The Labour Party missed its chance badly on the Vote
of Censure on Unemployment. Led by Mr. Lansbury, it chose, instead of making a detailed and documented attack on the Government for its mishandling of the Unemployment regulations, to indict the whole capitalist system. The Prime Minister had therefore a good wicket to bat on and indulged in some quite spirited hitting. He was helped by the fact that for once he had a cheering crowd of supporters behind him. It was not that they felt that he was making a good speech, but they were so relieved to find that it was not as bad as they had feared. A really bad performance in the Present "jumpy " temper of politics might have brought down the Government. So they cheered lustily, and the more they cheered the more Vehement the Prime Minister became and the more offensive were the interruptions of the Opposition. Altogether there was a great deal of noise and charges and counter-charges and threats and counter-threats, all sadly in the tradition of a full- dress Unemployment debate. Electors in the gallery must have wondered once again how it was all going to help the unemployed, whose numbers the day before had been reported higher by a quarter of a million.
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