The Daily News SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1931. FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 February 1931, Page 6

The Daily News SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1931. FROM CRISIS TO CRISIS.

Whether the Australian economic crisis has acted upon the Chancellor o£ the Exchequer in the British Labour Cabinet, Mr. Philip Snowden, is not material, but that the march of events has convinced that Minister of the futility'of the past policy of his Government is strikingly apparent in the reply made by Mr. Snowden to the motion of censure promulgated by the Conservative Party in the House of Commons- Although that motion was easily defeated by the help of the Liberals, it has served its purpose, compelling the Chancellor to admit that he has seen the writing on the Avail, which all too emphatically indicates that Labour’s policy must b$ drastically changed or the country will go from crisis to crisis until the people arise in their might and stem the drift towards chaos. While it is stated that the Conservatives consider that Mr. Snowden displayed courage in speaking so plainly, it may be that the Chancellor, in view of the desperate position of affairs that indicates an overwhelming defeat of his party at the next general election, took the opportunity of making a master-stroke with the object of cutting away the ground from the Opposition and stealing its thunder. As matters stand at present it is the salvation of the country that must be the prime object to be achieved, so that the policy outlined by Mr. Snowden appears in the main calculated at least to improve the position, if it is adopted and carried out by all sections of the community in the right spirit. Obviously it will involve sacrifices from everyone, and it is evident that those who are considered best able to bear the brunt of these sacrifices will have to shoulder the heaviest portion of the burden. Will Labour make its fair contributions to these sacrifices? If Mr. W. J. Brown, M.P., in anyway represents the general view of Labour, there will be decided opposition to Mr. Snowden’s new policy, for he asserted that the Chancellor’s speech was one of the most revolutionary speeches heard in the present Parliament, and that it meant “the surrender of the whole of Labour’s philosophy at the bidding of financial interests.” The only sensible part of Mr. Brown’s blatant denunciation of his own party was the admission that the Government had no unemployment policy and was staggering from crisis to crisis- It is evident that if the affairs of the Motherland were entrusted to the Left Wing of the Labour Party the Empire would not be long before it lost its chief partner. It is, of course, beyond all dispute that the whole stability of Britain’s financial system is endangered by the immense drain involved in the process of' dealing with unemployment, no less than £150,000,000 having already been disbursed on that account, and the cry is still for more. Mr. Snowden admits that no Budget can or will stand such an unprecedented strain without the risk of certain disaster, for not only has expenditure increased enormously, but revenue has decreased seriously. The Labour Party obtained power

on the strength of its promise to deal effectively with the unemployment, but it has failed signally, Mr. Snowden having to admit that the problem is one that no single party can solve, and that all parties must unite in an effort to overcome the temporary difficulties and restore former prosperity. If this appeal for united effort is based upon a renunciation of the Government’s Social- 1 istic programme and a policy of drastic retrenchment, that will involve an appreciable reduction of wages, there will at least be a sporting chance of turning the tide of adverse finance. It will, however, take more than a promise of help, all round to make the necessary economies. Further taxation would surely prove the final straw in the load that industry is now being compelled to bear. It is fairly certain that the chief impediment to the proposed new policy will be the opposition of Labour extremists. That Britain’s financial position is fundamentally sound despite the huge demands the country has been obliged to meet is one of the hopeful features of a desperate situation, for it implies that there is no need for pessimism or despair, while sustained and constructive effort will doubtless help to create a brighter atmosphere. But it is action, drastic action, that is imperative. The spirit of equality of sacrifice and the will to overcome existing and future difficulties will best serve the Motherland in her strenuous efforts, and British pluck and determination should lead to the desired goal.