[Any trade unionist who looks back to the…]

Scan page 4

Any trade unionist who looks back to the nationalis ing post-war Labour Govertment of 1945-51 as the 'good old days' should imperialist movement within the British working class. Two check out the newly major national demonstrations released Cabinet Papers for the course of the hunger 1950. strikes drew only a handful of labour movement banners on In them we have the real thoughts of that particular bunch of reformist traitors And the sprinkling of union when they were safely behind leaders and left Labourites who closed doors. signed the Charter 80 petition There is no mention of class in support of the prisoners war against the Tories and the ruling class-but a good deal of venom is worked up against the With or without political working class.

Thus, in the course of the licans face constant military and year we find the Labour leaders police harassment; and the Irish discussing not inroads against capitalism but legal action for treason against the Daily imperialist control maintained Worker over Korea and the use by an occupying army of tens of of war-time laws against strikers thousands of foreign troops. on the docks and in British The fight in the British Overseas Airways. labour movement must be Furthermore, it would stepped up for a policy of immediate withdrawa! appear that a secret ban on Communists and sympathisers British troops from Ireland.

becoming British citizens In this context the national conference of the Labour Com- through naturalisation was agreed. mittee on Ireland acquires In contrast, Ernest Bevin, particular importance.

the Foreign Secretary, argued in Socialist Press readers are favour of a military alliance urged to attend. with Fascist Spain! Like any good "social "democrat" • he explained that: "It is illogical, at the least, to exclude a power whose reen fascist, is deinitely not •deplorable and in the same category as that of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics."

g Sociolise Press pamphlet Finally, and possibly most upsetting for those who see the "left' of Labour as the spearhead against capitalism, we have the thoughts of Aneurin Bevan, Minister of Health.

This supposed hardy advocate of the NHS is to be found arguing in favour of cuts in NHS spending, particularly through restricting the number of prescriptions.

In a memorandum to the Cabinet he states: "Here there ought to be scope for savings if ways and means can be found. While flagrant abuse may be the exception, it is obvious that there is more prescribing than can be really necessary."

Here speaks not the fiery people's leader built up by the press, but the real, hardened labour bureaucrat.

Those on the left, like Gerry Healy (leader of the present-day Workers Revolutionary Party) who uncritically campaigned for Bevan and argued at the time that: "the . task of left-wing A brand new pamphlet, spelling out Labour is simply to aid in making fully explicit the programme and perspective for account Bevan has given of Labour's past experience and struggle to oust the Tories. the policy he espouses."

would do well to check out what that policy really was.

In 1950, as in 1931, the Labour leadership was a nest of vipers, a collection of political snakes in the grass of the workers movement.