The New Left is Born—No Wise Men (Christmas Crackers)

At Monday's inaugural meeting of the New Left, new ideas(?) spluttered forth and fizzed out like damp squibs at a washed-out November 5.

Banishing the spectre of the Socialist Labour League, the New Left's verbal exorcist, Edward P. Thompson comforted his audience by assuring them, 'that we are proud of the fact that there is no monolithic unity in our movement.' Amid the polite 'hear, hears, that greeted this sally, one unkind person commented 'or programmatic unity either!'

He explained the New Left as an 'open movement of action and discussion' and 'not as a party or a faction.' True enough, if it is neither a party nor a faction then it will certainly be open. There should be no shortage of discussion either. I do feel that there might be a shortage of action though.

Miss L. Howard, a London student, released a profound if rather pessimistic and unconstructive statement on the meeting when she declared: 'Society is horrible.'

She saw the New Left as 'the link between the two age groups in the Labour Party.' I hope some bright young things don't interpret this to mean that the new magazine's pages will give them an opportunity to demonstrate how useful they could be on the staff at Transport House.

Acknowledging that 'the struggle of the working class goes on hourly', Ernie Roberts, assistant general secretary of the Amalgamated Engineering Union, soon put troubled minds at rest. 'The main battlefield is the Trades Union Congress, the Labour Party Conference and the General Election,' said Mr. Roberts.

A consoling thought. At least on Mr. Robert's battlefields there will not be any shot and shell flying around for another 12 months. In the latter case for five years. Even then it will be hot air, resolutions and ballot papers. Hardly to be described as dangerous missiles.

When Lawrence Daly got up to speak anticipations rose. Here was a working miner with a long record of activity in the West Fife Coalfield. Daly, to coin a sporting colloquialism, flattered to deceive.

'Last Wednesday I had the unhappy job of telling a mass meeting of 1,100 miners at my pit that 200 were going to be transferred to another pit—16 to 18 miles away. There will be no contract jobs for them at that pit. They will have to go on transport work. For many of them this means a cut of 25s. per day in their earnings,' he told the meeting.

We waited for the New Left's programme on pit closures and transfers. Daly related how they were organizing local agitation and were protesting to the National Coal Board.

There was no mention of a progamme to unite all miners against sackings and transfers that slash their wages.

Daly is for Home Rule for Scotland. I cannot make my mind up whether he is cultivating chauvinistic Celts or appeasing antagonistic Anglos. I do feel that it is rather remote from socialism.

The audience of well over 800 did not get a socialist programme. They were offered a copy of the new magazine—normal price 3s. 6d.—for £1, autographed by all the platform.