Mary role. 164 internationally significant outSo the forces retarding revolution breaks of violence-each of them in Britain, the traditional parties specifically designed as a serious and the CP, are likely to be less challenge to the authority, or the influential than in France while, at very existence, of the government the same time, the tensions prevail- in question. ing within British society will lead In the next eight years, these outto the revolution being deeper and breaks must be surpassed in nummore thorough-going.
ber and ferocity. They must conIt is important that we the coming British revolution as part tinue until all the MacNamaras. of our perspective. It widens our all the capitalist politicians, have mental horizon, adding a new di- finally been flung from office and mension 10 our thought. It is a into the "dustbin of history. ENV is a North London factory, famous among employers and industrial militants for its shop steward organisation and the conditions won by it. On one celebrated occasion. the management-either in despair or as an attempt to frighten the workers-dumped responsibility for the running of the factory in the hands of the workers. The stewards took up the gauntlet-and ran the factory. During a nine-month period when the management had promised redundancies, production continued under workers' control- without redundancies.
→ corporate managers while wage increases are to valued. But the pound was devaluted.
Intent to the IMF clearly shows, any and consequently the economy stagnated so that British industry has become use of import controls, exchange contion it the pound had not be over- trols. ete. Yet these are the only really backward. Like any economy methods within the present system which is handicapped either by which, would enable the group to solve overvalued currency or backward inAustry Reitein is hound to eun into the balance of payments problem while trouble in a free trade sustem. There is maintaining full employment and an inevitable tendency, even among rapid rate of growth. Controls, and effective central plannine. provide the only hope for resuming economic inof sit-in strikes, not taking over pro- ists is that without clear leadership a Anetian asked one of the key shop revolutionary situation cannot develop stewards at ENV (his name has to be further. What was lacking in France concealed because of possible employer was a revolutionary group with suffireprisals) whether the French workers cient contact in the factories to point should have started production again out that the cent pay rise under their own control. This was a conceded would be swept away by strike movement, he said, which was devaluation in the coming months only the berinning of a movement unless the avorkers went further. aiming at power. In the French situa But the French Left organisations de tion one had to ask nroduction tor not puen now the name of the net. whom? Restarting the factories would son who sits next to them, so how can onlv become relevant when power they thom what's going. the really was in the hands of the workers working class?
And power meant the control of at As for the French CP it has a wreat lone whole localities if not the State future as a respectable conservative Of course the sit-in was a major ad party "by appointment to General de vance on the erdinary stay-out strike Gaulle " The Soviet Union cannot play And the movement was precipitated La revolutionary role in Europe today, as much by the example of the stu- and the European workine class is not donte coivina the Tiniversity as ho the in general attracted to the Chinese memory of what French workers had done in the 1930's. museition organisati At the moment there is no on to pick up the pieces.
I know some people say that vet audacity of the demands —for example: anether revolutionary party will four weeks minimum holiday with fall inevitably become bureaucratised, pay. I wish people here would even cut off from the workers, incapable start talking about it let alone demanding it. And then think of the of reacting to new events, so that immense variety of people participat- it will sell out in some way. no. the provediocers or the crew of there is nothing inevitable about the France which turned back from the nature of organisations so lor