The MANAWATU DAILY Times FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1936. The Ins and Outs

Manawatu Times, Volume 61, Issue 1423, 19 June 1936, Page 6

The MANAWATU DAILY Times FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1936. The Ins and Outs

Canterbury is not altogether pleased with the Canterbury branch of the National Party. Discussing the recent meeting of supporters of the party—or should it be opponents of the Government—the Christchurch Press saysM. Metin, a distinguished French student of politics who visited Australia and New Zealand at the beginning of this century, records that when he asked the leader of the Opposition in a certain Parliament what his programme was, the politician pointed to the Government benches and said: “My programme is to turn those fellows out.”

This, it appears, is also the programme of the New Zealand National party, the Canterbury supporters of which staged, a large meeting in Christchurch on Monday night. As the chairman explained it, tfie purpose of the National party is to attract the support of “all electors who are opposed to the policy of the Laoour Government and who believe that it is in the interests of the country to remove it from the Treasury benches.”

Not one of the speakers said anything more than this- The positive programme of the National party has yet to be formulated, a point which has already aroused much unfavourable comment in our correspondence columns. It is, however, too early to be impatient at this lack of definite objectives. Ihc political situation is so obscure, and the new party contains so many diverse elements, that its leaders would be wise not to put a policy in writing until the situation is clarified and the effect of Labour’s legislative measures becomes apparent.

But caution is one thing and opportunism another. Ihc leaders of the National party seem at the moment to he too much obsessed with the need tor uniting all political groups opposed to Labour, a unity which can only be achieved by an aostcntion from any definite declaration of political principles. Unity of this sort is at best unstable} and its benefits cannot compensate for the absence of a lighting creed.

Though there may be even now a swing away from Labour, the leaders of the National party are very seriously mistaken if they think that fear of the consequences of what the present Government is doing will carry them far in an election. Ihc National party’s main need at present is not numbers but men and women with ability and a capacity for leaders!tip. And it will not attract such men and women unless it has a programme and principles.