Sir Edward Grey,.speaking at Oxford on Wednesday, denied that the
Prime Minister had altered his attitude with regard to the necessity of giving advice to the King. The Govern- ment had felt from the beginning that if their veto pro- posals were not accepted they must bring the question to an issue. That was their attitude still. "As to giving advice to the Sovereign, they had said nothing as to what that advice should be." Sir Edward Grey went on to define the relations that must exist between the Sovereign and his Ministers. " The King always acted on the advice of his Mims' ters, and theirs was the responsibility It followed that Ministers could not consistently with their duty go to the Sovereign and ask him to do something, and then, if he was not pleased to do it, go on as if nothing had happened." In such an event the Ministers must either alter their advice or resign. Proceeding to the actual position of the Government, Sir Edward declared that "when the proper time came when it was necessary to tender advice to the Throne, the advice would be tendered; but under no circumstances would they do anything to put the Sovereign in a position of responsi- bility which it was not Constitutional that he should occupy."
