It was not till the late '60s and early *70s, when the ClA's role in setting up various front organisations had been revealed, that the CIA's role in British politics began to be uncovered. So far we know only the tip of the iceberg ....
wo members orule Dresent aDoli Government, Dennis Healey and Anthony Crosland, have in fact been assisted by the CIA - though doubtless without their knowledge. Crosland was for a whole period a paid adviser to the Congress for Cultural Freedom, a CIA front organisation. It was in this period that he wrote his book The Future of Socialisin, which became the bible or une Labour right in the '50s and early '60s.
Healey was the paid London correspondent of the New Leader, a virulent anti-communist magazine tinanced by the CIA. Socialist Commentary, the theoretical journal of Labour's right wing, was neavuy unanced by ue dom. J M Kaplan Fund, yet another CIA subsidiary. Associated with its publication were Dick laverne. Hugh Gaitskell. Rita Hinden and William Rodgers. The latter was the main organiser of the Campaign for Democratic Socialism grouping inside the Labour Party, which was known to have 'rich backers'.
All this was revealed in an article prepared for the Sunday Times magazime in 1972 by Richard Fletcher. It was suppressed by editor Harold Evans but subsequently reproduced as a pamphlet by Radical Research Services.
Nobody has suggested that the Labour right-wingers actually knew the source or teir money - but the erects of this CIA money were not unimportant: Healey, Crosland and the Labou right were the most vociferous defenders of America's military pacts, NATO, SEATO and CENTO, and American foreign policy throughout the '50s and Anthony Crosland -former paid adviser to a CIA front, the Congress for Cultural FreeHugh Gaitskell -vowed to 'fight, fight and fight again', but the money came from the CIA. -service which turned out to be an answering ISC is also filled out with its share of British Intelligence old boys and it is known that the British police use a secret ISC "Manual on Counter Insurgency, ISC's library and Conflict Studies. Hands across the Water.
It is the Labour Government that allows the CIA to continue its operations in Britain, according some of its top operatives diplomatic status while allowing others to function behind the doors of the American Embassy. Louis Heren, deputy editor of The Times, wrote on 22 March 1975: There is, of course, a CIA station in Britain .... -MI wasoR Is aiso personaly accuanted with CIA men. For instance, Mr Chet Cooper, who was second in command of the CIA's London station before becom ing a special assistant to President Johnson. was in au wes airs room helecuer the night the Prime Minister tried to reach an agreement with Mr Kosygin, the Soviet Prime Minister, to prolong the bombing pause in Vietnam in the Heren went on to explain the conn ection with British Intelligence: The two agencies (the CIA and the Special Intelligence Services) have always closely co-operated with each other since the SIS helped to organise the Yet only the pfevious month, on 6 February 1975, Roy Jenkins told the House of Commons in reply to a question from Tribunite MP Tom Litterick, that the report about CIA activities in this country was categor ically denied by the American Embassy after it was published just over a year ago. I have no reason to think that the denial was not accurate.
On 19 March 1975 over 30 Labour MPs demanded the expulsion of ten leading CIA agents. Nothing happened. Stan Newens raised the question once or twice more. but silence prevailed unti the departure of Mr Elliot Richardson as American Ambassador in mid-January Of this year. Then Norman Atkinson MP (to cries of "Rubbish'!) merely asked Wilson in Parliament for an assurance on the activities he has personally endorsed - that the CIA are not involved in political activities, but in the normal secret service activity?
ine pount is unat socialists musi oppose the secret service activities, dirty tricks or otherwise, of any capitalist government. It is bad enough that a whole series of intelligence gathering operatons go on as tae normat actvity of the whole US Embassy, without 'left MPs saying that the CIA is all right as long as it limits itself to 'normal" secret service activity.
Red Weekly is attempting to do the labour movement a service by listing the CIA's present operatives in London. The lefts should be forced to campaign for their expulsion.
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