continued from last week THE THOUGHT OF WALTER PADLEY

continued from last week "Extensive public works of social value - for example the building in the post-war period of five or six million houses - can be operated only if the banking system is socialised and the bank credit is not subject to interest charges as at present. It is important to remember that an extension of credit is merely a matter of book-keeping, and that the only real cost involved is paper, ink and clerical labour, So long as materials and men are available, there is no limit to useful work which may be undertaken, once we are determined to do away with the artificial limits imposed within capitalism by the fetter private profit. A cheap credit policy will also attract the support of the intermediate layers in society - farmers, small businessmen, shopkeepers, etc - thus helping to maintain industrial activity and the food supply, while it will make possible an immediate extension of the social services, "Let us emphasise once again that this policy alone cannot solve the economic problem of our time. Only full Socialism can do that. While practising the expansionist technique, a Socialist Government must push ahead with a policy of socialisation. But Socialism will triumph only if the Socialists can make their policy synonymous in the minds of the people with full employment, social security and a decent standard of life. Therein lies the significance of this transitional policy. "Tentative suggestions, or even blueprints, are useless unless they have movements behind them, And this raises the problem of power, which is inseperably bound up with the vexéd question of unity on the Left. The only straightforward solution is to be found in the vision of Keir Hardie and the pioneers of the Labour movement, They foresaw an all-in federation of the Left to which the Trade Unions, Socialist Societies and Co-operatives could affiliate, The Labour Party was intended to meet this need, but since 1916 it has steadily become less of a federation and more of a disciplined party, practising black-listing and heresy hunting. .... " It may be asked, if this is what Mr. Padley thinks, why was it Frank Cousins~ who resigned from the Government and not Walter Padley? We should perhaps be fair, and explain that these very considerable thoughts were written down a little while ago: in 1944, to be precise, in the Left Book Club booklet "The Economic Problem of the Peace. Some water has gone under the bridge since then and, judging by last year's TUC, to which Mr, Padley was fraternal delegate from the Labour Party, various other fluids seem to have passed through Mr, Padley. In case he has forgotten what he used to think, we think it worthwhile to remind him. It might also be thought that others in the Labour Movement could well do with reminding, too. Some of us, who have been expelled from, or disciplined by, the Party for saying very similar things, would like to hear from him: would he, in deference to his own Socialist past, be pleased to advocate our reinstitution to full party rights, if we confine our comments on public affairs to discreetly chosen quotations from his works? I, for one, would be happy to take up the challenge. (* of which he was relieved during the recent mini-reshuffle - Ed.)