was always prepared to trust the statesmen of Great Britain in foreign policy. "Well," said Mr. Fraser, "I am not prepared, and the party I am associated with is not prepared"to do that. No man who has any sympathy with the working people would trust Mr. Baldwin, Mr. Neville Chamberlain, or others of the group who are endeavouring to defeat the miners at the present moment."