EXPECTED. TO: WIN DESPITE HIS RECORD -
By John. walters
- London
‘The general election called for March 31 by Prime Minister Harold: Wilson is of major importance for the British working class and the work of: British revolutionary Marxists..Since the. election of’ “October 1964, the Wilson government has steadily moved to the right, faster than most observers thought that it ‘would. - The last: seventeen months have been an object lesson to’ ail those in the: British Labour movement who thought. that Wilson could be pushed’ into’.a-left policy. Such illusions. were: speedily dispelled ‘by his’ capitulation to the bankers at home and overseas. This initial move has ‘ince’ been shown to be the first of a series of policy actions” that. can _jeave no doubt as to the real nature of this govern- “fent. ; A
Most serious commentators knew of the grave crisis in the economy which the fourth Labour government inherited. Because of the major effort of world capitalism, led by U.S. imperialism, a rescue opération of British capitalism took: place in the form of loans to bolster up sterling. In return Wilson was supposed to superintend the "modernization" of the British economy, putting it on a more competitive basis, etc. The key question here was the introduction of an "incomes policy." Since the war, Britain, along with most other capitalist countries has suffered from creeping inflation, which -~ whatever its basic causes -- has been laid at the feet of the workers as being wage inflation. Therefore an incomes policy -- which is a polite way of saying the limitation of wage. increases -- has become a major necessity for British capitalism’ “if it is to maintain its profits and continue. ats accumulation.
So far Wilson has not succeeded in achieving this. policy completely. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, despite various deflationary measures adopted -- high bank rate, credit squeeze, cuts in government expenditure, new taxes -~ unemployment has continued to fall, it being at its lowest point for nearly ten years; i.e. 1.5 per cent. Secondly, although thé Trade Union Congress .LTUC] and most of the trade-union bureaucrats have agreed to the imposition of an incomes policy, there is a.section of the trade-union, bureaucracy -- notably the T&GWU [Transport and General Workers' Union], the Railway men, and the white-collar unions -- who have opposed this. However, so far this opposition has not stirred large sections of the rank and file, precisely because this policy has not yet been effective. But there have been signs in the last few months that rank-and-file opposition will grow. .
Wilson has recently brought before Parliament a bill which will make the incomes policy legally enforceable; and which; sets out penalties -- fines or imprisonment -- for infringements. Infringe-' ments would include such things as strikes while the. Prices..and Incomes Board considers claims. This again was accepted. by: the TUC ,
but with a larger number of union bureaucrats dissenting this time -the bill starts to cut into their freedom and security. With the dissolution of Parliament for the election, this bill has now fallen through; but Wilson has made it plain that he intends to push it through the next Parliament if he and his party are re-elected.
On the’ question of re= -election, there seems little serious | doubt. that Labour. will .win the coming election, holding al4 per. cent lead-in. the. opinion polls at the moment. Most serious commentators are discussing the size of Labour's majority, not if they willwin. Despite Wilson's throwing overboard all the radical aspects of Labour's previous election promises, despite his proposed antiunion legislation,:support for the U.S. in Vietnam; and stinking record on immigration, the bulk:.of the: working class still support and have illusions:in Wilson. The parliamentary "lefts" have shown. themselves to. be weak, spineless and completely disoriented. Only. a section of the nonparliamentary left, mainly intellectuals and some sections of the working class (notably Scottish and Welsh miners and the railwaymen plus elements in the T&GWU) have put forward strong criticisms of the government. The main critics of the-government in the Labour party have. been the centrists around such journals as The Week and Union Voice. It is around these journals, and one or two like then, that we can expect opposition to crystallize in the coming period, providing they are able to overcome their present theoretical confusion -and arrive at a consistent Marxist standpoint.
Certainly there is no immediate prospect for building an. opposition to Wilson outside the Labour movement. The recent debacle of the Radical Alliance candidate, Richard Gott, at the North Wull parliamentary by-election bears witness to this. This body, composed in the main of petty-bourgeois intellectuals, ran Gott against the official Labour candidate. His platform had only one plank, that of opposition to Wilson's Vietnam. policy, and then mainly on grounds of conscience. The fact that he received a sympathetic hearing from the Labour rank and file did not prevent him from losing his deposit, collecting only 245 votes. Significantly, the official Labour candidate increased the majority considerably.
This episode is very instructive, Since the Labour Left in Hull ran a public: campaign criticizing the Labour government while at the same time supporting the Labour candidate. This is a new phenomenon on the British scene, and one that has implications for the future. What it does emphasize: is that the Labour rank and file are not prepared to allow the.Tories back into power despite their misgivings about this or that aspect of Labour policy, but neither are they prepared to remain silent.
This then is the situation as the general election approaches. It is clear that a postponement of the solution of the present crisis of British capitalism cannot continue. We seem.set fair for a return of Wilson and Co. to office. They. ‘will be faced with the need to impose the neocapitalist solutions mapped out for them by big business. However, all -thée:signs dre that this is not going to be any easy ride for them. Just as Johnson's "consensus" society is crum- .bling under the impact of reality, so will Wilson's. There is ahead
a very real possibility of a major clash between the: next Labour government anda section of. the trade-union bureaucracy,’ and wide layers of the working class. When the incomes policy begins to "bite," the shop-floor militants will begin to react in.a vigorous way, for it should be remembered that the British working class has not suffered: a major defeat since the ast. war, and : therefore it is still self-confident. : brad . feos
; The crucial problem. now is that of regrouping. . the Labour. Left based upon the unions and the rank-and-file committees. It is to such work that British revolutionary Marxists should address themselves in’ the: coming” period, oe :
BOUMEDIENNE