THE WEEK IN, PARLIAMENT
BY NEW MEMBER. -
1-1HE safegnarding duties. have turn. ed the House into a kind of protracted nightmare-. If the Govern- ment has any desire to safeguard: the sanity of private members, it must either cease to bring in these duties, or do it in another way. It is bad enough to have to listen once to the chieftains 'of the Board of Trade endeavour- ing to explain the motives by Which they are actuated and the economic principles" which guide them'. As a thrice- nightly • perfOrmance it becOrnes most 'exhausting 'and wearing to the nerves. • So far as the Opposition is concerned, Mr. Ritncithan'S usual speech about congestion at the ports is excellent in its way, but does not bear repeating eight times ; nor do Mr. Alexander's investigationS in Sheffield over the weekend enable hint to introduce many Variations on his theme—a desperate one • in any case. EVen Captain Berm is beginning to pall, which shoWs the state we have reached. The genial smiles of Mr. Percy HarriS and Mr. Trevelyan Thomson no longer warm the hearts of thOse who sit opposite them. Clearly it is time the session ended. An unfortunate series of minor events have combined to warp the minds of honourable members. Not, however, the mind of Lord Hugh Cecil,-whose little lecture, " Economics Made Easy," for the benefit of the President of the Board of Trade was perfect of its kind. But 'certainly the mind of Mr. Austin Hopkinson, to whose jaundiced eye the sole object of the duties is to enable " share-pushing sharks " to unload their bogus wares upon a guileless public. - For this purpose, Mr. Hopkinson considered that twelve months was an ample period.
The production of lethal weapons in the chamber, to the evident alarm of Captain Crookshank, and some remarks by Mr. Jack Jones in his more mellow strain, were the only heartening episodes in an otherwise black week.
The debate on Rosyth and Pembroke dockyards re- vealed Mr. Lloyd George in his happiest vein. He drew an affecting picture of all the Welsh farmers, with their agricultural labourers, climbing to the top of the (not very high) Welsh hills, where they can look " yearningly " at the sea, which " fascinates " them, and where they can watch the " steamers and the sailing ships passing to and fro." The reduction of Pembroke dockyard is apparently going to stop all this, to the evident advantage of Welsh agriculture. The dockyard members spoke for several hours, but Mr. Bridgman had no difficulty in convincing the House of his case.
The Liberals had put down Mosul for discussion on Thursday, but some of their consciences were affronted by the massacre disclosures, and so they asked for 'a postponement of the debate. This was unfortunate for them, as they had planned a hot attack on the Govern- ment's extravagant and chauvinistic proclivities. I am informed that One of their leaders, displaying a most understandable chagrin, referred to the recent displays Of Turkish exuberance in Mosul as " most inopportune."
The only remaining debates -of interest will therefore deal with education and housing. Lord Eustaee Percy's now notorious circular has been the target for a vast amount of ill-informed criticism. It is certainly a tactless and- ill-judged effusion. With its quite -unnecessary re- ferences to children under five; and to " decisions " of the Board Which cannot possibly. have been taken, it has created a most unfortunate impression. The fact remains that the principle of the block -grant is infinitely Sounder than that of the pereentage grant. It has been applied in Scotland with conspicuous success. And under the new • system .local authorities will have far greater freedom in the carrying out of their designs._
Previous page
