THE PRIME MINISTER

Hokitika Guardian, 31 March 1930, Page 3

THE PRIME MINISTER

(Christchurch “Times”.) When the Minister of Internal Al fairs protested at Hokitika the otliei day against the clamour of the Reform newspapers for the resignation of tin Prime Minister lie used language that was remarkaule chiefly uor its mildness, lie contented himself with saying, it wiil be recalled, that the clamour was not very sporting, that trie member® of the. Cabinet were doing their work and that the country was not suifering as a result of the illness ol Sir Joseph Ward. These are plain facts. The Prime. Minister, as a matter of fact, is transacting the business of his departments from Rotorua,' lie is in daily, touch with Wellington, and as he has a conscientious and capable deputy in Wellington he may just as well be in Rotorua as in Wellington. Then is no particular virtue in the Wellington air, and some people might even argue that it is better lor the country to have the Prime Minister away from the capital. There have been times when we were ■ ourselves emphatically of that opinion.

? Tlie/Triitli of- the matter ,is that-the demand/: for -the resignation- ojf/Mjhe 'PrimdTMjriister 5 has '• ’nothing- to' -: klo • with the/ .state., of ,Sjr Joseph Ward’s lidnjth. ...*Th§ ; Reform ./. journals that have been working themselves into a passion on Tlie subject—and not all of them have offended in this ; wavrr-hre coi’if'using administration with party politics.

: Before Parliament, meets. Sir Joseph Ward -will have to decide whether he will carry on as -Prime. Minister, and it may be taken for granted that he wjll make that decision in due course and announce it. In the meantime he is surely entitled to be left to take Ids cure at Rotorua in peace. Tlie party issue, of coi.irse, will bo sc titled when Parliament meets and can onlv be settled then.

Sir Joseph was in a minority when he took office, and the conditions in that respect have not changed materially in the interval, so that there is no . reason why the business of /.no coiuiwy ■ should be disturbeo until Parliament assembles in due couTo'e.;, Parliament would: cei;tainly be ' called together if the Prime Miriistbr resigned," but the decision m that respect rests;; entirely with the Prime Minister, and with no one else. ’ '

Mr de la Perrelle was quite in ord er in speaking of the Reform clamour as unsportsmanlike. He might also have said that it was both ignorant and unreasoning, ’ without speaking too strongly. Neither in New Zealand m in the Old Country is the illness of a Minister made an excuse lor demanding, 'the resignation of the Government and the line taken by some Reform to..use no stronger word, unprecedented.

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