THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1057, 21 February 1911, Page 4

THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE.

In view of tho fact that the Parliament Bill is to bo introduced in tho House of Commons to-day it is interesting to go back a little and review tho recent election figures. Tho Government aro claiming to have received a- mandate from the people regarding the questions of the Lords' Veto and Home Rule, and their majority in Parliament is put forward as their ground for this contention. "When the figures of the contested scats arc analysed in detail it is surprising to find how small tho advantage of the Government and their Labour allies really is in tho matter of votes polled in theiv favour. In arriving at our figures wo have proceeded on these lines: where, in two-member electorates a Government and , a Labour candidate succeeded we have divided tho' highest of their totals, and credited one-half to each party; whore, in tho same class of con- i stitiiency, two members of one party succeeded or failed, we have credited tho highest total of the two that party; and where, in single-member constituencies, more than one candidate of the same party. stood, we have credited all their totals to .the party. ,In each of tho territorial divisions made below, wo show the number of scats < actually fought, and, in parentheses, the full number that could have been: England. Unionist. Liberal. Labour. London 60 (62) 2G",0!i8 ,211,157 28,«2 Boroughs 150 • {my G12.092 513,002 127,013 University 1 (3) 2,570 1,857 — Counties '. 170 (234) 1,009,180 950,317 105,534 1,022.134 1,724.323 ••261,650 Wales 20 (30)... 05,«G 90,114 -11,659 Scotland 53 .(72) 240,820 301,739 20.250 2,228,410 2,116,176 323,604 It appears, then, that in no class of constituency in England has the Government polled as many votes a3 the Unionists, and that in an aggregate of 3,610,000 votes they arc in a minority of nearly 200,000. If tho Labour vote is brought into account the allied majority is only 63,000, in a poll of nearly 4,000,000. No one but an extreme partisan is likely to claim that'such a microscopic majority carries'a'mandate to make a fundamental alteration in the Constitution. If' tho Welsh and Scotch totals arc added tho Government's position .is improved a little, but even then a mnjority-of 211,000 in a noil of 4,008,000 (or less than 5 per cent), is a slight warrant, for lpgislation tho effect of which must Ihe either to, make the,: House of Commons the solo arbiter of tho country's fate, or to force the Crown to intervcno.'in a manner contrary to all recent precedent, to protect tho nation from its own despotic representatives. We have purposely avoided framing any estimates in regard to uncontested seats in the United Kingdom. They numbered 09, of which 75 wore in England. 10 in-Wales, and 14 in Scotland. The Unionists secured the large proportion of 61, tho Government 35, and Labour 3. It seems a fair inference that if all these seats had been polled the majority quoted would have vanished altogether. It will thus, bo seen that it is tho Irish vote that the Government has to rely on for itsmajority,' out of Parliament as well as.in the House. .In EVigland,'Scotland, and AValcs "the voice of the people" has failed to make itself hoard in any decided manner, and even 1 with the total votes recorded at tho polta in Ireland thrown in, the majority is comparatively small. What will be tho position, then, if Ireland secures Home Rule? The Constitution, assuming the Parliament Bill goes through, will have been changed by virtuo of tho Irish vote, and Britain left • to bear the brunt of the change, while Ireland under self-government will fill the role of a looker-on. It is a curious situation.