QUEENSLAND POLITICS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17852, 5 August 1921, Page 4

QUEENSLAND POLITICS

The significance of Parliamentary by-elections depends very largely on the general character of the political situation, but, when rival parties engage the full strength of their campaigning forces, the result may fairly be regarded as indicative of the general trend of public opinion. The contest for the representation of the Maranoa constituency in the Federal Ho use of Representatives was clearly of this larger importance, and following the overwhelming defeat of the Labour Party's candidates at the municipal elections a fortnight ago, the success won by the Country Party is oi»ly to be explained by a powerful revulsion against the political theories advocated and practised by the Labour Party in Queensland during the last six years. This was demonstrated by the municipal elections on July 25. In important respects they closely resembled a Parliamentary general election. For the first time, they were conducted on the adult, franchise, the Parliamentary rolls being used® the whole machinery of the political Labour Party was employed in the campaign, and its candidates were opposed in a strictly party contest by the Nationalists. The result was an overwhelming rejection of the candidates who advocated the Labour platform, those defeated including the ten Labour members of Parliament who sought municipal office. A similar situation developed fti the Maranoa byelection. The vacancy was caused

by the death of Mr. James Page, who had held the seat against all opposition for twenty years, largely by his outstanding personal qualities. Nevertheless, he was a prominent figure in the Federal Labour Party, and. in the straight-out coni test with the newlv-arisen Country j Party, the Queensland politicians ! had some reason to count uf>on sentii mental associations to assist them in | retaining the seat. Although it was ;a Federal contest, the Premier and ! other Ministers of the State Government took an active part in the cami paign, and commended the Labour 1 candidate on the score of Labour's | " fine record of achievement." The : result of the polling must be accepted as the, considered judgment i upon the party's record. Not many years ago, Queensland was represented in the Federal Pa-rliament by six Labour senators and seven out of ten members in the House of Representatives. To-day, of 1(5 representatives, only one is a Labour ! politician. In Queensland, the party ; holds the Government by only a : small majority, and, when it meets Parliament next Tuesday, Mr. Theodore's Government will be hard ; pressed to justify the prosecution of a policy which ha,s been twice within a week so emphatically condemned by the electors of Queensland.