When the Prime Minister was asked' last week if he
would be willing to treat unemployment as a non-party matter, he said that • he would be willing to consider representations from the Opposition. In our opinion that is not nearly enough. The Opposition, particularly the Unionist Opposition, should, of course, firmly resist the temptation to regard a demonstration of the Labour Government's patent inability to deal speedily with unemployment as their first political duty. But when that has been said, it remains true that if a summons:to a common effort is to come with any moral force it must come from the Prime Minister himself. Mr. MacDonald could, if he would, place himself at the head of a united nation in this matter. We have no doubt about that whatever. He may fear to lose dignity by calling in the help of people whose advice he has ridiculed, but we should think that from a strictly Labour point of view nothing would- be more profitable than for the Government to gather in prestige with both hands by waging war against unemployment with the nation applauding them. • * *
