CeSeEe from a London reader In the Janusry 13th issue of New Society, Mre Richard Gilbert had an article entitled the"The Left's Dilemma” which was by~lined: "The Radical Alliancets intervention in the Hull by-election is the strongest sign yet of left wing disillusionment with the Government. It is only one of several stirrings, in America as well as Britains" After dealing with the general position of the left wing he had this to say:
"More important than this society"(the soecalled Left of Centre Society) -"and far more influential is the Centre for Socialist Education (CSE). The CSE originated among left wing socialists who saw the need for a well informed and ideologicnl challenge to the rightwards drift . of the Government. In particular the idea of the CSE owed much to Ken Coates, formerly president of Nottingham Labour Party and editor of the socialist newspaper, The Week. Coates was expelled from the Labour Party after the Blackpool Conference. Transport House was especially upset by a daily bulletin issued at the conference, Briefing, which was produced by a coalition of active left wingers in which the writers of The Week were prominent, "For many socialists the party conference morked the end of the trance into which Wilson hid put the left. Out of the reappraisal came the idea and establishment of CSE. On its steering committee cre representatives of a wide spectrum of socialist journals » Voice of the Unions, New Left Review, and Views among them. Like The Week itself, CSE has strong union connections and its support tends to be stronger in’ the midlands and the north than in the London area, Its sims read like the early manifestoes of the New Left. The main difference is that whereas the New Left was hoping to influence the thought of a party in opposition, the CSE has to oppose the whole trend of the Labour Party in powere "eoseesocialists need to insist that they are concerned not with the shoring up of capitalism, but with its abolition end replacement by 2 socialist society based on common ownership and industrial as well as political democracy," "As its title indicates CSE is concentrating on education, Among its plans are the preparation of a "read in " on incomes policy in time for this yearts Trade Union Congress and a teach in on the Government and the trade unions. It is also preparing a "counter plan" to oppose the DEAs with a strategy of anti-capitalist reforms. Local branches of the CSE have been set up in a dozen towns and 15 more are in the process of being establishede A panel of lecturers is being drawn up and every edition of The Week bring news of new branches and activities. "The CSE is loyal to the Labour movement -lthough extremely critical of the Government's performance, This explains why it shows little enthus~ jasm for Radical Alliances Its principal aim is to provide the left with a detailed programme, a strategy end some sort of wnity. Its contacts with trade union activists may give the CSE eventually an importance comparable to that of the New Left in lote fifties,”