BRITISH POLITICS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8351, 7 February 1907, Page 5

BRITISH POLITICS.

IMR CHURCHEytfS -ATTACK ON THE HOUSE OF LORDS.

Received February 6, 8.41 a.m LONDON, February 5

In the course of his attack on the House of Lords. Mr Winston Churchill, Under-Secretary for the Colonies, said the Peers might be created and possibly temporary Peers, not to mention resources of legislation. He added that he would not give women the same franchise as men. (In a speech at Manchester, on Monday, Mr Churchill characterised the members of the House of Lords as agents of one party and champions of landed interests. The Minister declared that before appealing to the country the House of Commons must pass a couple of good Radical Budgets. The power of the purse was the first of the great weapons by which the House of Commons was able to make its will effective oveT the whole area of , government and legislation).

MR CHURCHILL AT LEEDS. Received February 6, 10.20 p.m. LONDON, February 6. Mr Winston ChurehilL speaking at the Chamber of Commerce dinner, at Leeds, drew a lesson from the* disaster at Jamaica, and a score of needs elsewhere, that it was urgent ■ to establish a squadron o£ warships, of some sort or other to patrol the outlying possessions. The system of commercial conference started by the late Government should be extended and made regular by bringing prac~, tical business men throughout the country in closer relations with the high officials of the Colonial Office. There would be on all sides unrestricted freedom and frankness at the Colonial Conference. "The Government valued highly the preferences already offered us by the colonies,''' said Mr Churchill, "because of the '■ loyal and noble sentiment prompting them, because they were freely given and because in that way the , colonies : would be able to make some return to the Motherland for the great expenditure in common defence." 'The Government sympathised and supported the growing practice of intercolonial preference because it involved the lowering of duties and facilitated the approach of intercolonial free trade—the goal of both the tariff reformers and freetraders of Britain." MR BALFOUR'S LEADERSHIP. Received February 6, 8.40 a.m. LONDON, February o ; Mr Austin Chamberlain, speaking at Stirchley, paid a warm tribute to the Unionist loyalty to Mr Balfour's leadership. ,He rejoiced that Mr Balfour had restated convictions founded on a keen observation of the course of national trade and a study of Imperial problems.. A SUGGESTION TO TARIFF REFORMERS. I Received February 6, 8.50 a.m. LONDON, February 5. The Morning Post says:—lf it is necessary to make sacrifices to secure party unity the tariff reformers might exclude the duty on corn from the first instalment on a scientific tariff, giving the colonies limited preference by means of low duties on produce and meat.

A MATTER OF GRAVE IMPORTANCE. N Received February 6, 9.41 p.m. LONDON, February 6. In his customary letter to his supporters on the eve of the assembling of Parliament, Sir Henry CampbellBannerman states that the attention of the House of Commons will immediately be called to a matter of grave importance. This is interpreted to refer to the reform of the House of Lords.