The Week in Parliament
Our Parliamentary Correspondent writes: It is now clear that the issues raised by Mr. MacDonald's retaining his seat while acting as High Commissioner are more and more far-reaching. At the moment of writing it is impossible to say what line the Prime Minister will take in commending the Bill to the House. The appointment of Lord Harlech confirms the view which I expressed last week, that it is proposed to raise the status of High Commissioners. This is admirable. I remember being both at Wellington and Canberra during the crisis days of the Abdication and I saw on the spot how important and how delicate is much of the work of a High Commissioner. Lord Harlech and Mr. MacDonald are both ex-Cabinet Ministers and both have had long experience in Dominion and Colonial affairs. I suppose Mr. MacDonald appointed most previous High Commissioners. He knows the job inside out ; there is nothing particularly new about it except the circumstances of war. Obviously a young man who has been through every phase of London bombing is not anxious to leave the country. Why then this complicated decision?
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