BRITISH POLITICS

Hokitika Guardian, 14 August 1937, Page 6

BRITISH POLITICS

LABOUR’S LOST GROUND

CONFIDENCE IN GOVERNMENT.

LONDON, July 21

Eleven by-elections . have recently.beeir held in Britain. The National Government has won them ;iJ. the result lias'been received, joyfully by its supporters'ifnc! the moral- has been drawn tliat the political pendulum has. not swung back to) thy. Opposition cause at litime when it is : due to do so by the, law of alvei age.: Propagandists have pointed out that, even if fewer votes were polled by the Government candidates than at the general eieetion-r-and . this was to be expected—tile > Opposition votes luive slumped more heavily .in numbers. The Opposition admits the fail in the poll, but replies that-the' Government vote lias fallen and that the battle was on predominantly Government ground.

Votes Fur Government

There have been 31 by-elections since the general, election in November, 1935. Labour has; won live seats from the National Government. . Oil, these .five four wore won last year. The six months of 1937 has seen one. . Labour success, ,in Central Wandsworth. I lie last 13 b.yr, elections have. not. produced one Labour,., menj.be,r„ In the ,23, by-elections between November' 4935,1 and : Mr Baldwin’s resignation. last May the Government .candidates- polled ,390,581 votes, against an Opposition (combined Labour and Liberal) total of 363.111. In the 11 by-elections', held,-.since', Mr Chamberlain became - Prime the Government candidates have polled 197,081 votes, against an Opposition total of 124,898-. : <

Labour Following

The Labour vote grew steadily from 1906. when it fitst became a recognised Parliamentary party, until 1929. Two years later; fit fell heavily—the actual proportion of 'votes, in 1931 was 55 per cent.. Coalition, 30 per cent Labour, 10 per cent Liberal am] 4 per cent Independent. The ground lost then was not recovered in If 35, and has not been recovered since. .... V In theory, say the Government supporters, the delayed swing oi the. pen; duluiir ' sltould operate, ,'niore strongly after a, Government- has won two successive general elections. This happened to the Conservatives,. who lost kT seats during the 1900-03. administration, conpared "with' '-ll seats during the 1895-1900-.adibinistration. But. history liqs not yet begun to repeat itself in the National . ''Government’s second term, j ... ~ .

Changed Conditions *:• i»T/ • -

Before t’lijb i great 1 AVar the poll at it liy-eiectioii'was generally high ; it was felt to be'a jnatipnaT event, and' both parties exe.rtdd .tlierii selves' to poll t eir last nian. To-day, all that is changed. Polling at' a general election* is generally biglif averaging 80 per cent ot the electoral roll, but at by-elections the polls: have fallen to 60. even to 50 per cent, oi’ the electorate. Kingston touched a new low level with only 38 per, cent .a week ago. Most of the fall is due to abstentions by supporters of the National Government.. and is no doubt caused by the large majorities at the general election inducing a feeling of apathy. In the Nationalists’ view, hoivever, it is very significant that the Labour vote, which should increase through the normal swing of the pendulum at precisely such a period, has fallen rapidly duiing the past six months. ,