Toryism for the Masses

The wife of a Cardiff workingman, 41-year-old, pink-sweatered Florence Poynter, mother of two, brought cheers from 4,000 representatives at the Conservative Party's 71st annual conference at Blackpool last week. Her husband, said Mrs. Poynter, earned only -L-4 17s. 2d. (about $13.50) weekly, so that she had to leave her children and go out scrubbing. She had been better off before the war when her husband had brought home only -L-2 10s. By thus dramatically emphasizing the rise in the cost of living and affirming her faith in the Conservative Party, now in opposition, Mrs. Poynter had keynoted the Tory campaign policy. Said Party Leader Winston Churchill: "Mrs. Poynter has made her point."

The next day a number of platitudinous resolutions on housing were brushed aside for a specific promise. Cried 38-year-old Harmar Nicholls, M.P. for Peterborough: "Our message should be this: that from existing stocks and available labor we should guarantee to give housing first call up to 300,000 houses a year." When the committee tried to sidetrack the figure 300,000, pandemonium broke loose, hundreds of voices chanted, "We want 300,000 . . ."

Lord Woolton ("Uncle Fred") was forced to come to the aid of the lady chairman. Beaming, he raised his hands and calmed the multitude. Then he said blandly: "This is magnificent. You want the figure of 300,000 put in?" There were roars of approval. Whereupon Lord Woolton purred: "I am sure that those of us on the platform here would be very glad to have such a figure put in." The conference joyously passed a resolution including 300,000. The Labor Party had promised only 200,000 new houses. But serious Tory back-room policymakers like R. A. Butler, who had expressed qualms about the feasibility of 300,000 new houses, were worried. If the Tories tried to out-promise Attlee's welfare program would they be able to keep their campaign promises if and when their party came into power? Improved Tory organization was reaching down to the working class, but it was reaching it largely with a laborite program.

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