Behind the CBI 'boom'

THE GI IVERNMENT and the CBI are deliberat ely boosting the inflationary prepare conditions for a possible boom to Election in the summer or General autumn. As in the pre-election boom of 1963, the inflationary taps are being turned on without any regard to the runaway balance-of-payments deficit.

Because of the vastly altered circumstances since then, this boom will have even more catastrophic consequences. But with the crisis of capitalism rapidly worsening, the Tories have to clear a path for the extreme measures that will be necessary in the all-out trade war that is developing.

This means smashing the wages will break out in the autumn as ceaseless rise in prices.

But standing in their way is the organized strength of the trade union movement. The frontal assault through the National Industrial Relations Court has failed. The introduction of corporatist wage controls with the treacherous connivance of the TUC leaders is not getting them very far and has stirred some dangerous signs of revolt.

The Tories are therefore preparing the ground for getting a new mandate and installing a hard-line government of a kind not seen before in modern times in this country. They are utilizing the inflationary boom and the talks with the trade union leaders for creating an atmosphere to disarm the working class.

This temporary boom is being created entirely by an arbitrary expansion of the money and credit supply. This has no foundation in real economic developments within the capitalist system which are all, in fact, pointing in the direction of deflation and trade recession.

But ever since the last war, the capitalist class has been haunted by fears of a return to the slump of the 1930s. In the conditions of the enormous gains made by the international labour movement after World War Il, the capitalist governments adopted the Bretton Woods system with its built-in tendency to inflation Led hv seemingly endless US economic expansion, capitalism reasserted itself over the western vorld and Japan. Now the price as to be paid in terms of uncontrollable inflation.

Since the American government officially in August 1971 welched on its huge dollar debts, which had fuelled the post-war boom, any semblance of order has gone out national monetary set-up. Faced with the consequences in of trade war, currency had ging Terms trade war. currency speculation, competitive devaluations or floating currencies, the Tories have conjured up the 'boom' by resorting to the money printing presses.

With other capitalist governments doing the same thing and standing Us dollar repansion, iadding the already has meant a still further huge growth to world money supply and as a result uncontrollable world-wide inflation.

Because of the critical condition of the international economy, the Tories' artificial boom • has had the inevitable result of record balance-of-payments deficits, i.e. Britain is becoming bankrupt in its accounts with overseas countries.

The last time the capitalist class did this on such a scale was in 1963, again under a Tory government, which was also the last time that the CBI's trends survey was so ebullient. It was also the year before the General Election.

The consequences then were the must severe economic crisis for the incoming Labour government leading eventually to devaluation and years of deflationBACK movement a result of the interABOUT 20 have been entrance of Corporation Surrey.

The main cause of the dispute is the suspension of a worker who refused to do blacked work. Manual workers at Weybridge banned overtime last Thursday (April 1. 26; over fringe benefits. that Weybridge aircraft men sit-in aircraft workers On Wednesday, May 2, a man occupying the main refused to do an overtime job the British Aircraft and-after being given half an hour to 'reconsider'-was sus. plant at Weybridge, pended.

The whole machine shop walked out, to be followed later by three other shops. All the workers were then suspended.

The manual deworkers are manding the . of. reinstatement A second dispute is about twodays lay-off pay caused when the factory closed due to a water shortage two weeks ago.

The workers want not only fall-back pay, but the average bonus for the two days which 2.50 3.23 now donaFund gh Street 7UG