Laborite support was promised in Commons today on the second reading of the public order bill banning semi-military organizations and curbing groups which threaten public order.
Laborite leaders warned Home Secretary Sir John Simon, however, against extending too much power to the police or unfairly restricting the working classes under the law. Sir John pointed out the bill is not aimed against British Fascists alone, and described the rapid post-war growth of Right and Left extremist parties abroad.
In moving the bill for second reading, Sir John declared he was not inviting the House to legislate against anybody’s creed, but to act for the preservation of British tolerance.
J. R. Clynes, bespeaking the Labor Party’s support for the bill, said certain changes were necessary before it was made into law, but expressed the hope that united action would be taken to prevent racial abuse and attacks.
“When liberty of speech is stretched to the length of insulting a race,” he declared, “it is time to curtail it. It is a contemptible thing for any political group in this country to exploit racial prejudices for political ends and purposes.”
William Gallacher, sole Communist member of Parliament, assailed the bill, charging the Government’s only purpose was to obtain a new grip over the workers instead of to stop slanders against the Jews.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
