We are delighted to see that Lord Robert Cecil has
accepted the Chairmanship of the Parliamentary Committee of the People's Union of Economy. As the People's Union is a non- party organization Lord Robert Cecil ought to be an ideal leader in the House of Commons, as he commands the respect and sympathy of so many groups. The vital principle insisted on by the People's Union is that the whole system under which the annual figure of taxation has been estimated should be reversed. The old plan was—alas ! is—to reckon up the various items of what was considered necessary expenditure and then to map out taxation to pay for those items. The new plan, which is cham- pioned by the People's Union, is to determine in the first instance how much revenue can reasonably be raised and then to fit the national expenditure into the four corners of that sum. In practice this means rationing the departments. Lord Robert Cecil long ago made that subject his own, and we are confident, therefore, that we shall see excellent results from his leadership.
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