LEADERS CONFIDENT MORE WOMEN WILL VOTE CONSERVATIVE

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 February 1950, Page 6

LEADERS CONFIDENT MORE WOMEN WILL VOTE CONSERVATIVE

LONDON, February 15.—The political correspondent of the Daily Telegraph says that the Conservative Party’s confidence in victory at the General Election has increased considerably as a result of the latest can- ‘ vass reports from all over the coun- ; try. 11 The leaders of the Conservative Party regard these reports, after the most prudent and cautious assessment, as distinctly encouraging. They hope to win a substantial number of women’s votes, notably in areas where the Socialists arc strong. Statisticians have calculated that in the 1945 General Election, the percentage of work-ing-class women voting Conservative was markedly higher than that of men, and there are indications that this divergence may be even more striking on February 23. The chairman of the British Labour Party (Mr Maurice Webb), who is a candidate for the Bradford Central seat in the House of Commons, has replied to Labour critics who contend that socialism is a stepping-stone to Communism.

In an article published by the Labo'Ur Party newspaper, the Daily Herald, Mr Webb says: “The truth is that this is the most baseless and nonsensical argument of all those now being paraded as ‘constructive Conservative thought.’ The real bulwark against the advance of Communism — indeed, the only creed capable of arresting its growth—is the democratic policy of the Labour Party. “The only possible chance of Communism gaining an influence in our politics lies in the return of Toryism, with its ideas of rule by big business. Let the Tories get power again, and at once the conditions in which Communism prospers would prevail.”