EMPIRE RELATIONS

Greymouth Evening Star, 4 February 1947, Page 5

EMPIRE RELATIONS

WEAKNESS IN COMMONWEALTH CONSTRUCTION' LACK OF COMMON POLICY [N.Z.P.A. SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT] (Rec. 10.55 a.m.) LONDON, February 3. Writing in the Sunday Times “Scrutator” says a weak point in the unique construction of the British Commonwealth is the fact that, although the Dominions have twice fought beside the United Kingdom in the Great Wars, they do. not co-oper-ate correspondingly in diplomacy ana during peace. There is often mutual support, but it is haphazard and already since the late war divergencies have caused embarrassment. Although consultation takes place between the British Government and the Dominions, “Scrutator” says, there is too little contact between the Dominions themselves, and Imperial Conferences, which afforded useful opportunity for surveying Dominion policy as a whole, are no longer held. In the circumstances it is worth considering whether the old presumption that all the Dominions should have exactly the same relation to Great Britain should be continued. If it is, the Dominions will remain like a fleet whose speed cannot exceed that of the slowest ship. The slowest ship in this case is Canada, “Scrutator” adds,- where the French Canadian voters have effectively prevented the Canadian Government from taking any step towards closer Imperial co-operation. There is no reason why the Canadian situation should govern the action of the other Dominions, which, lacking Canada’s peculiar geographical security, are more alive than she is* to the dangers of the post-war world.