BANKERS HAIL strike official WILSON

Speaking at the Lord Mayor's banquet on Thursday night according to 'The Guardian', Sir Leslie O'Brien, Governor of the Bank of England 'used language of almost unprecedented enthusiasm in support of the government policy on exports'.

What is the reason for Banker O'Brien's confidence in Wilson's export policies ?

On the previous day, WedOctober 15, another •ational Export Couricil had this to say about what he described as 'the improved trade position'. According to a P.A. report he said:

Pain 'Britain's improved trade position• had not been achieved "without some pain". Unemployment figures had risen, purchasing power alone.

had been damped down, and the supply of money cur- tailed. Production in some and dramatic turn.

parts of industry had eased off creating surplus capacity, not all of which was suitable patrol.

for export.

"New investment in plant and machinery has been disappointing and the effect of this must be felt in due course, since our ability to remain competitive in world markets ... will ultimately depend on industry being equipped with modern wouldn't fight.' machinery and production processes".

'Unstable labour relations in some leading export industries and in transport and the docks had been an un- ning we could think of.' welcome feature. On the other hand, there had been the increased price competi•tiveness of industry after In other words the government has tightened the economic screws on the working class and this is the basic reason for the spate of strikes at the present time.

It is not the workers or so-called agitators who are responsible, but right-wing Labour leaders' policy of 30 million in U.S. "Moratorium' Workers march against war WEDNESDAY'S 'Vietnam Moratorium' brought millions onto the streets and campuses of the United States in opposition to the imperiulist war of aggression in Vietriam.

The rallies were so vast | and widespread that even a White House official had to admit that at least 30 million people were involved.

The Pentagon made it known in advance that 20,000 croops were available for riot duty' in the Washington area In Vietnam itself, the antiwar movement took a new Front line soldiers, about 15 in all, wore black arm bands as they marched on One soldier wearing a black band was in a platoon that Killed a Vietcong man and woman. He said: 'Now what good did pled They must think they're right or they 'It's my way of protesting' one of them told a reporter 'We wanted to do somehing, and this was the onl At the Tansonnhut airbase near Saigon, six US airmen also wore black bands round their wrists as they performed their duties. Their opposition to the couldnt let teis day to by without some sort of i are i the day way f the Vietnamese people ha von the admiration of ever those who have been sent to perialism or its puppet regime Matching resistance within the armed forces in Vietnam the changed West Germany Christian Democrats FURTHER signs of tension have become visible inside the recently defeated West German Christian Democratic Smarting after their defeat at the hands of the Social Democrats, its younger section, and those linked to Catholic workers, are becoming increasingly vocal in their attacks on the older party leadership.

Up to 1933, the church was able to organize many of its members into trade unions separate from • the socialist unions.

After 1945, pressure towards working-class unity was so great this tactic could not be repeated.

Even so, many older workers in the traditionally Catholic regions of the Ruhr and Bavaria continue to vote according to their religion and not their class.

Dying out

The steady rise in the Social Democratic vote since 1949 indicates the gradual dying out of that tradition as a new generation of workers comes of age.

The CDU leaders know that a section of the Catholic worker vote went over to the SPD, at the last election in crisis while it was not fully compensated by its gains from the right wing of the Free Democrats—now the junior partners in the Brandt coalition.

The CDU is a merger of nearly all the pre-Nazi capitalist parties.

It combines monopoly interests, religious groups, small traders, Catholic trade unionists and peasants—with big business firmly in control of the machine and the policies.

The new mood of militancy in the working class, which in fact spread to the Catholic regions in the Ruhr, is undoubtedly a factor in weakening this alliance.

Change

All the party's leaders and officials are talking about 'the need for change' having opposed it for the last 20 Its mass membership has declined to 280,000, as gainst 750,000 for the SPD.

Forces also pull hard to the right within the party, causing alarm in more moderate quarters.

Even Bruno Heck, CDU general secretary, has stated that if the party swings nationalist right, he will leave it.

There is no doubt that West Germany faces a major political shake-up.

The old political relationships, reflected in the 20-year co-existence of diflerent interests, under the umbrella of the CDU, will be shattered once the working class takes on the Brandt government and the big employers of the CDU.

Nazi 'killed

FRANZ PAUL STANGL has been charged with the murder of at least 400,000 Jews, it was announced at a press conference in Dusseldorf, West Germany, on Wednesday.

Prosecutor Joachim Heydenreich said that Stangl, in his post of commander of the Nazi death camp at Treblinka in Poland, had acted 'cruelly, perfidiously and out of base motives' in directing the mass murder of the camp's mainly Jewish inmates. mor hake nracr ORDER T firmed solidly their area executive's decision to strike on Monday if the surfaceworkers' claim is not met by then.

The strike is spreading rapidly through the South Wales coalfield, too.

French

strike too TEN THOUSAND iron miners in Lorraine, Eastern France, were due to strike on Friday over working conditions and wages.

"Cumberland's two collieries were stopped yesterday when 200 men who operate the power cages and power services staged a one-day strike.

Altogether more than 100,000 miners are on strike in the biggest coalfield stoppage since nationalization.

The miners are demanding a 40-hour week, including mealbreaks, and an increase in minimum rates of fl 7s. 6d. giving a minimum wage of £15 for surface and £16 for underground workers.

UNANIMOUS

So far, the National Union f Mineworkers has issued no tatement on the strike— other than the widely publicised remarks of president Sir Sidney Ford urging strikers to return to work.

The NUM Barnsley area panel, which represents 20,000 miners, has passed a unanimous vote of no confidence in Ford.

More than 200 Yorkshire strikers are travelling every day into Nottingham by car to pıcket pits which are still at work.

The present leadership of the NUM must be forced to make its position clear.

In particular, left-talking Lawrence Daly, NUM general secretary, must speak out.

Where do you stand in relation to the strike Mr Daly?