BRITISH LABOUR POLICY

Dominion, Volume 29, Issue 198, 19 May 1936, Page 13

BRITISH LABOUR POLICY

A Series of New Books ATTEMPTING TO PLAN FOR PROSPERITY "The Will and (he Way tu Socialism,” by Major C. H. Attlee, M.P.; “labour’s Way to Plan Prosperity,” by David 11. Grenfell. M.P.; "Labour's Way to Use the Land,” by Tom Williams, M.P. Volumes of the "Labour Shows the Way” series (London: -ethuen). Added to the already large mass of presumably authoritative literature on the aims aud methods of the British Labour Party comes this scries of eight small books expounding the party’s Socialist policy. Although each volume is very short, both the problem to be faced and the desired solution are presented in clear and unequivocal terms. Work like this raises politics to a higher level. The main impression to be gained is that the 1931 split in the party has purged it of the old brigade who could think only in terms of higher wages and better conditions. Empasis is now laid on Socialist reorganisation and reform. Major Attlee carefully explains that though the Labour Party challenges the capitalist basis of society, which all other parties accept, there is no question of violence in the challenge: “The Labour Party rejects the method of violence and the device of dictatorship, and seeks to gain its end by converting the majority to its policy ... by utilising the welltried constitutional methode of democracy.” Major Attlee presents an analysis of social conditions which is remarkable both for its succinct expression aud for a judicious interpretation of psychology i cal diseases such as fear in terms of their’ economic background. From this he passes on to make at great length the rather stupid but often-repeated claims that capitalism is based on scarcity, while we have to-day attained the Age of Abundance. The only sense in which capitalism is based on scarcity is the sense in which all systems must be based on scarcity, and springs from the elementary fact that we do not wake up to find that Nature, in addition to bathing and shaving us just before we woke up, has provided in a neat row before us everything that we will need for complete enjoyment of the day. The truth behind this reiterated fallacy is that while capitalism encourages sacrificing present advantage to future progress; Socialists lay greater stress on the enjoyment of today. In only one place is there the slightest mention of the fallacy that capitalism "fails to distribute adequate, purchasing power,” which threatens to drive the New Zealand Labour Party into the hands of moneymongers. Subsequent proposals for reform are entirely unrelated to this tenet, and indeed show a firm realisation of the fact that the plenty-poverty paradox is due not to the shortage but to the distribution of purchasing power. Concrete reform proposals are centred on the creation of a National Planning Council to regulate industry according to other considerations than profit-mak-ing. Under it, boards are to be set up to manage the principal industries, to control and encourage foreign trade, and to control banking and finance. An Agricultural Commission will have power to acquire land on a basis that does not give the owner the benefit of future accruals of community-created value. This programme is of course to be gradually adopted, and compensation to present owners is explicitly allowed. Inequalities of income are to be reduced by the use of taxation and wage-fixing proposals. Much consideration is given to imports of primary produce, a question so important to New Zealand. Mr. David Grenfell exposes the unfairness whereby ‘‘We have paid foreign countries excessively high prices for some products . . . but we have accepted butter from New Zealand at a price far below the figure that would be regarded as fair and reasonable between friendly neighbours.’ But Mr. Tom Williams makes it very plain that in planning agriculture England is to be considered first: “We must cease to allow the Dominions and foreign countries to exploit the best of our niaiket.” He would aim at expanding particularly meat and milk production, while he would allow wheat and sugar-beet growing to decay. While New Zealand s frozen moat exports might be reduced by this policy, Mr. Williams aims at expanding milk consumption to such an extent that our butter exports would probably not suffer. At present 40 per cent, of the cows in England are affected with bovine tuberculosis, leading to the death of over 2500 people a year.