On eve of L.P. conference INSTIRUTION WAGES CLASH

EDITORIAL THE UPSURGE of strike activity by the European working class and the growing international monetary crisis form an appropriate backcloth for the Labour Party Conference which opens in Brighton Only a pale reflection of these events will show at the conference, but the question of wages seems cerain to be high on the agenda.

A back-door right-wing attempt to change last year's overwhelming vote against the incomes policy is already provoking a major row in the Party's leaderSunday, September 28 Assemble 2 p.m. at Palace Pier, Brighton Meeting 4 p.m. at West Theatre ship.

A small section has been introduced into the policy statement 'Agenda for a Generation' which states:

'We believe in the vital importance of strengthening the prices and incomes policy. It serves an essential function in keeping our industrial costs competitive; and it is vital in contributing to the achievement of a . fairer distribution of incomes.' The section emphasizes that the government cannot abdi"ite ", responsibilities in coni vind....

More laws 'Agenda for the Seventies' now accepts the need for further prices and incomes legislation and stresses the need for the Prices and Incomes Board.

Thus, the basic policy statement for submission to this year's conference directly violates the party's own policy, decided by an overwhelming 5,098,000 votes to 1,124,000.

If anyone has any doubts about the Prices and Incomes Board's role its latest report on the pay award at British Insulated Callendars Cablesshould dispel them.

The board recommends that the 6 per cent negotiated rise is unacceptable without further big productivity concessions. As it stands, the deal is 'not satisfactory'.

Not only is the document opposed to Labour Party policy, it also contradicts the decision of the Trades Union Congress earlier this month to oppose all wage freeze legislation.

No influence Now not only is the conference unable to influence government policy, but its own basic policy document opposes its own policy.

All the contempt of the Labour leadership for democratic decisions is summed up in this incident.

These same people were the self-appointed standardAND YOUNG SOCIALISTS DEMONSTRATE in Brighton CELEBRATE 'WORKERS' PRESS' out on September 27, 1969 be on policy bearers of 'democratic socialism' against Trotskyism in the Labour Party. They campaigned to expel Trotskyists from the party on the grounds that we were 'anti-democratic'.

The tables are now turned. Wilson's bureaucratic supporters are forced to carry out the most viciously antidemocratic manoeuvres to bolster their position.

Stronger

Trotskyism, on the other hand, has become stronger through its continual fight for principles and against bureaucracy.

The Workers' Press is dedito continuing the struggle against bureaucrary• in the workers' movement and the construction of a revolutionary alternative to the Wilson traitors and heir allies.

Wage fight

German poll

AS THE West German election of September 28 approached, the big wages offensive has brought main political parties into quite open and united of sition to the German working class.

The present coalition government of the Christian Democrats (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) agreed at an extraordinary meeting of the Cabinet on September 23 to postpone negotiations on the wage claim by 1,200,000 public service employees until after the election.

In the few days prior to the Cabinet meeting the SPD and the CDU had been manoeuvring on this question, trying to make political capital out of it.

Talks

The SPD, led by Herr Willy Brandt, had been demanding the immediate opening of negotiations and the conceding of the demands.

But both parties have moved to a united position in postponing negotiations on the claim by the public employees, most of whom belong to the 900,000-strong Public Services and Transport Union.

The men of the west German army and navy have put in a parallel claim to the public employees.

This follows, of course, hard on the wave of unofficial strikes involving millions of miners, steel and engineering Problem Whatever party or combination of parties wins the election on Sunday their main problem will be the stability VAUXHALL MOTORS Work to rule over penalties VAUXHALL workers moved into action this, against the company's threat to push through a clause' wage deal in its Luton, Dunstable and mere Port plants.

A mass meeting of 4,000 members of the nated Union of Engineering and Foundryworkers from the Merseyside plant on Wednesday voted by a big majority to work to rule immediately and to impose a complete overtime But the Ellesmere Port workers rejected their shop stewards' recommendation of sater he outer pay gre current pay agreement ends.

A major reason for this was I.M.F. report nervous of working class THE International Mone- The IMF criticizes Gertary Fund's annual report man government policy and published in Washington and the Japanese yen are last week indicates that both seriously over-valued. the world monetary system Britain and the United is once more on the edge States are praised for trying of crisis. to correct their external WHILE price-rises slash vorking-class family incomes Imost to subsistence level and the Labour. government announces Sanana! things are on the up and up for chief executives of-for example - the Plessey telecommunications combine.

And Plessey workers, faced with work-study proposals, will look in vain for 'justifications' for last year's 25 per cent pay rise for managing director Mr John Clark.

According to Plessey's annual report, Mr Clark-one of whose hobbies is fying hellBy The Edit 'penal Elleshints strongly that the mark deficits and combat inflaON THE UP AND PLESSEY CHIEFS copters'—had his pay bumped Of his £66,653 total earnings, stressed the report! */,44U was given because In previous years-when he was only getting £50,144—he had been underpaid !

His brother, home operations director Mr Michael Clark, got between £52,50l and £55,000 (well, what's £2,699 between friends?).

It's hardly surprising that last year Plessey donated £11,020 to the Conservative Party and £10,000 to the 'free enterprise' British . United Industrialists group. tion, but the Report says, 'among other industrial countries few have so far made an active use of fiscal instruments to counteract overheating'.

The IMF fears that the Bonn government's monetary policy is aggravating already high interest rates.

Even after the elections the Germans may still refuse to revalue the mark, particularly after the recent strike wave which threatens to end the 'miraculous' German boom.

Fund directors hope to meet the crisis with Special Drawing Rights (SDR) or 'paper gold'.

Yet there is little firm agreement among west European countries about the value and distribution of SDRs.

And on these key matters the Fund Report has little to say.

None of these problems can be answered purely by ingenious schemes.

The employers' can only tackle their international crisis through a renewed onslaught on the working class.

This realization underlies much of the nervousness and tension so evident in the IMF Report. in the immediate future. death of Trotsky.

founder of the Bolshevik 1938.

dered by a Stalinist agent on August 20, 1940.

Standing, historically speak- of the Fourth International ing, on the shoulders of Marx and is the foundation stone and Engels, Lenin and Trotsky upon which the Socialist forged a party and a pro- Labour League is building the gramme that today inspires mass revolutionary party in and arms the entire working Britain. class and colonial people for the historic task of the over- • PAGE 4 COL. 5 → throw "of capitalism and the emancipation of mankind.

Their life's work was fused into a single whole in the crucible of the Russian Revolution and the struggle to build the Third Communist International.

The counter - revolutionary Stalinist bureaucracy undermined and betrayed that work.

After Lenin's untimely death it was left to Trotsky and the Left Opposition to carry on the heroic struggle against Stalinism which, in the years Name that followed, cold-bloodedly butchered the majority of the rantual Committas of tha Ral. Central CommuCe Ul LE DUI- Address shevik Party during the period the infamous Moscow Trials.

In this foul deed Stalin enjoyed the wholehearted support of the present leadership of the British Communist Party, whilst Trotsky went on to found the Fourth Interthe absence of the plant's 3,000. National Union of Vehicle Builders' members, laid off by the management two weeks ago as a result of its dispute with 400 press operators.

Many workers felt that the rehicle builders, who are equally affected by the company's proposed deal, should have been brought into the meeting.

the start I'm not despondent,' Ellesmere Port convenor Alan Baker told the Workers' Press on Wednesday night.

'This is just the start of the struggle. The situation is still very fluid-there can be big developments in the next two weeks.' After returning to work, one section of workers-from 629 division - clocked out on Wednesday after the management toured the plant telling stewards that if the overtime ban and work-to-rule was not lifted workers would be sent home.

'Unfortunately, said Alan Baker, 'we inherited the Measured-Day Work system— it was already in operation when the Ellesmere Port plant was built. But all this is now coming into question.

'I don't think there's a single worker who's in favour of the company's new proposals. What we need is united action with Luton-and that means educating the membership throughout the combine' Ultimata to return to normal working have now gone out from the management to members of both the main unions at Ellesmere Port.

This can be a powerful factor in bringing together the press operators' fight with that against the company's pernicious proposals for a 'penal clause' deal. of the economy in the face of the big wages movement.

The German ruling class will be looking to the SPD, whether it wins the election or not, to play a part through its ties with the unions in heading off this movement.

Divert

The SPD could do this if the CDU is able to form a government on its own by trying to divert the German workers' struggles behind a fake parliamentary SPD opposition to the new government.

Alternatively if the SPD finds itself in office it would THE LIFE of John Campbell, who died (aged 74) a week ago, is a case study in the history of British Stalinism.

The most important aspect of Campbell's political career is not his collection of First World War medals, nor his involvement the 1924 "Campbell Case, which helped to bring down the first MacDonald coalition.

These things have naturally been blown up in the capitalist press (as indeed they have in the 'Morning Star'), but they only serve to divert our attention from the real role that he and his co-leaders of the British Communist Party played in the workers' moveDEFENDED POLICY Campbell represented Stalinism in most right-wing. and virulently anti-Trotskyist form.

He was never happier than when defending the latest right-wing switch in Stalinist policy or explaining away the total massacre of the Leninist 'Old Guard' in the Soviet Communist Party by Stalin.

Always very close to social democracy in his political outlook, he recoiled sharply from the ultra-left line of 'social fascism' spelled out at the ermany inevitably carry out a similar betrayal to that of the Wilson government in Britain.

But the crisis has now developed to such a stage that the room for the SPD to carry out such a role is very limited, now that the working class is on the move.

This militancy has also expressed itself in the determined working-class opposition to the neo-Nazi National Democratic Party (NPD).

Six times in eight days anti-Nazi demonstrators clashed violently with police protecting the NPD rallies.

Von Thadden, NPD leader, notwithstanding the protection of his bullet-proof glass cage, has had to give up speaking at public meetings.