POLITICAL UNITY

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24250, 16 April 1942, Page 8

POLITICAL UNITY

THE PRIME MINISTER FAVOURS NATIONAL CABINET OPPOSITION OF HIS PARTY A statement that he realised that his personal views were out of line with the opinion of the Parliamentary Labour Party and his colleagues in the Cabinet was made by the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser, to the annual conference of the Labour Party last week, reports the Labour newspaper, the Standard. He said this during discussion on a resolution, which was carried, that no National Government should be formed. Explaining his own position, Mr. Fraser said: ''l believed, and had a vision which I still have —it is not a delusion —that he should be strong enough to lead the country as one united force through the war until our country was out of danger and our cause victorious, without sacrificing any ideals or principles." He then outlined the procedure that would be followed in the event of a stage being reached when he felt it was impossible for him to carry on as Prime Minister of a purely Labour Government, owing to a situation being reached in which sections of the people were not co-operating m the national war effort.

Resignation Procedure "The first thing I would do,'' said Mr. Fraser, "would be to consult my Cabinet colleagues, the Parliamentary Labour Party and the national executive. Then they could consider the situation. If this situation arose, and I felt impelled to hand in my resignation, I would then go to the GovernorGeneral and tender mv resignation as Prime Minister and recommend to him that he call upon the leader the majority party to take my place, ine fact that the election had been postponed would, no doubt, play a part in subsequent events. For National Government "The Prime Minister has made his position abundantly clear/' said the Minister of Health, the Hod, A. H, Nordmeyer. "'We know that personally he favours the formation of a National Government, but he has made it clear that he will not do so without agreement with his colleagues and the if he feels it is his duty to resign he will not do so without first informing the party and enabling the party to name his successor and he will give _ the GovernorGeneral the name of his successor.