King Edward Vill, in his speech from the throne opening the new session of Parliament today, announced the Cabinet will present a bill “to deal more effectively with persons and organizations who provoke or cause disturbances of public peace. He said the measure would not interfere with “legitimate freedom of speech or assembly.”
“My Ministers have come to the conclusion,” he declared, “that the existing law requires amendment in order to deal more effectively with persons and organizations who provoke or cause disturbances of the public peace. A bill for strengthening the law without interfering with legitimate freedom of speech or assembly will be submitted to you.”
King Edward expressed deep regrets at the recent Palestine disorders and welcomed the “recent improvement in the situation.”
Referring to the scheduled departure Thursday of the Royal Commission to investigate the underlying causes of the disorders, the monarch said;
“I sincerely trust that their examination of the very difficult problems which will come before them will lead to a just and permanent settlement.”
Following King Edward’s address Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin voiced the belief in the House of Commons that the public order bill would “go very far” toward discouraging disturbances arising from Jew-baiting in London’s East End.
Mr. Baldwin spoke in reply to the opposition’s address to King Edward’s speech by Clement R. Attlee, Laborite whip, in which Mr. Attlee demanded the Government deal with disturbances caused by various uniformed groups.
Mr. Attlee charged the peace had been deliberately broken “by one ambitious person.” Obviously referring to Sir Oswald Mosley, leader of the British Blackshirts, he expressed the hope that steps would be taken to deal with the “arch disturber” and not merely with his “gulls and hirelings.”
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.
