nature of its reformist policies proves that a Labour government, by itself, will solve nothing.
We are for the return of a Labour government in an election: but only as a means of stimulating and furthering the struggle and organisation of the working class, not as a substinite for that struggle and organisation. The organisations created in the fight to overthrow the Tories will not become redundant if a Labour government is elected. They will be needed to organise the struggle for socialism -the seizure of factories, the establishment of workers control of production, the regulation of prices in the interests of the working class, the preparation of organised resistance to a ruling class counter-offensive-demanding at every turn that the Labour government endorses their actions and recognises their authority. to get 500,000 workers to strike against the Act on 8 December 1970, Quite correctly, the Communist Party sought to get union leaderships to support the LCDTU conferences and to support the strike.
Some union leaderships, for example that of SOGAT, did so, Other unions, notably the AUEW, were forced by the pressure created by the LCDTU to call even bigger strike action, and over a million workers were out in 1971. All this was excellent. But the Communist Party totally failed to organise to carry on the struggle if the trade union leadership retreated. On the contrary, after 8 December the CP wound down the LCDTU: it did not meet for six months and undertook no independent actions. rity is tremendous. Democracy is immediate and widespread: through mass meetings and elected workers councils workers participate in the taking of all decisions. The working class begins to take the running of society into its own hands.
A bourgeois general election is totally different. The working class is split up as they go one-by one to the ballot box. The workers are split up as individuals in their homes while the press and television spread lies. Instead of the workers participating through a direct democratic process in taking all decisions, they are forced to elect someone over whom they have no real control, to take all the decisions. It is for this reason that de Gaulle called an clection at the height of the French General Strike in May As for the groups which describe themselves as "revolutionary: they suffer from very confused ideas on the solution to the present crisis The largest organisation on the revolutionary left, the International Socialists, really has no clear line at all on how to deal with the present situation, It calls for the setting up of rank-and file organisations, but is confused over what are the central tasks which tace the rank-and file of the working class movement at this turning point. It does not spell out the need for a general strike, does not campaign for local conferences and Councik of Actionindeed, it has no clear proposals at all as to how the working class can unite and prepare for the coming fight against the Tory Gosernment. It does raise the need to drive the Tories from office, but has no proposals for how this can be achieved. Finaily, it has no ideas as to how the coming struggles can he turned into a struggle for socialism.
The Workers Revolutionary Party (formerly the Socialist Labour League) acts in a very sectarian fashion and refises to engage in united actions with other organisations who do not accept its particular viewpoint. Af the same time it has a right-wing political line: over the past few weeks it has centred all its propaganda on the need for a general election. Like the Communist Party, it talks wigucly of the need for united working class action' to drive the Tories front office, but refuses to call dearly for a general strike and the moves needed to prepare for this.
Much the same is true of the Militant current in the Labour Party. They call for a mass campaign to force out the Tories", but never spell out what this actually means in practice The Internationai Marxist Group, whose views are represented here, i, of coume, a small revolutionary group, not a muss organisa tion like the Labour Party. We are nowhere near as lurge, and do not have the same tegree of influence ju the trade unions as the Communist Party. Indeed, we are significantly smaller than the largest of the so-called "revolutionary' orgunisations the Internationa Socialists.
However, we are the only organisation on the left with a clear understanding of the situation in which the working class now finds itself and with clear proposals as to how the movement can go forward to defeat the Tory Government and the ruling class. In the interests of putting those proposals into action we are prepared to engage in united actions with any organisation or individual in the working class mosement. •For that reason, despile our small size and limited influence at present, we are confident that we can play a very important role in the coming struggles. For that reason we urge all those committed to defeating the Tory Government, fighting for the interests of the working class, and advancing the cause of socialism, to work alongside us and consider joining our ranks.