The Week in Parliament .
Our Parliamentary correspondent writes: Mr. Chamber- lain's statement on the progress of the war contained no surprises. It was merely the official announcement of decisions, most of which were already well-known. Never- theless, its importance was manifest and the announcement of the proposed intensification of the economic struggle was received with deep approval by the entire House. It is a pity that the newspapers did not give a little more prominence to the speeches which were delivered, by Mr. Attlee and Sir Percy Harris respectively, on behalf of the two Opposi- tions. Each of them expressed the entire concurrence of his colleagues and himself in the Prime Minister's declaration. However critical the Labour and Liberal Parties may be of individual office-holders, or of the Cabinet as a whole, they leave no possible doubt as to their attitude towards the war itself. They have never lost sight of the distinction which was drawn by Mr. Greenwood in September last, namely that they support not the Government but the cause. Indeed, the complaint most frequently heard against the Parliamentary Labour Party, and one which is not confined to its own supporters, is that its leaders are unnecessarily docile and fail to discharge their proper functions as the spokesmen of His Majesty's Opposition. However this may be, it is indisputable that on delicate questions, such as that of assisting the Finns, they have shown no disposition to embarrass the Government or to press for information too soon or too often. Certainly there has been nothing " factious and fractious " about their conduct in recent weeks.
Previous page
