SOOTHING TACTICS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26775, 19 May 1948, Page 5

SOOTHING TACTICS

LABOUR PARTY’S ROLE

REINVIGORATING PROCESS IN BRITAIN

THE SCENE AT SCARBOROUGH

From A. W. Mitchell, N.Z.P.A. Special Correspondent Rec. 9 p.m. SCARBOROUGH, May 18. The mild joke being made about the annual conference of the Labour Party at this sunlit, keen and seabreezy bay is, “Ah, Scarborough is so bracing.” Whether it is or not, and general opinion is in the affirmative, it is certain that the Labour Party has corpe here to brace itself and attempt to reinvigorate itself. It is bracing itself against the growing, and to some delegates the surprising, thought that there are fears that the Government is losing ground in the country and attempting to reinvigorate itself in preparation for the general election, which still lies two years ahead. It is also endeavouring to cement a few “ cracks ” which have recently been showing in its structure. The chief “ crack ” which appeared recently has not been caused so much by the expulsion of Mr John PlattsMills, or the affair of the Nenni telegram, which may now be considered dead, as by the expulsion of Mr Alfred Edwards, whose heresies on nationalisation have placed him beyond the pale. His criticisms and comments on the question of nationalisation of the iron and steel industry have proved most embarrassing at an inconvenient time. Embarrassing Publicity The “ cracks ” have occurred at a time when a spate of adverse publicity •(“deadly poison pumped by the most prostituted press in the world,” according to Mr Aneurin Bevari) has been directed against nationalised industries, when there have been eruptions in the National Coal Board, and trouble in the mines, and when not little resentment was caused by the rise in the cost of electricity and railway fares —two other nationalised concerns. The Scarborough conference began by attempting to cement the “ cracks in the party structure. It expelled Mr Edwards on the preceding day and followed up by taking care that neither he nor Mr Platts-Mills should address the faithful. The National Executive Committee was successful in passing over both incidents with very little discussion in the case of the New Zealander. and none at all in that of Mr Edwards. Whether the cement holds or not remains to be seen. Although the conference discussed briefly the question of whether Mr Platts-Mills should be allowed to speak, it was evident that he was regarded as smaller ' fry. This was plain when Mr Morgan Phillips, the party’s influential secretary, pointed out that if Mr Platts-Mills was allowed to come to the rostrum the same opportunity would 'have to be provided to Mr Edwards. Neither the National Executive nor the trades unions, a very influential section of the conference, are prepared to let Mr Edwards further contaminate “ the spirit of full partnership. And although it seemed that many would like to have heard Mr PlattsMills, he was not allowed to descend from his visitor’s seat in the balconyAll that he could do was to walk round, hand copies of his prepared speech to newspapermen, ana remark; “I had not realised that the National Executive was so thin skinned. ’ Perhaps it was thin-skinned in his case, but Mr Edwards had touched it on the raw. By side-stepping these cases, the soothing note imparted to the conference, by Mr Shinwell in his addiess was maintained. Mr Shinwell’s speech was a skilled piece of work, especially designed for such an occasion. Mr Sliimvcll’s Oration Mr Shinwell played the Labour Party organ with all appropriate slops He excused present economic difficulties: they arose from a combination ol circumstances which preceded the last general election. He praised the Labour Party’s record and its pioneers: alternately he made delegates flesh creep at the wickedness of Victorianminded Tories and what they would do if they returned to power, or drew laughter at the withering scorn he poured upon such benighted people. He praised the workers' production effort and proclaimed the dawn of a brighter and better atmosphere in the coal mining industry (conveniently overlooking present events): mac.e calls for more production and for peace, and produced bromide for the Russians (though his references to the epic of Stalingrad, which would be cheered to an / echo two years ago were now listened to in stony silence). He had a word for colonial development, and a reminder about the general election. He also had a word for rebels —rebels were allowed in the party provided they behaved “in a reasonable manner.” , , , , Finally, Mr Shinwell declared that the Government was not the master, but the servant of the people. It was a skilful performance as an appeal to the faithful: but it did not prevent delegates immediately afterwards showing their concern at the rate of recruitment of young Socialists, and not from declaring that people were disappointed with the Government, and that its leaders were growing apart from the working class. Mr Shinwell hurriedly hushed up such talk.