Orders of the Day — Foreign Affairs and Rearmament.

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at on 24 March 1938.

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Photo of Mr James Griffiths Mr James Griffiths , Llanelly

I do not propose to follow the hon. Member for Penryn and Falmouth (Mr. Petherick) except to remind him, when he speaks of the League of Nations in what I regard as almost contemptuous terms, that he and the fellow Members of his party pledged themselves at the last election to make the League of Nations the keystone of their foreign policy. If on a fundamental matter of this kind he has changed his views, then, in accordance with the Parliamentary institutions of this country, it is his duty to resign his seat and to fight again on this issue. And not only is it the plain duty of the hon. Gentleman; it is the plain duty of the Government. In 1935 they secured a mandate from the country to make the League of Nations the keystone of their foreign policy—to stand by the League, to implement the Covenant. It was on that promise and pledge that they secured a majority, but now they are throwing that promise over and changing their policy, and they should resign and go to the country. We on this side should welcome an opportunity of deciding the issue at the bar of public opinion.

I am sorry that the right hon. Member for Epping (Mr. Churchill) has left, because we always listen to him with respect. Every time he speaks we learn a good deal, because he has had a wide and intimate experience of foreign affairs and public life, and has a wide knowledge of the world, but I have noticed that although his reviews of events are always so embracing and excellent there is an omission of references to Spain. He always attaches great importance to the relationship between this country and France. I believe he proceeds on the assumption that it is essential for the safety of this country that we shall not only be in the closest association with France, but that France and ourselves shall be strong enough to resist defeat by any other Power, and if he had been here I should have asked whether he did hot think that recent events in Spain had considerably weakened the power of France to resist her enemies, and that therefore we ought to be paying more attention to what is happening in Spain. Not only are the Spanish people being drowned in blood, by the intervention of Germany and Italy, but the defeat of Spain and the establishment of German and Italian troops in the Pyrenees would weaken France immensely. By the logic of the right hon. Gentleman and others in this House, anything that weakens France will weaken England, too. Therefore, the defeat of the Spanish Government, by weakening France, will definitely weaken this country.

I also welcome the right hon. Gentle-man's speech because, though he is one of the oldest Members of the House, he is one of the few Members opposite who realises the changes there have been in the Europe in which we live. Many Members opposite still think, apparently, that we are living in the Europe of 1910 and 1912. We are living in a Europe in which there are forces—unloosed probably by the last War—which are seeking to domin- ate Europe and to destroy democracy. The Prime Minister, at the close of his speech this evening, said that he was conscious that he was speaking not merely to this House but to the world. I think he was right. Europe and the wrold have been waiting for the word of England, and it falls to the Prime Minister to utter that word. In the world outside there are two forces—the forces which seek to preserve democracy and liberty and freedom, and to use them to build a better life, a life of tolerance, a life in which there is equality of opportunity, the life which we here believe will fully flower only under a co-operative system; and there are other forces which seek to cramp life and to destroy democracy.

Whether we like it or not there are those two forces, the democratic forces and the Fascist forces, and both were listening to the Prime Minister, especially the democratic forces. I have the feeling that the democratic countries have waited in vain, and will hear the speech of the Prime Minister with dismay. It contains no promise, no pledge, that this country will stand by those democratic forces in Europe whose defeat, if they are defeated, will eventually bring about the defeat of this country. Therefore, I say that the outside world will hear on the wireless to-night and read in the Press to-morrow the speech of the Prime Minister with feelings of dismay. What has been the outstanding fact in Europe in the last four or five years, since 1931? I do not stop to deal with the point that it was in 1931 that the Labour Government were driven out of office and the present Government came in. Since 1931, international relationships in Europe have consistently worsened and international tension has become greater year by year. Since 1931 the democratic countries of Europe have been on the retreat and the Fascist Powers have been marching on. Each year, and now almost each month, witnesses a new defeat for the forces of Democracy and a new win for the powers of Fascisism. We have discussed Czechoslovakia for the last year or two. Month by month conquests have been made; recently Austria, then, may be, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. I believe that Czechoslovakia will lose her freedom and sovereignty by the same way in which Austria was treated, the method of economic encirclement.

The method which has been pursued in Austria and Czechoslovakia and other countries has reached a culminating point in the triumph which is reported to-day from Danzig. This free State was set up at the end of the War and its sovereignty was guaranteed by this country and other countries, as was the sovereignty of Czechoslovakia. We read in the newspapers to-day of the alarm and concern which exists in Danzig because to-day, to-morrow or within the next few days, the complete subjugation of Danzig to Nazi rule will be celebrated. I saw the twin method of the Fascists at work in Danzig 18 months ago, and other people have seen it working in other parts of the world. The method which the Fascist Powers use is first to sustain Fascist propaganda within the country concerned. In the days gone by that was called by the Communist International "boring from within." It goes on in this country. Germany has financed Fascist propaganda in Britain. Eighteen months ago the Home Secretary, in reply to a question which I sent him, agreed that Fascists were being supported from abroad in this country. They have not made much progress, at least on the surface, but there are forces at work quietly and secretly.

The Germans finance propaganda and follow the method of boring from within and sledging from without. There are Fascists in this country. I notice that there has been a meeting in London. I believe it was held last evening. It is reported in the Press to-day. The hon. and gallant Member for Bournemouth (Sir H. Croft) and the hon. and gallant Member for Chippenham (Captain Cazalet) were there, speaking in the meeting. The Prime Minister will be interested to read that the man whose actions he said last Friday filled him with horror and disgust were described by his hon. and gallant Friends as a gallant Christian gentleman. "Kind, courteous and gentle" were the words used by those who spoke at the Queen's Hall in respect of the man who has been killing and maiming, bombing women and children in Barcelona and filling the Prime Minister and every other decent man with horror and disgust. Since 1931 those twin forces have been financing propaganda. I remember what was said by German miners who were in the Miners' Federation attached to our Inter- national when they spoke of the money which was being poured out in subtle propaganda and appeals in that portion of Czechoslovakia where trouble might arise. It goes on all over Europe. The Democracies have been in retreat since 1931.

When are the Democracies going to stand together? I do not think that any word you could use could cover the fact that there is a struggle between the two forces—between Fascism which seeks to dominate Europe and Democracy which we believe is the only promise for better days. We believe that the way to preserve peace is to organise the forces of Democracy. The workers are being asked to help. The Prime Minister met the Trades Union Congress last night and made an appeal to them. I do not want to say a word about the negotiations that are proceeding, but this evening I asked the Prime Minister in a supplementary question whether he did not realise that there was grave apprehension among the workers of this country as to the purpose of the arms which were being piled up. I would like to read a pronouncement which was made by the Trades Union Congress upon the Spanish position to which the Prime Minister referred this afternoon. His speech held out no hope to the Spanish people and was a direct encouragement to Italy and Germany, by reason of what it omitted to say, to go on to the final conquest of Spain. The Trades Union Congress are now being asked to make sacrifices. The engineers, and perhaps one of these days the miners, are to be asked to make sacrifices. The Trades Union Congress has said: The British Labour movement holds that the Spanish Government is defending democracy against Fascism and is entitled to the support of all democrats and Socialists. It holds that if we have Fascism in Spain it would be a tragedy and a disaster in itself, and Would also be an encouragement to Germany and Italy to repeat the same tactics elsewhere, or even to make a direct attack on France which would find itself encircled by three Fascist Powers. They regard a victory for the Spanish people as a victory for democracy. As one who has had 20 years experience of intimate association with the workers of this country I can tell the House that the Spanish struggle has stirred our working-class people more than anything that has happened in the last 20 years. The Government have come to our people and are asking them to make sacrifices, but our people remember that the Home Secretary described the struggle of the Spanish people for freedom as a faction fight, and that Members of the party on the other side have described Franco as a Christian gentleman, gentle and courteous. [HON. MEMBERS: "No!"] Oh, yes. I want to urge upon hon. Members opposite that the Prime Minister's speech this afternoon, and other speeches, show that you have all made up your minds that there is to be a war. If a war comes, you know in the final analysis that whether you win it or not will depend not upon how full your arsenals are, but upon the spirit of your people.

What the Leader of the Opposition said this afternoon was perfectly true in his criticism of the Prime Minister, who seems somehow to miss completely the imponderable things, and to have a mechanistic and materialistic outlook. If we are to have victory against the antidemocratic forces, it will only be by rallying the people, and particularly the working-class people. It is the spirit in which they look upon these things that matters. If they regard the Government as having betrayed the Spanish people, do you think you can appeal to them successfully to make sacrifices for you? What are these arms for? Do you think you can get the workers of this country to fight for your Tanganyika, as some of you want, when you refuse to support Spain? Can you not realise that the workers of this country are prepared to face the prospect of another war only if it is in defence of Democracy and freedom? Democracy and freedom have no frontiers. Wherever the fight for them takes place, that is our struggle.

We have had to fight for Democracy and freedom, and for everything we hold dear in this country. The right to organise, the right of meeting, freedom of speech and of the Press, and other things that make this England worth fighting for, are things that we have won. We witness other people fighting for those common rights, and we realise that the struggle of the Spanish people and of other people for liberty and freedom meets with scorn from that side of the House. Let me warn hon. Members, the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and others, that the workers of this country will rally to the side of the Government only if the Government are prepared to stand for the principles of the League of Nations and for collective security. We regard those principles as the only safeguard for the freedom of the Democracies and as the only things that are worth making sacrifices for.