THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT
BY NEW MEMBER.
MR. CHURCHILL made an excellent speech on • Thursday, May 7th, in defence of the reimposition of the McKenna Duties, but he was not so happy on Monday when the silk duties were considered. He would have been more effective had he confined himself to an explanation of the methods by which he proposes to impose the duties. As it was, he laid- himself open to the shrewd thrusts of Sir Alfred Mond by giving way to his insatiable passion for the high-flown word and the dramatic.
The introduction of the Finance Bill on Monday night brought the first stage of the Budget debts to a close, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer has reason to congratulate himself, for he has proved to be, on the whole, a skilful pilot. One rather curious fact emerges, and that is that Mr. Churchill remains essen- tially a politician of the pro-War period. This does not mean that he is unfitted to tackle post-War measures. On the contrary, he is all the more effective in the House, because the whole style and tone of his speeches, belonging to another era, greatly interest and grip the 'many members who have never heard the like before. With a personality so vivid and a method of speaking and of attacking a problem unique in this Parliament, it is no wonder that Mr. Churchill fills the House every time lie rises. Nevertheless he is not a man with a " post- War " mind such as Mr. Baldwin (perhaps the most typical product of modern politics) or Mr. Lloyd George, who has adapted himself to the new conditions, or Mr. Ramsay MacDonald who, like the Prime Minister, has developed and made his name since November, 1918. I do not think that this defect in Mr. Churchill's make-up is fatal, for it is unlikely to be permanent. At themoment he is out of touch with the mental habits of the House and of the rising generation. The great danger is that he will follow in the train of his predecessors and acquire what has become known as a " Treasury mind: That is degrees worse than a " pre-War " mind," and would effectually extinguish Mr. Churchill as a great political force in the future.
Over the whole range of the Budget debates, the speeches of Sir Alfred Mond, Mr. William Graham, and Sir Frederic Wise stand out as being contributions of real value, although some of the Lancashire members, and notably Mr; Hammersley, were most interesting from their own special point of view. Long after the McKenna and silk controversies have disappeared into the limbo of the past, the currency problem will remain probably in acute form. .Gilt-edged securities remain depressed, and the ultimate result of our action in restoring parity has yet to be disclosed. That there remains considerable apprehension both inside and outside the House is undoubted.. One interesting feature of the situation is the indication of a new-found alliance between Mr. Lloyd George and Mr. Keynes. Shades of Versailles !
When the Finance Bill is. disposed of, some of the younger Unionists will make a bid for a bold Imperial and agricultural policy. There are undoubted difficulties and there will be obstruction in certain quarters. But Mr. Amery and Mr. Wood are sound, and these are the essential spheres of activity at the present time and for the present Government. A few small preferences imposed too late to be of any value this year, and a Treasury grant of a million pounds, are not enough. Here is an opportunity for the Chancellor of the Ex- chequer. Will he not take the lead ? In the past his imagination and his vision have not been unaffected by the conception of the British Empire.
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