THE HUTT BY-ELECTION.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 December 1929, Page 10

THE HUTT BY-ELECTION.

The result of the by-election held yesterday in the Hutt electorate has been to increase by one the number of Labour Party representatives in Parliament and to reduce by one the United Party’s following in the House. So far as Parliament is concerned it is not at ail likely that Mr. Nash’s election will make any great difference. Asa pledged member of his party ho will be as little anxious as his colleagues are to displace the present Government in order to place the Reform Party again in power or to face a general election. Since the official Opposition’s strength is no greater than before, its chances of ousting the-Gov-ernment have not been improved. So far as the country generally is concerned the result of the by-election has no especial significance. The Hutt electorate has now chosen a member of the Labour Party to replace the representative of the United Party who held its favour for so many years, but ML Wilf ord’s 1 personal popularity was so great that it was always impossible to assess the strength of the constituency in relation to party interests, On this occasion Hutt has shown very clearly that its leanings are strongly towards moderation in politics, for it gave the United and Reform candidates together a majority of some 2200 over their Labour opponent in a poll of about 11,800 votes. Mr. Nash’s Liberal rival was weak, and the Reform candidate was untried and comparatively unknown. No doubt the keen partisans will try to comfort themselves with the idea that even if the United Party could not win, the electorate at any rate demonstrated a strong dislike for Reform. Those who take a broader view, however, will regret that the moderate political forces were divided, gnd will realise that the one lesson to be drawn from the by-elec-tion is that, of the necessity for the consolidation of moderate opinion in the struggle against the menace of’ Socialism. ■ • ■ , I