PARTY SPLIT

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 77, 1 April 1938, Page 7

PARTY SPLIT

Victorian Political Unrest MINISTRY ENDANGERED [By Telegraph - I'rcse Association—Copyright] Received March 31, 7.5 p.m, MELBOURNE, March 30. Mr. A. A. Dunstan’s Victorian Country Party Ministry is endangered as a result of a serious breach at the Ballarat conference of the party on Tuesday. A further development to-night was a meeting of a large number of the followers of Messrs. Paterson and McEwen, who decided to form a new party to be known as the Liberal Country Party. The meeting was addressed by Messrs. T. Paterson and McEwen, both condemning the managers of the party of unfair tactics and endeavouring to create public mistrust in Parliamentary members. Mr McEwen, who is Federal Minister for the Interior, said he was not prepared to be Victorian first and Australian second. Great enthusiasm followed the decesion to form a new party. A number of Mr. Dunstan's followers in the State Parliament said he is contemplating joining. When the conference resumed to-day the breakaways were absent. The suggestion of the president (Mr. R. Skeat) that all candidates for office in the party’s central council be required to sign guarantees not to associate with any other party was adopted, but many candidates refused to sign. A dramatic end o the day’s bitter recrimination was the virtual expulsion of the leaders of the new movement. An earlier message from Melbourne stated: Victorian politics took an unexpected turn at the annual conference of the Country Party at Ballarat to-night. The central council of the party last year ruied that no Victorian Country Party member in Parliament may join a composite Ministry with another party. This led to the formation of the present Country Party State Government held in office with the Parliamentary support of Labour. The subject, which has been a burning topic among moderates, who object to the party's association with Labour, was brought to a head some months ago by the expulsion from the party of Mr. McEwen, a Victorian member of the Federal Parliament, who joined the Lyons composite Ministry. To-night during the discussion of Mr. McEwen’s expulsion at the Ballarat conference Mr. Paterson, a Victorian Federal member, who last year refused to obey the instructions of the central council of the party to resign from the Lyons’ Ministry, tendered his resignation from the party and left the conference followed by 200 members. This broke up the meeting.