Parliament Our Parliamentary Correspondent writes : The House of Commons
has been in full swing with major debates all the week. Last Thursday the Prime Minister reported on his visit to Geneva and Rome with the discretion which he carries to extremes. He managed to make it clear, however, that the Disarmament Conference has been resurrected, though lie naturally could not guarantee that it would not die again. He also gave the impression that he personally favoured Signor Mussolini's proposal for a Four-Power pact ; and generally that his journey had not been futile. The least effective criticism came from the Labour Party, who appeared anxious to reject Off-hand any proposal which originated with Signor Mussolini ; but Mr. Churchill, who led another group of critics, chose his time badly for a personal attack on the Prime Minister. This antagonized the House and obscured the attention which Mr. Churchill's analysis of the European. situation deserved. There is indeed much to be said for Mr. Churchill's contention that the causes of international friction should be removed before pressing for disarmament—it is really only a modern form of the French thesis of security first ; but he did not appear to grasp that Mr. MacDonald was aiming not unreasonably at disarmament and pacification simultaneously.
Previous page
