Buck says St. Laurent
facing policy debacle,

dared not delay vote

“St Laurent hurried back from the Commonwealth Prime Ministers’ Conference
and called the election for the earliest possible date because he didn’t dare wait even a
day longer—not when that conference had shown him the coming debacle of his govern
This is what Tim Buck, national leader of the Labor-Progressive party,
told an audience of more than 3,000 people in Exhibition Forum here last Sunday. And
so well did he place his facts, so convincing was his
real alternative, that his audience gave him a stan

ment’s policy.”

speech.

“St. Laurent learned at the con-
ference that as a result of his
‘Made-in-the-U.S.’ policy, Canada’s
exports to Britain are going to be
reduced again drastically,” said
Buck.

“He learned that there will be no
purchase of Canadian canned sal-
mon this year, that there will be
reductions in exports of sawn lum-
ber, fruit, pork products, tobacco..
And he learned that on top of all
the blows Canadian producers
have suffered in consequence of
his sacrifice of Canada’s interests
to U.S. aims, there is now serious
question as to whether Britain
will buy any wheat at all from
Canada this year.

“Can you imagine the Liberals
going around the prairies telling
that to the farmers?” asked Buck.
“No wonder St. Laurent was in
such a hurry to get the election
over.”

This worsening prospect was the
real cause of mass layoffs in the
farm machinery and auto indus-
tries in eastern Canada and of the
sudden slump in industrial con-
struction, the LPP leader declared.

Reconstructing for his audience
what had taken place at the Com-
monwealth Prime Ministers’ Con-
ference, Buck said that St. Laur-
ent had been informed by Church-
ill, in effect, that the U.S.-dictated
cold war policies were going from
bad to worse, that the U.S. was
raising trade barriers instead of
lowering them and that Britain
intended to trade with People’s
China and seek markets wherever

they could be found.

“Can you wonder St. Laurent
“was alarmed?” asked Buck. “The
Liberal government has based
all its policies on gearing our

Canadian economy to that of the _

United States — step by step,
year by year, until it has come
to the point that our country’s
policies are determined, not by
the needs of our people but by

presentation of LPP policy as the only
ding ovation at the conclusion of his

ALEX KUCHER

The Chinese People’s govern- |
ment informed him China is pre-
pared to trade with Canada. But
what about Canada?

Sir Winston Churchill’s call for
a great-power conference to settle
outstanding problems of world re-
lationships by negotiation, Buck
said, “presages the beginning of an
era of the peaceful co-existence
of the capitalist and socialist parts
of the world. It also presages the
defeat of those circles in the US.
and Canada that have banked up-
om a third world war and based
their: policies upon that expecta-
tion.”

Buck said this federal election
took place at a time of crisis in
Canada’s national policy, at a turn-
ing point in Canadian affairs.

“The people should act now, in
this election, to change the deci-
sive aims of national policy. In-
stead of being geared to war, our
economy should be geared to
peace,” Buck stated.

the demands of the U.S. imper-
ialists.”

peaceful trade with all countries

“Peacétime production for

is the one and only sure path to
stable and enduring prosperity for
Canada. 3

“The Labor-Progressive party
proposes that as a first key
change in that direction we offer
to all the countries of the Com-
monwealth a trade arrangement
by which Canada will undertake
to buy a dollar’s worth of pro-
ducts in some Commonwealth
country in return for every dol- .
lar’s worth of products purchas-
ed from Canada by any part of
the Commonwealth.

“By such an arrangement we
could, within one year, double our
exports to Commonwealth coun-
tries. :
“By another similar arrange-
ment we could build up a great
market for manufactured and nat-
ural Canadian products in all the
countries of the socialist part of
‘the world with its eight hundred
million people.”
To illustrate the potentialities
of trade with People’s China, Buck
quoted from a letter received by
Alex Kucher, LPP candidate for
Burnaby-Coquitlam, in response to
an inquiry Kucher had sent to the
foreign trade ministry of the Chin-
ese People’s government.

That part of the letter quoted
by Buck read:

« | To restore and develop
commercial relations with for-
eign governments and peoples
on a basis of equality and mu-
tual benefit is the fundamental
principle of our country’s for-
eign policy. At present, owing
to the embargo and blockade im-
posed ‘by the U.S. imperialists,
trade between China and Can-
ada has been interrupted. This
is against the economic interests
and welfare of the peoples of
our two countries.

“We wish to state that China
is willing to develop trade rela-
tion$ with your country only if
the Canadian government will
not follow the policy of the U.S.
imperialists to dislocate the

world’s peaceful economy and

HOME OF
UMON MADE
MEN'S WEAR

and |

FRIENDLY
SURIICE

¢
;

"WHAT — HE.TRIED, T0 SEL

YOU A SUIT THAT. DIONT FITS

7RY THE HUB, /7Y BOY, ANO CET
YOURS WITH EASY CREDIT /"

45 EAST HASTINGS
VANCOUVER 4, B.C

interfere with normal interna-
’ tional trade relations.

“China can supply Canada with
Canada’s. traditional require-

silk, groundnut kernels, peanut
oil, walnut meat, embroideries,
laces, teas, etc.

“Since the liberation of our
country, our national economy
has been restored. We have al-
ready entered into the stage, on

of economic construction. We
require, therefore, various kinds
of industrial equipment, raw
materials and many other items
we should be glad if Canada
could supply. . . .”

“In Asia and Europe too,” com-
mented Buck, “there are markets
to be had with a bold new national
policy geared to peace.”

ments, such as bristles, wood oil, |j

a large scale, of a five year plan |}:

Meri! Lune TL SS PS Rf ee Gt) | |G le

ia

was afraid to tell. the Canadian
people his real aims.

Referred to. Jack Pickersgill,
newly appointed secretary of
state now contesting an elec-
tion for the first time in his
political career, as the man
who had masterminded St.
Laurent’s policy — “and when
St. Laurent steps out, discredit-
ed by his policy, -Pickersgill
will be ready to step in to carry
on the discredited policy.”

Said -M. J. Coldwell, CCF nation-
al leader, had “placed himself
four-square beside St. Laurent”
in his acceptance speech when
he had advocated making the
Canadian economy complemen-
tary to that of the U.S. “And
that means political depen-
dence as well.”

+ Reminded Social Credit voters
that Solon Low, Socred national
leader, was an avowed advocate
of capitalism.” “I am sure that
most people who voted Social
Credit in the B.C. election did
so because they want peace
and progress. To that extent
we are on common ground. If
they can compel their leaders
to carry out policies that ex-
press their desires that will be
one thing. But to carry out Such
policies means inevitable con-
flict with monopoly capitalism.”

+ Entered an eloquent plea for
old age pensioners. “It’s a
national crime and disgrace
that in this day and age Can-
adian citizens who have con-
tributed a lifetime.of work to
their country should be com-
pelled to live on $40 a month.”

+ Pointed out many people think
that we must have defense—
“and I’m willing to go fifty-fifty
with them.” But “Canadians

also need a national health
plan and they cannot have it
while the government spends
two thousand million dollars a

Two of the eleven candidates o
Progressive party’s big election rally in Exhibition Forum here
last Sunday were Carl Hilland (left),
and Tom Seibert (right), candidate for Victoria.

n the platform at the Labor:

candidate for Fraser Valley,

Calling upon all patriotic C@™
adians “to make this federal ¢
tion the beginning of a great de f
cratic national crusade 10 Pu
Canada First,” Buck concluded:

“The 20th century can becom’
Canada’s, Sir Wilfred Laurier®
dream that the 20th century 4,
longs to Canada can be realize@
but with this difference—it f
be realized by the struggles i
the working people, against a
Liberal party's policy of betray?
of Canada to the United State*
to restore Canada, her peopl fe
her own.” ; 1

Nigel Morgan, LPP provi
leader, was chairman of the vad
ing and with him on the platfo
were 11 of the 16 LPP candidé
already nominated to contest 9”
constituencies: ‘

Maurice “Rush
East), Mrs. Mona Morgan
couver-Kingsway), Ernest
rie (Vancouver
Zlotnik (Vancouver
-Gorden Elder = (Vance
South), Alex Kucher (Bur
Coquitlam), Leo Brady
Westminster), Carl —
(Fraser Valley), Tom
(Coast-Capilano), Tom
(Victoria) and Ernest —
(Nanaimo). oe

Harvey Murphy conduct |
collection to which the aU

contributed more than $1,300. ’

STANTON |
MUNRO & DEAN
BARRISTERS ie
SOLICITORS
NOTARIES

Suite 515

FORD BUILDING... |
(Corner Main and stin8
193 East Hastings

uver
(Vance tr :

, the
ed the
jen

year for war.”

12th ANNUAL

LABOR

In the course of his half-and-a-
half long speech, the LPP leader

+ Described Colonel George
Drew, national leader of the

Progressive Conservative party,

as, “a menace to Canada” who

PACIFIC TRIBUNE — JU

AUGUST 9

Confederation Park - Burnaby

Basket Lunch Style

Balloons for all children accompa
their parents on grounds by 1.30 p-™

Za << f

PICNIC

nied PY

LY 17, 1953 7