BRITISH LABOUR PARTY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1775, 14 March 1906, Page 55

BRITISH LABOUR PARTY.

FOUR MAIN OBJECTS. PROPOSED EARLY VISIT TO THE COLONIES. LETTER TO MR WATSON. SYDNEY, March 8. Mr J. C. Watson, leader of the Labour party in the Federal House .of * Representatives, has received a lotted from Mr Ramsay MacDonald, secretary; to tho British Labour Representationi Committee, who was elected to the House of Commons last January. reference to the overwhelming success of Labour at the elections, Mr Mas“ Donald says:— “We are now anxious to meet our colonial friends with a view to coming to an understanding with the DerpcS cratio and Labour forces in as we consider this to be the next step which the Labour movements at horn© and in the colonies should take. “ I assure you, on behalf of * th® Labour party, that it has no intention of interfering with your fiscal policy* It recognises that this is* a matter foil yourselves, and yourselves alone. Noy does it wish to interfere in any question: which is internal to your colony only* We have four main objects in view, namely:— To rescue the Empire and the Imperial spirit from being exploited by reactionary and anti-social classes at home. To make the Empire stand for peape and democratic justice in the eyes of the whole world. To study the various social expert* meuts which have been, started in the colonies. To get our colonial fellow-workers to understand the labour movements in the Mother Country and feel a share in its fortunes. “It is probable that three or fouy Labour members will visit the colonies this year, after the Parliamentary session is over. During the visit they wij| ho willing to address one or two meetings in a few of the ’principal towns-, and will be glad to meet delegates elected by the chief trades and labopjfi organisations to confer with them on matters of common interest.” Mr McDonald asks if such a visit, supposing it can be arranged, will be acceptable, and requests that some representative body shall officially make arrangements for receiving the visitors.