THE UNITED LABOR PARTY

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 8171, 12 July 1912, Page 4

THE UNITED LABOR PARTY

Continuing the discussion of the objects of the New Zealand Labor Party, the fourth clause in the objective is as follows: 4. To consolidate the political power of the workers in their own behalf, and to use their whole power (both political and economic) in negotiations with employers, in the courts, in municipal, county, and Parliamentary bodies, in international relations, and (if need be) in industrial revolt. There are two main points in this clause. The first is to combine in a single organisation both the economic and the political activities of the useful people. And the second is a statement of the various fields of operation in which this consolidated power shall be used. To-day there will be . considered the reasons for consolidating the political and economic activities into a single organisation. • 1. All economic questions,, like questions of hours, wages, and conditions of employment, sooner or later become Parliamentary questions, and whenever they do the Parliaments can be reached

only through political activity. Trades unions are most vitally interested in these matters, and therefore must be active in politics. And these matters do not concern one portion of the membership of the unions as against another, but do concern all of tho members of all of the unions alik©._ If all of tho -nterests of all of the unions are directly concerned in both economic and political activities, then effective organisation means a single national body, ready to servo tho cause of Labor with its full strength and in both directions. 2. If a single organisation is to undertake both the political an( j economic work in behalf of Labor, then_ all those who would be interested in either Ijno of work must ho given representation in the single central body. This opens the door for all those who are seeking for political democracy and for economic justice to join hands in a single organisation. 3. The interests of a local trade organisation are almost entirely in the direction of hours, wages, and conditions of employment, but as you depart from those interests which are purely local and approach those which are national you ar© all tho time going farther away from that which is. purely economic and industrial and approaching that which is political. But both locally and nationally tho larger share of those things which are of fundamental importance to Labor can he controlled by political action only. At tho recent meeting in New Zealand of an industrial body not allied with the United Labor Party and whose spokesmen have severely criticised this provision in the party’s constitution. throe-fourths of the measures ottered for discussion in theix annual conference were of such a nature that they could be brought about only by political action. If a purely economic organisation cannot fight its economic battles without resorting to political notion, then why not organise to fight the battles of the useful people wherever these' battles are fought, whether at the shops, the markets, or at the ballot-box. 4. The only others who have complained at this proposal are a certain small group of Socialists who recently held a national conference and_ took no action in any effort to organise to take any part in industrial disputes, decided to adhere to political activities only, and finally decided to go before th© country without any political platform whatsoever. Nothing is more ’ frequently on the lips of tho Socialists than th© assertion that the modern State is tho administrative agent of capitalist extortion, and in this there is no one ready to dispute the soundness of the position. But if this is true the political movement which is to displace tho extortionists’ control of tho State must bo, able to make the State the admimstra'tivo agent of tho ; institutions and agencies which without extortion are to serve the common good. , But tho principal agencies of public service axe industrial, commercial, and educational. Tlio political party which is to effectively administer the powers of the State for the common good must b© intimately related to th.© industries of the country. The Labor organisations are' rapidly becoming the very agencies which must bo depended upon to render the most important services in the actual . administration of the great industries in which they are employed. If this is so, in what possible way can tho training of to-day prepare for these great services of tomorrow more than, by making these Labor organisations the most active factors ip securing control of tho Government, in the administration of which they must be depended upon for so large a share m tho W< To-morrow there will bo discussed in this place th© rest of the paragraph quoted abovo.