DISARMAMENT

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 112, 16 November 1928, Page 9

DISARMAMENT

DEBATE IN LOEDS PARMOOR AND CUSHENDUN British Offlclal Wireless. (Received 16th November, 11 a.m.) BUGBY, 15th November. There was a short debate in the House of Lords to-day on the subject of disarmament. It was begun by Lord Parmoor, who was British representative to the League of Nations, while the Labour Government was in oißce in 1924. Lord Parmoor moved that the House regretted that the British delegation to the recent meeting of the League Assembly did not give effective support to a further policy of disarmament and all inclusive arbitration. • Lord Cushendun, who is Acting-For-eign Secretary, and the present British representative to the League of Nations, replied. He referred Lord Parmoor to statements which he had already made on this subject. He repudiated Lord Parmoor 'a contention that if the Protocol proposed by the Labour Government had been accepted, everything else would have followed successfully. On the contrary, he believed that if the Protocol had unfortunately been carried, so far from helping disarmament, we should have had to increase our naval and military forces in order to be in a postion to make good our liabilities under that instrument. This country had given every possible demonstration of its desire to go to any possible length in the attempt to reach an agreoment on disarmament. He entirely re-' pudiatcd any idea that the backward position in .regard to disarmament, I which, he regretted as much' as Lord Parmoor, was due in any way to the acts and omissions of the present Gov- ' eminent. Tho only point of disagreement between himself and Lord Pari moor was as to what wore the most efI fective and feasible methods for the peaceful settlement of disputes. The Government preferred the method of [ bi-lateral treaties or regional treaties to those which were left open for signature by any State which came along. He submitted that Lord Parmoor had utterly failed to substantiate the charge iin his motion. | The motion was defeated by 33 votes ito 10.