SWEEPING VICTORY FOR STEVENS IN NEW SOUTH WALES

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 250, 13 June 1932, Page 5

SWEEPING VICTORY FOR STEVENS IN NEW SOUTH WALES

fPress. Assn.-

FORTY SEAT MAJORITY QUEENSLAND VOTES LABOUR BUT NOT FOR LANG Mr. J. T. Lang's Party has been completely routed as a result of tlie New South Wales elections on Saturday, and the United Australia Party-Country Party forces led by Messrs Stevens and Bruxner ax*e triumphant in all quarters of the State. Indications last night were that the Govexmment will have a majority of 40 seats in the new Parliament. Mr. Lang himself had a narrow escape in his own electorate, and several of his Ministers and stalwarts were defeated. In the country districts, the election is described as an "absolute ront of Labour." •In contra-distinction to the anti-Labour swing in New South "Wales, the Labour forces have seored a victory in Queensland, although the latest reports of the state of the parties, indicate that Labour will not have a very wide majority. There has nevertheless, been a decided swing away from the Moore Nationalist Government. In Queensland also, however, there was a decisiva vote against Langism, not one Lang Party eandidate being returned.

-By Telfgraph — Copyright).

Rec. June 12, 5.5 p.m. SYDNEY, Sunday. In the New South Wales elections the Government secured a sweeping victory and will probably have 65 seats and the Lang supporters 25. The defeat of the Lang Labour forces was generally expected outside the ranks of that party. Both in the city and country there had been an umnistakeable atmosphere of lurking danger, and an emphatic demand for the return of a poliey of sanity and honesty with freedom of the Parliamentary Government. In some quarters the belief was eherished that the Lang Party would more than hold its own, because of the fear on the part of the workers that ruthless slashing of wages would foliow the reti-rn of th.e Stevens-Bruxner Party. The election thus came to be regarded as the most momentous in the history of New South Wales. The opponenfs of Langisml made no secret of their fears for the fninre. All conversations duriug the brief but bitter campaign. turned on. the politics! evenis of the past 18 monihs, and what mfghi happen if renewal of eonfbrience were given to, Labour. Th 1 election eould not come quickly cncugh for most people whose rainds were made up a fortnight ago. The vote resolved itself itito a clear cut issue; the aeceptance or rejection of the Premiers' Plan as in Victoria and Queensland and the imposition or othorwise of what had been termed the wcalth levy. Serious Position Grimness was written on every voter's face as the seriousness of the deeision at to-day's poll was evorywherc apparent. The crisis had origin in the Governor's action in sending the Premier for trial before the jury of the people, who have now given j their answer in most convincing man- j nei\ d;-t Tmining the fate of some of j the Ministers in the Lang administra- | tion nnd of many of the rank and file of the Labour Party. What has happened to the Lang I Party is precisely what happened in i the last State election to anti-Labour, ! but it was perhaps more accentuated j in Mr. Lang's case. The devastatlng current of » opur'on has swamped the 'Lang j Party in the metropolitan area ; sweeping throughout the State. j Personal popularity was useless I 1 as on.o Labour member after an- 1 other went under. It is rather didicult to estimate the probable state of the parties before mid- ' night on a polling day, but on this cceaslon nothing was left in dcirh so pronoimeed was Ihe svlng to the Government side ; tlircughout the country. In r.r.ry metropolitan conrtituencies, Lr npur's slogan: "Lang is Right" ; was turned all sorts of ways by the i exuberant victors, perhaps the most approp-iate was: "Lang is right out." \ "Lang is Left" was well honoured. J "Poisonous Propaganda" • Mr. Lnng himself attributed the de- j bade to poisonous Press propaganda. j He s.nid that a poliey of suppression j and of distortion had fboled the peo- i pb who were now going to suffer. | Sconr at the United and Country ! Party Otuces were extremely joyous. j Mr. Stover:? was the recipient of all ! roiind ' ,r: 1 shakes, compliments, and felieitaiions. Businessmen controlling i big ir.terests were spontar.eous in their | expresslors of belief In t£e revival of j trade r\l mdustry as the result of the | people':? vordict. I "We never doubted that the | heart of Australia rang true," j comr.ented Mr. Stevens. "This is ; a glor;oap. victory over Langism j ar;l dhhcnesty and has proved to j the whele world that Australians ; stand fer probity and mtegrity. : This is tio ordinary triumph. It affonk ua a complete sense of satisfarLom that we have check- ; fflatod the force of evil that had stranglehoM on this fair State l over 1 8 months." • r State of Parties J Yhen (.•heeking of primary votes ceased in the early morning the State of the parties appeared to be: — | United Australia '40 | United Country 23 | Unity Party 2 I Labour 25 | Other Parties groups 0 I ^ Although a neck and neck struggle ^Tent on at Auburn between Mr. and Mr. Coleman, the position w.aEj P11^ beyond doubt after mid1>! i Mu. Lang obtained an absolute majority over his Pederal -"Obour adversary of 742, ensuring tv>n'e^llrn* ^r- Lang's majority in UoO was 8.965. I Ministers Defeated ; The Ministers of the Lang adminP lation who have fallen bv the way■pe , are Messrs Tulley, Eli, Dunn, ^Rioshng and Lamero. In fhct so was the debacle that only tv/o Kr Ministers at present survive, ■Rr!8^,*8 Pavidson and McKell, wbile n j. Bavics, former Minister of Eduion, and whose constituents numBE^r ^"ousands of South Coast minBk ' Lice being def eated. |B State Labosir has lost 30 seats ■ United Australia has gained |H . aad the Country Party nme. 9K one United Australia or ountry Party supporter was de,ea^e^* Even in the city and inaEtl"ial constituencies the treBK Rletldous swing from Labour is ■■apparent.

Mr. Stevens will meet the new Parliament at the head of the United Government pledged to adhere to the Premiers' Plan and with an unparalleled majority, roughly of 40, for certain. However, there are a couple of seats still in doubt, but with the odds defmitely against Labour. Individual Seats Mr. Stevens had a comfortable win at Croydon where he opposed a Lahour stalwart, Mr. Eldridge, a former Federal member of the Beasley group. High hopes were entertained at Labour headquarters for the unseating of Mr. Stevens, who, however, won by 6530. The former leader of the Opposition. Mr. Bavin, received a handsome majority at Gordon of 12,667. The Country Party Leader and Deputy Premier, Mr. Bruxner, was returned unopposed. The defeat at Kogarah of Mr. Gosj ling, former Ghief Seeretary, who reI introduced tin liares and fruit mach- | ines, was not generally anticipated ] and created sti'iking comment. His j cliief opponent Mr. Ross, United Australia, has a present Iead of 1346, and whe-n the preference Federalite votes are distributed, it is expected that Mr. Gosling will go down by over 2000. The stoi'y concovniug the country electors is summed up hy • descrihiug the election as an utteir ront for Labour. Quite a lot of Labour men, who enjoyed personal popularity and ordinarily would be dixficult to unseat, paid the penalty of their civility to Langism, and the so-called spoils to the victors, have gone to .the united parties. As the leaders had prognosticated, all the Riverina seats hitherto held by Labonr have been won by Country or o'her nomir-ees. A ceording to the midnight returns, Labour seems to have los.t 16 seats in the city and 14 in the country, which thoroughly exceeded expectations.