M. REYNAUD’S ELECTION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26198, 8 July 1946, Page 5

M. REYNAUD’S ELECTION

CONFIRMED BY ASSEMBLY SETBACK FOR COMMUNISTS (Rec. 7 p.m.) PARIS, July 5. The Constituent Assembly's Constitutional Committee decided: (1) That the President of France should be elected at least by two Chambers; (2) if a third Chamber was written into the Constitution its participation in the President’s election would also be considered; (3) .on a 21-21 vote that the President would have the right to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies. The first decision is in line with General ae Gaulle's views, but the thii-d decision is opposed to them. The French Constituent Assembly on a debate,whether the election of the pre-war Premier, M. Reynaud, as Deputy for Dunkirk should be declared invalid, voted for his retention by 298 to 132 votes. This is a set-back for the Communists, who had accused Reynaud of being politically and morally unfit to be a French Deputy. M. Reynald during the debate said: “ The Communists want to force us to abandon our natural inclination towards the Anglo-Saxon democracies. ’ The Communist Deputy, M. Jean Duclos, accused M. Reynaud of having French blood on his hands because he was a member of the Government which, shortly after the outbreak, had the Communist Deputies arrested.