THE UNITED PARTY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20987, 25 September 1931, Page 11

THE UNITED PARTY.

long search for leader, difficulties in office. SUPPORT OF LABOUR MEMBERS. The establishment of the Coalition Governmenfc officially terminates the United < ministration and thus brings to a close an interesting chapter in the political history of New Zealand. , Tlme rna y reveal the secret circumr s t ances attendant on the birth of the United Party, but that is a story which , has t0 be told. The first public intimation of the initiation of the movement ' made in August, 1927, when it was . statp d that "a decision to form a branch ' in Auckland of a new political party entitled the United New Zealand Partv Political Organisation has been reached." It was not until September of the following year, however, that public interest in the new party was quickened with the ■ announcement that Sir Joseph Ward had been selected asi leader. i Facetious questions regarding the new , party were asked in Parliament during the session of 1927, but neither there nor elsewhere could much information be obr , tained as to what schools of political j thought were to be embraced in the new . | movement. As Dominion organiser, Mr. j A. E. Davy was busily engaged in form- . | ing branches in various parts of New Zea- | land, while a benediction on the move- . j ment was pronounced by Mr. G. W. 5 ! Forbes, then known as Leader of the i National Party, and by Mr. W. A. j V eitch, described as Leader of the Liberal j Party. : i Even as late as February 8. 1923. when 3 Mr. Forbes delivered a speech in the > Auckland Town Hall, he contented him- £ self with criticising the Reform administration and suggesting reasons why there should be a change of Government. He • resolutely refused to answer questions ret garding the policy of the United Party. [ "That will be done at election time," he said. A Leader and a Policy. United Party candidates began to b© ' announced in April, 1928. When suffi--1 j cier.t progress had been made in that 1 j direction, a conference of candidates and i delegates was held in Wellington to select , a leader. The first hint that the choice would fail oa Sir Joseph Ward was given 1 by a cablegram from Winnipeg, published > on August 21, 1928. The cablegram stated 1 that Sir Joseph Ward, then homeward bound from a business trip to England, had intimated that he bad been invited to lead the new party, but he declined to state whether he would accept. s Evidently there were others who t thought they had claims. However, after ; a period of mystery-mongering, the choice did fall on Sir Joseph, although the names of Mr. Forbes, Mr. Veitch and Mr. ' E. A. Ransom also went to the selection 2 ballot. The last named, by the way, wis i the Inst of the unsuccessful candidates to r be eliminated. By the middle of September, within two 3 months of the general election, the L nited 5 Party had found its leader. Parliament - rose shortly afterwards and Sir Joseph Ward came to Auckland to open the campaign for his party. It was then that he proclaimed the party's policy, of which f the most spectacular proposal was the , borrowing of £70,000,000. Unprecedented Situation, i ! The result of the general election was . i curious, in that none of the three pari j ties had a majority in the House. For , j complexity and awkward triangularity the i! situation had no precedent in New Zeaj land politics. The 30 seats were allocated ■ ; among the parties as follows:—Reform, l 28: United, 28: Labour, 19: Independ- ' | ents. 4; Country, 1. However, the session i convened three weeks later to resolve the i I position found the United and Labour ' ! Parties and the Independents sufficiently ! of one accord to walk into the same lobby i ! to defeat the Reform Government by 50 I votes to 28, and Sir Joseph Ward was commissioned 1.0 form a Government. The United Government's continued ' tenure of office, in spite of its numerical weakness, was made possible during the sessions of 1929 and 1900 by the support of the Labour Party, but toward the end of the latter session there were signs of a cleavage. The United Party was barely into its administrative stride before, it found that lavish pre-election promises were easier to make than to redeem. Labour's support on confidence issues was given, not so much out of love for the United Party as because of a determination to block the return of the Reform Party. The Labour Party even went the length of voting against its own policy on such questions as the increased primage duties, rather than risk the possibility of losing its grip on the party in office. Development of Depression. The United Party soon encountered economic circumstances making the full application of its policy difficult. The | unemployment problem was already gvowj ing acute in 1529, but Sir Joseph Ward j gained a temporary respite with a promise j to absorb all the unemployed in five ' j weeks. In the meantime, the party had ■ difficulties of a, more personal nature. Sir Joser>.h Yvard became ill toward the end 'lot the 1329 session, and continued indis- ' position caused his resignation of the j Prime Ministership in May, 1930. Mr. Forbes was appointed to succeed him alter ! a selection ballot in which Mr. Ransom, ' Mr. Veitch and Mr. Atmore also figured. In spite of the gathering clouds of depression, Parliament- was inclined to be : tolerant to the Government when it faced the House under its new lender in June, 19'0 There was the further consideration'that Mr. Forbes was to represent the Dominion at the Imperial Conference Hr,> r in the vear. and. although feeling rt n high in debates, particularly on tha ; taxation and unemployment issues. Hie I Government emerged trom the sess.on ! with -i'J more serious affront to its dignity ! than two adverse votes on items m tha ' Estimates. However, its sails were ! trimmed to suit the circumstan.es of the | political breeze, and legislation likely to ! involve the rail of the Government was J amended or abandoned as discietion ' j V| le fnII significance of the economic ! ,-visis wis evident when the emergency | session was summoned m March ot I , p . u . The wage-cut legislation was biti ;; r ",v assailed oy the Labour Party, and ! t he'closure bad to be instituted to foice | ,'e measure through without unreason- ! a c delnv. The attitude of the Reform I P tv vas expressed m Mr. Coates de- \ !■ m that he would help rather than | hinder the Government in its effort to j balance the national finances. National Government Scheme. i The end of the short session brought I i il i'rnin Mr Forbes that <i the proposal, trcm iVI ' - , t. i National Party should be formed. H I wj;7e"«r»II? that Hip mr*» j tion was addressed mm pMtictilnil.' . n pnrtv However, the proI nosal- V was not acceptable, although I r o ; m - s willingness to assist the Gove.nI ment. subject.to the same conditions a, i hpfnre was reiterated. ! The' events of the present f.cab in memory. Mr. forha mod.fel 'ii- r■■ -jli proposal into a National 1 , cLm«. wit* the added that the general el«t.on l b. H, mm*tinn for the setting up of an inter-party coninuttee "to decide what remod al steps should be taken to adjust the national expenditure, and to prcvide to equality of sacrifice and a proper distribution of" the burden." , . Out of this developed the plan tor Coalition Government.