[dereated Have the promised "benefits of North Sea…]

Scan page 4

dereated Have the promised "benefits of North Sea Oil" ended even before they began?

After Dennis Healey's frequent promises of impending tax reductions and economic expansion, the mood of Whitehall statements has suddenly changed.

Partly no doubt this is because the tax reduction The Lib-Lab coalition was defeated on its major item of Parliamentary legislation last week.

No, it was not nationalisation of any major industry or the banks. It was not measures designed to restore the devastated social services and education system.

It was a policy designed to divert away from these promises were meant to be a carrot which union leaders could hold out to their members as they sabotaged key wage claims.

But also it is becoming increasingly clear that the f. oW of oil is not calming the troubled waters of the capitalist crisis in Britain. central issues that concern the working class-the provision of a "devolved" bourgeois assembly in Such an assembly, functioning within the framework of British capitalism could obviously do nothing to remedy the chronic mass unemployment, falling living standards and other material Woodcraft and Hilary One symptom of this was the publication of figures which showed that industrial production in Britain has remained stagnant.

Lower Despite a scarcely perceptible rise in December, production in the last quarter of 1977 was lower than earlier in the year, much lower than it was during the 3-day week in 1974 and only just over 1% higher than it was in 1970. • The government also published its index of long term "forward economic indicators" , a kind of economic long range weather forecast, and this showed a decline for Heath problems from which the reactionary Scottish Nationalists have made such capital.

It would represent nothing more than a vehicle for the The policy of fighting for the third month running:

Another more unexpected sign 'of the continued crisis was the large trade deficit in January.

At $324 million this was higher than the average in 1975 before North Sea Oil production began.

The government issued its usual warnings about not attaching importance to one month's figures.

Special factors

Unfortunately, however, last month the "special factors" should have led to more exports and less imports and not the other way round.

What increased the deficit most profit-seeking and avaricious sections of the bourgeoisie in Scotland.

These forces, stimulated by the smell of profit from North Sea oil, have conducted a long and well-orchestrated campaign to create the illusion that life would be better under "Scottish" capitalism than under 'British imperialism"

Free hand

But the continued betrayals of the Labour leaders the Lib-Lab coalition, and the refusal of Stalinist or reformist trade union leaders to oppose cuts, sackings, speed-up and wage cuts have left the "Tartan Tories' a free hand to peddle their reactionary line among sections of workers.

However even in these conditions, bourgeois opinion polls-notoriously unreliable as they are-suggest that only 55% of Scottish voters would back a devolved assembly. was the continued inability of British manufactured goods to compete in world markets.

This is predictably leading to increasingly clamour from manufacturing capitalists (backed up by the opportunists of the Tribune group and the Communist Parties) for chauvinist measures like Last week British Leyland management called for import controls against Japanese cars which are now supplying more than half of Leyland's own share of the British market.

Ex-economic advisor to the Wilson Nicolas Kaldor, was also If this is the reality in Scotland, then the provisions forced on the government's Devolution Bill-calling for 40% of the electorate to vote 'yes' as a precondition for the establishment of an assembly -Will ensure that the measure is defeated.

To attain the 40% figure on a 60% turn out, more than 65% of those voting would have to vote 'yes' The fact that 44 Labour MPs joined with the Tories to institute this brazenly undemocratic provision indicates not the slightest progressive instinct on their part-in the main they are diehard supporters of Callaghan.

'Heath men'

They found their counterparts in a number of "Heath men" who crossed the floor to vote with the Lib-Lab coalition against the 40% rule.

But if wheeled out to put in his plea for import controls as a solution to the British economic crisis.

As Trotskyists we utterly condemn these protectionist measures. We say there is no solution to the British economic crisis.

There is only a world solution to the economic crisis created by capitalism.

That solution requires the international unity of the working class in the fight for the expropriation of all the capitalists and a planned socialist economy.

as rumoured-make the Devolution Bill a question ol confidence in the Lib-Lat coalition government, ther those "left' MPs who claim te oppose its policies Ie naturally obliged to voti against this diversionary anc worthless, piece of Lib-Lal legislation.

Break coalition

Trade unionists an‹ Labour Party members mus demand that they do so, an‹ couple such a stand with th beginning of a fight through out the labour movement t break the coalition with th Liberals and for a socialis answer to the problems o Scottish, English and Wels workers.

A refusal to take advan tage of such an opportunit not only assists Callaghar but, by offering no altern:

tive to Labour's betrayals-i Scotland, must hand ove disillusioned workers to th reactionary Nationalists.