COUNTRY QUOTA

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 111, 6 November 1935, Page 14

COUNTRY QUOTA

NO ALTERATION PROPOSED

LABOUR'S INTENTIONS

A definite declaration that thera would be no alteration of the electoral laws during the life of the first Labour Government was made by the Leader of the Labour Party (Mr. M. J. Savage) at his Town Hall meeting last night. A Labour Government, he said, would be fully occupied in clearing up the mess left by its predecessors.

Mr. Savage said that Sir Alfred Ransom, during the course of an address at Dannevirke, had stated that the country quota was part of Labour's hidden policy. Although the country quota was wrong in principle it was not. referred to in the present policy and the Labour Party had not the slightest intention of altering the electoral system during the life of the first Labour Government. Labour would have to gain the Treasury benches with the electoral law as it was and its first period of office would be fully occupied in cleaning up the mess left by its predecessors and in implementing,, its social and economic policy for th«l restoration of prosperity to the Domin-j ion. If the first Labour Governmen/t were to occupy a moment of its time in tinkering with the electoral laws instead of going to the assistance of thcyse who were in difficulties, it would 'deserve to be cast out for all time.