UNIONS VERSUS THE GOVERNMENT
Three major union conferences are taking place this week, At each of the conferences the Government is under fire: Mr. Brown's incomes policy was merciliessly thrown out at the T.G.W.U. conference; and at the N.U.M and N.U.R. conferences the failure of Mr. Wilson's team to carry out their promises was forcibly pointed out. Thus we see very soon and very clearly, the fruits of the non-socialist policy being pursued by the Government: inevitably and indpendent of the will of all concerned the stage is set for large-scale conflict between the Labour Party administration and the unions. The lesson which the left wing has tried to point out over the years: that there is no middle way between a bold socialist policy directed apainst and eating into capitalist interests,and right-wing, Tory-like policy has again been vindicated.
The job of the left wing, however, remains to translate their understanding of this problem into a policy which will win the majority of Labour supporters. Clearly, a principal component of this fight must be the creation of a national left wing of some dimension. In the constituencies we have the political understanding of such questions as Vietnam, in the unions we have the possible mass base for a national left wing, The wedding of these two forces, around 4 policy which will in the eyes of the mass of labour supporters be a real alternative to Mr. Wilson's, is the job of the day. The left in the C.L.P.s must take up every industrial issue as it comes up; the trade unionists must go into the C.L.P.s and provide the existing left with valuable reinforcement. Let the T.G.W.U. (and other unions) form itself into a national fraction fighting politically for its objectives and the whole balance of forces within the Labour Party would be changed.