DOMINION POLITICS.

Waipa Post, Volume 36, Issue 2147, 21 April 1928, Page 5

DOMINION POLITICS.

Sir, —Pardon me for obtruding, but a little light on Dominion politics may be useful just now to the general voter. Although the general election, unless forced on sudednly by some unforeseen event, is as yet nearly seven months distant, the political atmosphere is already being darkened by the shadow which that event is casting before it. The Reform aprty’s caucus was held this week, and though full details of the proceedings are not available it is obvious that members discussed the question of organisation for the general election. The Minister of Lands (the Hon. A. D. McLeod), who holds some such office as organ-iser-in-chief for the party, has been reported as having announced that all the sitting members of the party will receive its support at the general election. If this is actually to be the case, presumably it has been decided upon after consultation with the local organisations in each electorate; and, in that event, it must be concluded that the confusion has been overlooked that was created last session, when a number of members of the party, including half a dozen Ministers, placed their leader in the position that hie had to wash his hands of any responsibility for the Licensing Bill which he had himself introduced. But the licensing issue still remains unsettled. It must be regarded, therefore, as certain that the qaucus gave some consideration to it. It has, however, never been treated as a party question, and any attempt by a section of the Reform party, however numerous and however clamorous it may be, to commit the party as a whole to any particular action in relation to it would be novel in its character and possibly dangerous in its effect. The Labour party has decided, in its conference, that the issue is one in respect of 1 which each of its members must act in accordance with his individual judg-. ment. In so doing it has accorded to precedent an adherence which it does not usually regard as desirable or necessary. For the rest, this party seems to have devoted its conference largely to a discussion of its plans for the general election. In its preparation for this event it is greatly cheered by the emergence—or, perhaps, I should rather say, the partial emergence, for there is a good deal of mystery about it —of a party with a very long name which I may best describe for the present as the United party. What is precisely “ united ”in this party has yet to be discovered by the public. There has, so far, been no definite indication that the National party has been absorbed by the United party. I have been at some pains to discover individual attitudes, and have read fairly widely in my search. May I put forward the conviction, that. Mr Forbes, the leader of the Nationalists, has been very careful, in the public addresses which he has delivered in different centres in.the countrw to refrain from explaining what the relationship, if any, is between his party and the United party? Sir Joseph. Ward, who has not joined the National party, but still calls himself a Liberal —pathetically the sole survivor in Parliament of the once-powerful Liberal party—has, for his part, declined to associate himself with, the United party. It will be as a Liberal, it is to be gathered, that Sir Joseph Ward will seek re-election, and for anything that the electors know the National and the United parties will appear before them as separate organisations. It is on the whole, however, not unlikely that the United party is merely the Nationalist party masquerading under a new name. But why it should begin its existence, with a lack of frankness is not apparent. In the meantime, however, it has acquired central offices and provided itself with a staff of organisers and sub-organis-ers, all arguing that it has the command of certain funds. Morevoer, it has asserted that it will place seventy candidates in the field at the gteneral election, if not indeed a candidate for every seat. Necessarily, this is highly plea’sing to the Labour party. “ Nothing could be better,” its organ says; “ the more the merrier.” It perceives in the effort to galvanise the National party into activity under a fresh appellation “ a great opportunity ” for the Labour party. Nor should it be possible for anyone to ignore the circumstance that the more, divided the anti-Labour forces are the greater the prospect that the Labour party will be materially strengthened in the next Parliament. You, sir, and your readers will notice that I have not touched on local politics. I refrained purposely, mainly for the reason that conditions are so involved at present. Maybe the air will be clearer in a few weeks.—l am, etc., AN ONLOOKER.