UNSOUGHT HONOUR

Greymouth Evening Star, 1 February 1934, Page 6

UNSOUGHT HONOUR

LEGISLATOR’S STRANGE CASE. What are the duties of a member of Parliament? He is paid £360 a year. What does he do for his salary? asks the political correspondent of the Sunday Express. The general idea is that a. member attends regularly at the House of Commons, speaks in debates, considers and casts his vote in divisions, is always attentive to the interests of his constituents and ready to intervene with Government authorities on behalf of the people he represents. On the other hand here is the case of Mr. A. J. Flint, 30 years of age, one of the band of thirteen National Labour members, the MacDonald personal party. He sits as member for Ilkeston, in Derbyshire. The first day of the new Parliament, when the National Government was returned over two years ago. Mr. Flint made a speech in the House. He seconded the Address-in-re,ply to the King. Since that day he has not opened his mouth in Parliament. There have been in that time more than 700 divisions. Mr. Flint has voted in fewer than 30.

The home of Mr. Flint .is in Birmingham. He is a barrister on the Midland circuit. He rarely visits his constituency. Inquiry there revealed that his “National Labour” organisation is dormant. Mr. Flint entered Parliament mainly on the strength of Conservative and Liberal National votes. They were only just enough to return him. He polied 17,587 votes and his Socialist opponent, Mr. G. FI. Oliver, obtained 17,585 votes. Mr. Oliver, the sitting Socialist member since 1922, was considered so strong a candidate at Ilkeston that there was no suggestion of opposing him. This left Mr. Oliver free to conduct propaganda on behalf of the Socialist Party and against those few members who had followed the Prime Minister and stood as “National Labour.” Among those members, of course, was Mr. J. H. Thomas. When Mr. Thomas went with Mr. MacDonald, an official Socialist candidate was nominated against him Mr. Oliver, feeling free of responsibility in his own constituency, hastened to Derby, his home town, to speak against Mr. Thomas.

Mr. Flint’s father is a solicitor in Derby. He and Mr. Thomas are close friends. The idea arose that somehow Mr. Oliver’s fire should be drawn. The result was a great surprise for Mr. Oliver. “I had no idea that I was going to be opposed,” he said, recalling the circumstances of this election. “I knew young Flint well. We had often met and discussed politics without finding much divergence in our views.” It was never for a moment expected that Mr Flint would win the seat. The member-who-did-not-want-to-be confirmed this in conversation recently. Mr. Flint quite frankly admitted: “I would not have stood if I thought there was any fear of being elected. I have no political ambitions whatever. “What young man on the threshold of a careei’ would want to be hampered by having to attend to divisions and such things in the House of Commons when he should be looking after his practice? “I had not the slightest intention of standing for Parliament. But just about two weeks before the election Mr. J. H. Thomas, who is an old friend of my father’s, and who played cricket with me when I was a youngster of five, rang me up and asked if I would tsand. Fie told me that I had not an earthly chance. I would not have stood if I had known I would get in.”