Revolt in Labour Party

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 68, 13 December 1937, Page 8

Revolt in Labour Party

Our Own Correspondent.)

mr lee as leader "Socialism in Our Time,, Group DIFFERENCES IN CAUCOS

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WELLINGTON, Last Night. ■ A remarkable story of revolt in the' Labour Party which will shortly result in the formation of a definite group within the party, the announcement oi , a minimum poliey of Socialism a'ttainable within a definite time, and the appointment of Mr. J. A. Lee as leadeij is being circulated here. It is not possible to reveal the source; of the information beyond stating that it originatcs from ofiicial circles of th& Labour Party itself. But the story is so detailed and comprehensive that it is worth transmitting and may be considered as a forecast of events which, if they are not about to march upon ug. as soon a? the story indicates, are quite obviously not beyond the bounds of possibility. According to the story the general dissatisfaction which has been felt by members of the Labour Party at the general line of policy followed up _ to date and with their own position in the organisation has fused into a core of determination to attempt some control

ot the situation m tne iuture. At the last election the Labour Party. grew beyond all previous knowledge and it gained xecruits of a type which a few years ago would not have beea held likely to give it aid. That expam Bion was not an unmixed blessing. For} fche growth of the party led to a growthl of differences and the younger men who came to the House of Representative* for the first time in 1935 were not atlogether impressed by the calibre of some of the veterans who were pre^ ferred to Cabinet rank, or by the rigid discipline which was explained to themi as necessary if proper conduct of th©j task of goverument was to be observedi| This situation was no more. than repetition of previous events for twoj cf the leading members of ' the partyone of whom is now Attorney-General! and one Speaker of the House of Repre-* sentatives, both took an independent line when first returned to Parliament* And it was inevitable. The differentl origin, the difference in. background, ia habits of thought and in mentai equip^ ment between the veteran Labour menH bers and the younger, more radical, lesJ docile members was bound ,to lead t9 conflict in the caucus. And that i^ what has happened. There has been a sharp difference ot opinion on more than one occasion. Th*{ Government financial policy, its attii tude towards the private trading bank8| the regulation of Press reports of poli4 tical matters, and the question of prai tection for manufacturing industriei are all reported to have xesulted full-dress debates. In general the Left Wing o£ th* party has been pressing for more urgenf and more drastic action. Its financial philosophy was. probably set forth by Mr, J. A. Lee in his recent pamphlel "Money Power for the People," when the deelared that a State Bank must bej iused to make funds available to mortW jgagors at a lower rate of interest, ai course which he said had the approvalj tof the Prime Minister, and revealeii that there were differences of opinionJ about the *peed of advanca of .th«4 Government 's monetary policy. The members of the Labour Partyj whose names are mentioned in connecJ tion with the organisation of the Leftj Wing as a definite force in LabouiJ politics are, as stated above, headed bjj Mr. Lee. He has been chosen as theiq leader becaus of his inclhtation towardaj •"Socialism in our time" because of hid personality, his ability as speaker andi writer, but mostly because of his xepiw tation and his experience. The whole group, as far as can btj learned, is composed of newcomers toj politics and included in it, according tn reports here, are Dr. D. G. McMillani. • (Dunedin West), Mr. H. E. Herringj ( Mid- Cant erbnry ) , Mr. G. H. Ormond' Wilson (Rangitikei), Mr. C.'L. Hunter (Manawatu), the Rev. A. H. Nordmeyesi (Oamaru) and possibly the member forj 4 Lyttelton, Mr. T. H. McCombs. It i^ also deelared that a draft of their aimsj has been prepared and that it will b*j made public at the Biojier time,