WESTLAND ELECTION RESULT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26636, 5 December 1947, Page 6

WESTLAND ELECTION RESULT

ANTI-LABOUR SWING

ENCOURAGEMENT FOR NATIONALISTS P.A. ‘ GREYMOUTH, Dec. 4. “While it will not be possible to calculate the exact final figures until the absentee votes have been counted and the recounts are completed, it is as clear as crystal, from the returns already to hand, that the Government has suffered a very severe reverse,” said the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Holland.

“ The issues were clearly placed before the people by the candidates, who were assisted in their campaigns by leading speakers from both sides of Parliament,” added Mr Holland. “The meetings have been extremely well attended, and there have been no complicating factors, such as thirdparty candidates or independents. The West Coast never enjoyed better weather than prevailed on election day. The figures must, therefore, speak for themselves. At the last election, which was held only one year ago, Labour had a majority of over 4700 in an electorate which had been made a much stronger Labour constituency by the alteration of boundaries to include a large mining area. “It appears certain now, from the returns to hand, that the Labour majority has been reduced from over 4700 to something under 2000, which figure demonstrates more forcefully than any word of mine the extent of the landslide against Labour: The increase in the National Party vote will be nearly 1100. The result is more gratifying than I had. dared to hope for, bearing in mind the nature of the electorate, with its large number of coal mining and sawmilßng industries. It only shows that the National Party, through its brilliant young candidate, received a large measure of support from the working people in those industries.

, “ The result encourages the National Party to press on with a campagn which, I feel confident, will sooner or later—and probably sooner than laterresult in a change of Government. The reasons for the swing against Labour are,. I think, that the people are heartily sick of the growing threat of Communism and the inability of the Government to handle the militant elements which dictate to the Government," concluded Mr Holland.