BRITISH POLITICAL PARTIES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 638, 28 January 1914, Page 2

BRITISH POLITICAL PARTIES.

It is an axiom of British politics that by-elections tend to go against the party in power, and the Liberals have been suffering during the last two years (in the way the Unionists euffpred under other conditions. But the House of Commons, despite everything Mr Bonar Law and Sir Edward Carson can say to the contrary, has still a decisive Ministerial majority, pledged to support the Hoftie Rule Bill and the other policy measures of Mr Asquitb's Ministry. The state of parties immediately after the general election of 1910 and to-day is shown in the following table:— 1910. 1914. Liberal 272 263 Labour 42 39 Nationalists 84 84 Unionist 272 284 The Liberals have lost nine seats, the Labour party has lost three and the Unionists have gained twelve. The Ministry has a nominal majority of 102 votes on a want-of-confidence motion, and would be secure even if the Nationalists did not vote at all since the Labour members would never help to put a Conservative-Unionist Government into office.£