Russia &apos;s new plans . in the light of post-war history , which reached its tragic climax with the Russian betrayal of the attempts at Geneva to reach agreement on atomic disarmament , there must be some excuse for the coldness of the reception which has so far been accorded to the latest Soviet proposals for settling the status of west Berlin before Russia signs a peace treaty with East Germany . according to a foreign ministry spokesman in Paris , there have been no official communications or conversations between the Soviet leaders and the western ambassadors , with the exception of Dr Kroll , the West German Ambassador . nevertheless , the proposals which were made public yesterday do seem to serve as a basis upon which to resume discussions : and they make an important concession . this is the willingness of Mr Kruschev to waive his earlier demands for a peace treaty before Christmas , and the reasons for it are worth considering . it is reasonable to assume that part of the answer lies within the difficulties which the Soviet Union are experiencing inside the communist bloc . another cause is probably the spirited reaction of the so-called uncommitted nations to the gigantic exercise in atomic explosions carried out by the Russians . Mr Kruschev and his friends have succeeded in shocking a large part of the world that might have been more friendly towards them by their callous indifference to the consequences of these explosions that have threatened the health of the whole world , not least the Russian people themselves . another important factor is the way in which the west have stood firm , refusing to panic in the face of this show of atomic might . it appears that Mr Kruschev has had to concede that negotiation is the only way he can attain his ends short of war , on which he is obviously not prepared to embark . he has toned down his demands by placing the emphasis on the need for the four powers to reach agreement on a new status for west Berlin which guarantees the freedom of its inhabitants and the freedom of its communications with the west . the conclusion of a peace treaty becomes an also-ran . but it is there , and , despite what obligations the NATO powers may feel towards West Germany , a time will come when a divided Germany , and , indeed , a divided Berlin , must be recognised by the west . there is only one alternative , and that , again , is war . or perhaps there may be a third way out of the difficulty , a way which has been suggested in several countries . Berlin could be an independent city and used as a home for the united nations . it is true that , whatever happens , the Germans look like being left with a divided country , in itself a dangerous situation , but , as has been said many times before , it is the Germans themselves who are at the root of all these problems and they must be satisfied with whatever terms their conquerors feel are necessary to maintain the peace of the world . spiritual values . when Mr Butler opened a new social sciences building at Nottingham University yesterday he discussed a problem which is important to us all and one that has exercised his consideration for many years , particularly since he became home Secretary . his concern was with the problem of juvenile delinquency and the need for ways of combating this social evil . he said that he was going to hold a conference in London to launch a campaign aimed at increasing the moral and spiritual content of school life . he submitted that in our society there was evidence that education was failing to keep up with the increasing tempo of materialism . it is , of course , this aspect of the matter that is disturbing the home Secretary . one of the great tragedies of modern times is that our busy schools are kept at full stretch educating the young in the practical things which they will need to make their way through a highly complicated world . but this is not enough , as Mr Butler knows , and moral and spiritual values must be restated clearly and taught as an essential part of living . religion is a difficult subject at school where a balance has to be kept between the various denominations , but time should always be found for communal devotion that is acceptable to all . it is a lamentable fact that many of our children today feel embarrassed and uncomfortable at the idea of worshipping God . the new look . it was a heavy , distasteful task that fell to Mr Frank Foulkes yesterday . for Mr Foulkes is , of course , the president of the electrical trades union , and it was in that union , and it was in that capacity that he announced the results of the elections for the membership of the union &apos;s general executive , in which the communists have suffered an overwhelming defeat . naturally Mr Foulkes , who is himself a communist , put as good a face on it as was possible in the circumstances , but it did not amount to much . after all , there is no gainsaying the facts , which are that the communists , instead of having a majority of eight to three , as was the case after the previous elections , are now reduced to a minority of two to nine . I would only say , remarked the president , that it is a matter for the members . I have always said that our members are always right until they have been proved wrong , even when they have taken unofficial actions against an employer . and this , certainly , is in accordance with the communist creed , but now the members , that is , the rank-and-file members , have cut right across it . they have taken the democratic path , as a result of which it is very possible - but no more than possible at the moment - that the ETU may be readmitted to membership of the trades union congress . here , however , much , if not indeed all , may depend on the attitude of Mr Foulkes . for while , he said yesterday , he thought it probable that the labour party would agree to the reaffiliation of the union , he did not know whether , in the event of his not resigning the presidency , the TUC itself would agree . but , he added , if affiliation to Congress depends on my resignation , we will not be affiliated , I can assure you . this was , of course , a reference to the directive by the TUC general council before the actual expulsion of the union , asking that Mr Foulkes should resign his office and submit himself again to the members for re-election . there can be no doubt , however , that readmission is what the members , or at least the vast majority of members , of the ETU want . but apart from whether or not this actually comes about , a heavy blow has been struck against communist influence , one that should , and could , have been struck long ago . for the executive of a British trade union can always be called upon to give an account of its stewardship to those who elected it . if what is tantamount to dictatorship - and dictatorship is the mainspring of the communist creed - is suffered to continue in a union it can only be put down to apathy on the part of the ordinary members . apathy in others is the main ally of the communists . it is what has enabled them to rule the roost for so long in the councils of the ETU . but now there is to be a change at the top , one which it is to be hoped will be reflected in policy and performance . barrier to peace . President de Gaulle &apos;s recent optimistic statement on the prospects of the Algerian problem makes somewhat curious reading in the light of the latest developments as reported from Oran . for yesterday it was announced that ex-General Raoul Salan has ordered a progressive recruitment of the whole of the European male population in Algeria for the illegal OAS army , of which he is the leader . Salan , it will be recalled , was in France sentenced to death in his absence for treasonable acts against the state . he is determined , come what may , that Algeria shall remain French , and that despite whatever the native population may say or do in the matter . Salan , in short , is one of de Gaulle &apos;s bitterest opponents . he has , too , certain advantages , although these will not necessarily prove decisive . for one thing , he is the man actually on the spot , even though he may weave his plots from an underground headquarters . and indeed he has little if any option here , for to come out into the open would obviously carry with it very serious risks for himself ; he might be captured and taken under guard to Paris , in which case it would undoubtedly go hard with him . there is still that sentence of death hanging over him . but President de Gaulle , too , has advantages on his side . he has , presumably , the main weight of native opinion behind him , not to mention the considerable resources of the French government itself . nevertheless , the omens are not at all good . all the indications are that there is a long way to go before the Algerian problem is finally resolved . grants to students . whatever blemishes there may be in the new education bill , the second reading of which was moved by Sir David Eccles in the House of Commons yesterday , it is fair to say that so far as its fundamental principles are concerned it should prove acceptable to the vast majority of the public . in the matter of grants to students attending first-degree courses at universities , there are , as things stand at present , certain inequalities that cry out for correction , and it is one of the main purposes of the bill to bring this about . as the Minister said , the measures proposed are not likely to satisfy everybody in all respects , but the desirability of automatic awards and uniformity of treatment is generally accepted . the grants system , remarked Sir David , had grown over the years to a most complicated animal . not that it is expected that the bill will result in any really significant increase in the number of awards students at universities . but once a student has been accepted for a first-degree course , and has the necessary qualifications , then the award would be his ( or hers ) by right . and so far as local education authorities are concerned , the bill would impose upon them the duty of making these awards , and would empower the Minister to prescribe financial and other conditions , with which they would be obliged to conform . moreover , it is intended that future governments should be committed to ensure that public funds available for such purposes keep pace with the increase in the number of university students . in future , a student would know for certain , no matter where he lived , precisely how he could qualify for an award , and how the amount of that award would be determined . as for the means test , that would be retained , though in a relaxed form . but the bill has another purpose , one concerning school-leaving dates for children aged fifteen . the intention here is to reduce these dates in the school year from three to two , that is , at Easter and the end of the summer term . this would seem to be , in effect , a compromise between what would be the ideal method from the point of view of school organisation on the one hand and the requirements of industry on the other . for so far as the organisation of the schools is concerned , the best , most convenient plan would undoubtedly be to have only one leaving date in the year , but then that would obviously pose certain special difficulties for industry . it would mean , as Sir David pointed out , that practically a whole age group would be looking for jobs at one and the same time . in such circumstances it would find it hard , and perhaps , indeed , impossible , to absorb within a reasonable time all the young people who had thus been thrown , at one swoop , so to speak , on to the labour market . 