PARTY GAMES HILE Mr. Gaitskell has been shamelessly elec- tioneering
at Brighton with Labour's bogus promise to repeal the Rent Act, Mr. Macmillan has been virtuously contrasting his refusal to have an election now with Labour's running away in 1951, though he must know perfectly well that Mr. Attlee had then an unworkably small majority and undoubtedly did the right thing in seek- ing a dissolution. It is not surprising that recent newspaper Polls show that the standing in the country of both Mr. Macmillan and Mr. Gaitskell is lower today than at any time since they assumed their present posts. Both men are extremely skilful party politicians, but the party game, like cricket and soccer, is one that fewer and fewer people enjoy watching.
On' ater pages we publish two very critical articles on the Conservative Party and Government. Although the terms Right wing and Left wing are likely to be misleading when used of the Tory Party, it is difficult to avoid using them; and the first article may be said to be written from the Right- wing Conservative point of view, while Lord Altrincham, as is well known, is a Left-wing Tory. There is little doubt That the opinions expressed in their articles are very widely held, and it is extraordinary that the Labour Party has not been able to take advantage of them. Labour has come a long way since George Orwell accused it of smelling of crankishness, machine worship and the stupid cult of Russia.' No longer would worship of machines or of Russia be in- cluded in a list of the Labour Party's sins, but the crankishness remains. For a great many intelligent people, Labour, despite Suez and the last two years of Conservative rule, and despite its more rational attitude on Many social questions, is not a feasible alternative. They might vote Labour out of despera- tion or boredom, but the prospect of their actually joining the Labour Party and calling themselves Socialists is about as remote as their becoming Jehovah's Witnesses. Labour may be justified, of course, in not worrying about such people; it will probably get its majority anyway. But it is a decidedly unhealthy situation--,--reminiscent of. France—where politics ai.d politicians are regarded with amused contempt.
The blame for it rests as much upon the Government as upon the Labour Party. A discrepancy between words and actions must be expected in politicians, but the actions of the Government often bear no relation to what it says, or tO its previous actions. Its policy in the Middle East is the most obvious example of this, while its latest financial policy is the one the Chancellor of the Exchequer specifically rejected less than three months ago.
The fact that the many Conservatives who find it possible to support this sort of behaviour show no signs of going over to Labour means that theoretically at least the Government has a chance of winning them back. But it is unlikely to be anything more than a theoretical possibility so long as the Government contains so many members whom it would be flattering to call mediocrities, so long as the chief impression it gives is of limpness, and so long as it has no visible raison d'etre except that of keeping the Socialists out.
Whether the Government reforms itself or not, the carry- ing out of Lord Altrincham's proposal that independent Tories should stand at by-elections would do nothing but good, provided, of course, that those who stood were serious political figure's of moderate views. They might not win seats, but they would raise the standards of the political game.
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