The Struggle For Peace

right hon. Gentleman the Member for Wakefield
(Mr. Greenwood) has just said that this is a challenge
to the Government. It is a Vote of Censure put down
by the Opposition, and therefore the issue that will have
to be decided to-night is a party issue. I shall desire to devote
the most part of what I have to say on that aspect of affairs,
to the difference between the supporters of the National
Government and the party opposite, but since this Vote of
Censure is linked with the circumstances in which the late
Foreign Secretary has resigned his office, there is one point
on which I think I must just say a word to begin with. It is
this : What is the issue which divided my right hon. Friend
and myself, and with myself my colleagues ? Because a good
deal of the criticism which was directed against me or my
colleagues yesterday appeared to me to be based upon assump-
tions which were not warranted by the speech of my right hon*
Friend. Therefore I ask, Was the issue that divided us, as
was stated by my right hon. Friend, the time and place of
negotiations, or was it, as was stated on his own behalf by
my Noble Friend the Member for South Dorset (Viscount
Cranborne), a great principle of international good faith ?
" Let us be quite clear about this. If it be a great principle
of international good faith, I think the conclusion is that
conversations could not be held with countries whose record
is not, like our own, completely clean. [HON. MEMBERS :
4 Oh !'] I assume that our record is completely clean, but
perhaps some hon. Members do not take that view. I say
that that is a position which I can understand; it is the position
which was taken up last night by the hon. Member for Gower
(Mr. Grenfell), it really is the position which has been taken
up to-day by the right hon. Gentleman opposite, but it is not
the position of my right hon. Friend. It will be remembered
that at the beginning of his speech he said that the Government
had long been committed to consultations with Italy, and, of
course, if we had been relying upon a great principle of inter-
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