The Socialist Programme, published by the Independent Labour Party in November 1923. tells us that
general unemployment has nothing to do with tariffs or free trade. It is determined by the monetary policy pursued by a country and not by its tariff policy.
So they looked round to see if they could find some countries pursuing an ILP monetary policy: and sure enough they found several.
That is shown by the fact of unemployment in the world today. There is none to speak of in France and Belgium, very little in Italy, nor has there been ever since the war. Why? Because the Government and central banks of those countries have never restricted credit and thus destroyed the purchasing power of a large part of their population.
America, according to the ILP. was not merely perfect, it was better than perfect; not only no unemployment, but a shortage of labour.
The banks have lent freely, and there is now an actual shortage of labour . . . There is no unemployment and no depression in the United States today.
The ILP was. of course, largely wrong about its facts and wholly wrong about the effects of applying its capitalist credit theories. In due course they had to admit this, and a writer in the New Leader said of the American banking system:
I gather from some enquiries that we in England have gravely overestimated the scientific work of this banking organisation.(Brailsford, New Leader 28 February 1928)
(From article "Lands Without Unemployment" — Socialist Standard. January 1933)
No comments:
Post a Comment