SOCIALISTS PLANS

Evening Post, Volume CXIV, Issue 123, 21 November 1932, Page 9

SOCIALISTS PLANS

TAKING OVER BANKS

A FULL-BLOODED PROGRAMME

HENDERSON'S APPEAL

(From f'The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, 7th October.

At the Labour Party Conference at Leicester a resolution was passed by an overwhelming majority to take under national control and ownership the whole system of banking, currency, and credit, the Bank-of England, and the joint stock banks.

Dr. Hugh Dalton moved the adoption of a policy with four cardinal points:—

(1) Th& stabilisation of wholesale prices. ■ :

(2) The public ownership and control of the Bank of England.

. (3) The creation of a national investment board, and

. (4) The taking of emergency powers by the third Socialist Government lo deal with, any attempt to obstruct its designs. . ' ; .. . ' • •

Full-blooded Socialists. found this inadequate. The Miners' Federation, the railwaymen, and other larga organisations, voted, in favour of an amendment, backed strenuously by Sir Stafford Ciipps and Mr. Wise, to bring all joint stock banks within the scheme. Sir Stafford's speech had an undoubted effect, on the vote, and when the decision was announced the committee looked upon a demonstration of cheering from the floor. , ■ POLICY,OF ACTION. Sir Charles Trevelyan moved a resolution declaring that whenever another Labour Government takes office, with or without power, "definite" Socialist legislation must be immediately •promulgated, and that the/Party shall stand or fall in the House of Commons on the principles in which it- has faith." ■■:- ■ •■•■'-. The keynote of the Conference, said Sir Charles,-was that they must have Socialism in fact' and deed as well as word. Some day a Labour Government would 'come into power. Would it'want to do small things and skirmish for a -time, or would it go straight on to the big tffings1? .

There should be no mistake when the chance came again. They did not know who the leaders would be, tint there should be no mistake as to what they had to do. "Do not fritter away, "he exclaimed, ''the1 first months when enthusiasm is at its height and our opponents are staggered by our successes. Have we hot had our lesson? "We have got rid of MaeDoriaia now, and isit hot good that we should here lay down a policy of action- that if he had been on the platform still would have shocked him. to the marrow of his timid soul"? ■ ■ - ■ , . MB. HENDERSON'S WARNING. ■ Mr. Henderson said that if the conference accepted'the resolution-it would tie its hands. - The conference had alTeady agreed that, in the event of another / Labour Government being formed; whether- as a minority or a. majority Government, -no step should Tab taken until the conference had been "consulted. ■ '.' .-. . . The resolution laid it down that a definite, clearly defined course ' should be taken on the assumption of office. (Cheers.) lie thought that in accepting that position they would be making a profound mistake. ■ •'■■' ■■- Their best safeguard was that'they should meet Knowing the actual circumstances in. which the/party was called on; to form a Government, that they should solemnly look at the actual situiation and realise what were the immediate needs of the moment, and then decide—and nobody else. would decide what, course was to be followed. It was his duty, as one holding the responsible position of their secretary, to remind them that he had given a very definite pledge in the conference, which he .believed was accepted unanimously. He warned them that they ■were,-being asked to do something in contradiction of that decision, and if they did it>he thought they would regret it. :■■■•■(.:-■'.

Another battle royal took place between the platform and the floor. This: time-the platform retreated-after the debate liad gone some way, rather than face defeat. It has'been a bad day for the platform, and- the o]d leaders of the' movement do -not look overpleased with themselves to-night.' This second rebuff to the platform was on the question of the nationalisation of transport. . , ■

•The report on the"-"National Planning of • Transport," published some weeks ago, was brought forward by Mr. Herbert Morrison. It asked for unified ownership of all transport undertakings to be administered by a National Transport Board. , It did not provide expressly for "Workers' Control," and this point was taken up with great spirit by the Transport and General Workers'.Union. In the end Mr. Morrison, after eonsuiting .with his colleagues on the platform, adopted a conciliatory-attitude and agreed to take the report "back for further consideration, especially on the point of "Workers-' Control." ALL-BED GOVEBNMENT. "Gradualism is dead," comments "The Times." "The next Labour Government, whether or not it commands a majority in the House of Commons—and no eye can yet discern itis bidden by the conference to proceed at once with' definite Socialist legislation and to stand or fall by the result In effect'the resolution was a retrospective, vote of censure on the Labour Governments that have already held office. Their methods and policies were wrong. It was not good Socialism to garner a harvest of social reform from, a House of Commons elected in the main by constituencies that rejected ,- Socialism. This ■, was 'temporising,' frittering away the enthusiasm of success and- failing to take advantage of the dismay of opponents. But the conference has' said good-bye to all that. The next.Labour Government will be all red, and pledged to ride for. an ignominious fall if it takes office a day before the country is as Socialist as the Labour Party conference.

"The conference was sitting in judgment on the past—a past in which Mr. Henderson has had a great share of the responsibility—and it went on recklessly, devoid of imagination to forecast the future, and deaf to the warnings derived from experience. This is what happens when mass meetings shape party policies and gusts of uninstrueted enthusiasm or passion or even persona] resentments are permitted to' take control..

"Between last gear's conference and this there has been a General Election which gave an unmistakable warning to those who would tinker with the financial security and the commercial credit of tho country. The executive committee regarded the warning so far as to limit its proposal of! nationalisation to the central bank. But the conference, having abandoned gradualism for Socialism-in-one-Parliament or nothing at all, insisted on the all-red policy and riveted it on tlie necks of reluctant leaders. It has not been a week of sober politics."