The Hawera Star. MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1925. THE NEW OPPOSITION.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 9 November 1925, Page 4

The Hawera Star.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1925. THE NEW OPPOSITION.

Delivered every evening by 5 o’clock in Hawera, Mauaia, Normanby, Okaiawa, Kltharn, Mangatoki, Kaponga, Alton', Ilurleyville, Patea, Waverley, Mokoia, Whakamara, Ohaugai, Meremere, 'Fraser Road, and Ararata.

There seems to be an idea in some quarters that the Labour Party may not, after all, be the official Opposition in flic, new Parliament, The point cannot be decided until the representation of the still-doubtful electorates is settled, .and it may not be decided until the stragglers on the Liberal-National side have made a died a ration: of their party allegiance; but the indications, at this stage point to Mr Holland, Mr Fraser, Mr Sullivan, and perhaps Mr McCombs taking their seats in the front benches on Mr Speaker’s left. And Labour, for all its heavy losses at the polls, will then be entitled to look upon the 1925 election as something of an advance. Apart from the personal dignity attaching to the Leader of the Opposition and to his front-row colleagues, any party’s rise to the see-

ond place in the House marks that party out for office sooner or later. We remarked the other day on the reduced Labour vote in some of the city constituencies; but against this has to be credited the support won by Labour in rural electorates which have not previously been contested. No Government can please everybody. In every community there are and always will be critics of the reigning party, and the most effective way in which most of these can make their criticism felt is by voting “agin the Government.” That guarantees a measure of support for every Opposition candidate; and if Labour becomes the Opposition the party organisers may count on a new element in the Labour vote three years hence. In electorates where no Nationalist, was standing that element was noticeable this time. Taranaki affords a good example of the weakness of the purely Labour vote: in other than city electorates. Mr Smith and Mr. Bellringer each polled over 4300 votes; Mr Sheafs total to date is only 740. In Invercargill the position is even more pronounced;, the parties standing: Liberal 4632, Reform 4509, Labour 718. Take against these, the Southland rural constituency of Wallace. Mr Adam Hamilton won the seat for the Government with 3950 votes, but' his young Labour opponent was only a thousand behind. Even allowing for coal-mining and sawmilling centres, all who know the district will agree that Wallace has not 'a purely Labour vote bordering on three thousand. The position of the contest was that four candidates were nominated, a Nationalist and a Liberal in addition to the two already mentioned. The Liberal was not taken seriously and the Nationalist announced his desire to withdraw 'a few days before the poll. As a consequence the “agin the Government” vote appears to have gone to Labour. Add' to this that Mr Hamilton is a strong Pro. hibitionist and! a non-racing man, and another block of Mr MeKenzie’s Labour total is accounted for. Roughly, it may be assumed that his three, thousand votes represent a thousand FOR Labour, another thousand AGAINST the Government, and a third thousand in opposition to the Government candidate on personal grounds. Much the same thing occurred in Motueka, where only Labour opposed the sitting Reform member. The Labour candidate polled two thousand against four thousand, but a large part of that must have been a vote against the Government, rather than for Labour and its policy. These examples serve to show the added aggregate' vote which Labour may expect henceforth; but not until the “grousers” outnumber the satisfied electors will this increased vote represent a majority in a majority of the constituencies. Getting back to two parties involves giving Labour a higher aggregate vote; this election has shown thatl it does not involve giving Labour an increased number of seats. Such a state of affairs is open to attack on the ground of unfairness; but the only remedy seriously advocated is proportional representation, and Labour itself has been only too glad to be rid of that system of voting in New South Wales. Beside?, proportional representation would mean further multiplication of parties, which New Zealand has said emphatically she does not want.