The Week in Parliament Our Parliamentary Correspondent writes : There
is no reason to believe that the decision to abandon sanctions will create anything in the nature of a Par- liamentary crisis. All the sensational stories of Cabinet splits and threatened resignations can be discounted. Mr. Neville Chamberlain, though his speech was regarded as a serious constitutional impropriety, was not in fact saying anything with which Mr. Eden would disagree. He was merely making a premature and unauthorised announcement by inference of decisions that had already been reached. Several of the younger Members of the Cabinet were most reluctant to accept a withdrawal of sanctions, but they were handicapped in their opposition by the fact that it was extremely difficult to argue that any useful purpose would be served by their con- tinuance. Their difficulty is shared by the back bench supporters of the Government. The staunchest League enthusiasts have been putting to themselves the question, What can we hope to get by maintaining the sanctions front? and are unable to give a satisfactory answer. I do not believe that the Labour and Liberal Opposition will be able to make much party capital out of the position.
Though the electors are concerned at the situation, the agitation is nothing like as fierce or as widespread as it was on the Hoare-Laval issue last December.
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