The triennial elections for the London County Council will take
place on March 5th. The Municipal Reformers have, in our judgment, a very good right to be returned to office on their merits. They have reduced the rates by ls. 3id. in the £. That, we believe, is sufficient proof of anxious care and efficiency. For nobody can honestly say that the services of London have suffered. Of course, there are several causes on which even those of us who arc stern economists would wish more money to be spent simply because we believe that it would be well spent and would mean economy in the long run. There is housing, for instance. But although the Municipal Reformers have, to our disappointment, not by any means expended the whole of the money provided for housing they have a fair defence when they say that they would have spent it if they could have obtained the labour. The odium must rest not on them, but on the Building Trade Unions which have steadily refused to consider any reasonable increase in their membership. In the circumstances building and the clearing of slums have been pursued as energetically as possible.
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