THE THIRD PARTY

Hokitika Guardian, 18 September 1928, Page 4

THE THIRD PARTY

(Lyttelton Times.) The meeting of some fifty candidates of the United Party in Wellington lit the week-end is a fact of some significance in politics. These men represent a definite group of opinions ill tho communitjy, opinions that are seeking expresion, and tho movement in which they, are joined is bound to have a very real influence oil the coming elections. Tho explanation of this emergence of a new third party in the political struggle is simple 'enough, though it is completely, overlooked by most people, including the politicians themselves, and incidentally it serves to emphasise tho need for a little better loducntion of our statesmen and budding statesmen. Politics in these days consist largely in tho removal of disabilities from somo sections of the people and tho protection of the rights of all sections. So long ns aJ government keeps an even balance, permits no one section to soeu.ro privileges or to encroach on the rights of other sections, and gives everyone, to quoto the late Mr Massey’s slogan, “a square deal,” there is not likely to ho any marked discontent. Th,e rise of the Labour movement produced a new situation in New Zealand politics, and because organised labour adopted a programme that throaened tho rights of other sections and made a bid for power, the rest of the people very naturally sank .their differences and concentrated their efforts 'of keeping the Labour Party out of office.

If the Government had understood the position, had realised that it had to give all sections of the communiy a “square .deal” and that its job was one of defence and not of offence, there would have been no reason for the organisation of a Mlird party. The fact that a third party has been organised means, then, that some section--of the people, including commercial men, professional men and small farmers, believe that tho Government has been partial in its policy aiid lias failed in the administrntinn of its trust. To what extent this dissatisfaction exists will be proved, of course, at tho polls, but that there is n iconsiderable element of real discontent is demonstrated by the fact that fifty candidates have been discussing very earnestly the conduct of an election campaign.

Wo have stated the position in broad terms because It is the basis of the movement that is important, and because in the controversies about particular questions we are all apt to forget the essential facts of politics. In any democratic country there will always bg a conflict of sections of the people, of various interests and of various opinions and if any one section becomes dominant and seeks to secure privileges for itself or to relieve itself of obligations of taxation or of service it will inevitably provoke opposition. That, wo believe, is what has been happening in New Zealand, and the best advice we can give Air Coates and his advisers, personal and journalistic, is that they should examino the position nnd their consciences dispassionately in the light of this littl-o lesson in political philosophy.