The Waikato Times With which is Incorporated The Waikato Argus. SATURDAY, JANUARY 19, 1924. BRITISH POLITICS.

Waikato Times, Volume 97, Issue 15894, 19 January 1924, Page 4

The Waikato Times With which is Incorporated The Waikato Argus. SATURDAY, JANUARY 19, 1924. BRITISH POLITICS.

The hopes' and fears which are ablating the political world in Britain have a .somewhat ridiculous air to those at a distance who have known what it is to live under a Labour Government. The Cabinel are showing much more dignity and judgment now than they did in ..calling an election, and they are evidently feeling themselves to be the victims of a cruel fate. They have, however, no right to look for sympathy for the position in which they find themselves is entirely of their own creation] When they achieved such a large majority in 1918, it was largely the, result of cross voting, as they had not a majority of votes. They could scarcely expect to be similarlyfavoured by fortune again, and obviously the result which has been achieved was that which was the most likely to happen. It is reported that the King warned Mr Stanley Baldwin of the probable result, and this may well have been the case. The Conservative Cabinet have done well, however, to meet the House. In the days when there were but two parties', a no-confidence debate was a waste of time when the numbers were known, but with ; the parties in existence the situation is changed, and there is in addition a faint chance that a few Liberals will hesitate to cast a vote which will put Labour in office. The number/ of the faint-hearted is not likely to be sufficient to save the Conservatives from defeat, and even their warmest adherents can scarcely desire that they should hold office on any such conditions. A strong Government is especially desirable now, in order to deal with Continental complications. Unfortunately a strong Government is not to be had from a House divided as at present, but there is a better ehanee that the Government will find some backbone if Labour are in office with Liberal support than has' been with the Conservatives, who are divided in opinion, and have been powerless in dealing with France. It will come to be recognised that the Conservative Government brought the influence of England to a lower ebb than it had reached for over a century, and this at a time when foreign affairs are of especial importance. Mr Ramsay MacDonald does well to point out that Europe has reached the same position which she occupied in 1914. Armies arc larger than they wore then, and more than one nation is prepared to make war at short notice, Or without any notice at all. He is reported to have advocated a more Skilful diplomacy, but if he is correctly reported his recommendation is singularly futile. Whatever be the skill of the diplomatists, or the want or skill, they had no opportunity of achieving anything, because politicians took negotiations into their own hands' and were never quite clear in what direction they wanted to move. Lord Curzon is Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and he would have resisted Franco's action in the Ruhr, but at the same time Mr Ronald McNeill is Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and represents the Government in the House of Commons, and he entirely approves the action of France, and has said so several times in public speeches. A House divided against itself cannot stand, and that has been the position of the Conservative Government. Ou one other point wc may agree with Mr Ramsay MacDonald. He claims that the resolutions of the Imperial Conference must be submitted to Parliament for confirmation. This is the course adopted here and in the other dominions'. Until Imperial Federation becomes an accomplished fact, it is obviously the course that must bo pursued. No one would ever have questioned it if Mr Massey had not put forward a claim that Britain must accept whatever its representatives had agreed to. We believe in Imperial Federation, but until this is actually in existence it is useless to assume that the decisions of the Conference have the force of law. The Labour Government are reported to be having trouble in forming their Cabinet. This may bo true, or may bo merely an invention of their opponents. In any case wc should not expect that Viscount Grey will be offered a scat in the Cabinet, or that lie would accept it if offered, lie has' certainly a very high reputalion in foreign affairs, and is generally respected, both at home and abroad, but on several occasions' ho has emphasised the necessity of maintaining the entente with France, and as France has hitherto utilised this sentiment for the purpose of doing what we think to be wrong, it does not seem to bo desirable to appoint a Foreign Secretary, who is so impressed with the necessity of the entente. Wc can quite understand the sentiment, for undoubtedly it was of great importance that Britain and France should act together, but if they are to do what Britain thinks wrong, the argument for unity disappears. Viscount Grey thinks that in the present position of parties the Government should take the leaders of the other two parties into its confidence, so that they can claim that they have the country behind them. The idea is a good- one, but could not he successfully carried out at present, for the trouble is that in the Conservative Party there is a difference of opinion between the leaders and the followers, and if Mr Baldwin had counselled Mr Asquith or Mr MacDonald, his foltowers>would have revolted. Nevertheless it is possible that Mr MacDonald may follow this course. It is necessary 'for him to consult Mr Asquith, and therefore ho may go a step further and consult Mr Baldwin also. The continuation of the debate in which Lord Ilaldane asked the House or Peers not to be alarmed at a Labour Government, while Lord Birkenhead declared that the Liberal !

action in supporting Labour was a wild gamble which would seal the doom of the Liberals, lias all Hi'' .qualities of high comedy. It is but a very short lime since Lord Birkenhead was telling the Conservative Government how little he thought Of them, hut he is shocked that Liberals should hold the same ideas. It is as difficult to associate Lord Ilaldane with a policy which could cause alarm, as it is to contemplate Lord Birkenhead denouncing a gamble. H is said that, nothing in the world is as bad as the, anticipation of it, except sea-sickness. It is possible, that an experience of a Labour Government, under the peculiarly safe conditions that exist to-day, may afford one more example of this comforting reflection.