PROGRESS MADE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 18 June 1942, Page 3

PROGRESS MADE

IN THE POLITICAL UNITY NEGOTIATIONS FULLER REPRESENTATION OF PARTIES. IN YESTERDAY’S DISCUSSIONS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. Interest in the recent negotiations between the party leaders for achieving political unity was stimulated yesterday, when a conference took place at which there was a fuller representation of both the Labour Party and the National Party. The conference met in the morning, twice in the afternoon, and again last night. The Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, and the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Holland, both stated at the tea adjournment that progress had been made. Beyond that they had no statement to make. There have been several meetings between the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition since they began the present discussions on May 29, and now that additional representatives are taking part in them an early decision is expected, either one way or the other. With the exception of Mr Hamilton, who is out of Wellington, all members of the War Cabinet the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defence, Mr Jones, the Minister of Supply and Munitions, Mr Sullivan, and Mr Coates—were present at yesterday’s conference. The others who took part in addition to Mr Holland were two prominent members of the National Party and two from the industrial labour movement. The suggestion has been made that by the time the session of Parliament is resumed next week the personnel of a reconstructed War Cabinet will have been announced, but it can be stated that there is at this stage no ground officially for suggesting that such progress as this has been made. Whether the idea of an enlarged War Cabinet with the possibility of its personnel including perhaps two or more persons from outside Parliament will prove acceptable to both parties has yet to be seen. No further statement was available at the conclusion of last night’s meeting.