Word: labouring
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...Labour decline was also assisted by a timely and needed Liberal revival. Although the Liberals secured only six seats, as in each of the past two contests, they ran twice as many candidates as in 1955 and received over twice as many votes. Many of these were clearly protest votes, largely drawn from old Laborites and new voters. Most Liberal platforms were broad statements of interest in the "little man" and appeals for the liberalization of trade...
Many of the old Socialist policies have long since outlived their usefulness, and such principles as nationalization are passing from the Labourite campaign vocabulary. Unfortunately, however, the Labour Party is committed to renationalizing steel and road haulage, even though this policy is now a recognized liability. On this, as on many issues, there is a sharp division between the doctrinaire socialists and the moderates. As Sir Winston Churchill, again a candidate for Parliament, observed recently, "Some of them regard private enterprise as a predatory tiger to be shot. Others look on it as a cow they can milk...
...weeks of the campaign the Labour Party seems to have found some profitable issues, notably pensions and high rents. They have promised every pensioner $1.40 more a week and have made broad promises of educational and medical improvements. The estimated cost of these welfare pledges is estimated at one billion dollars the first year, which Labour plans to acquire without increasing taxes...
...combining these domestic promises with aggressive campaigning, the Labour Party has stolen the offensive. Trying to dismiss such promises as "auctioneering," the Conservatives are looking for strength in the closing days of the campaign to the improved prospect of a summit meeting. The current truck strike should also benefit the Tories, as it refreshes the anti-union sentiment and reminds the voters of the close connection between the unions and the Labour Party...
...precarious is the electoral balance between the two parties, that any one of these issues could turn the election. To win, the Labour Party needs only thirty-five of the present Conservative seats. Since more than this number of seats were won in 1955 by less than 1,000 votes, the election is being decided not in the 630 seats at stake, but in about sixty marginal constituencies. A shift of less than 12,000 votes can make the difference...