Where should socialists go now? (1995)

Editorial from the February 1995 issue of the Socialist Standard

There will be no basic change in the structure of society unless people join together and bring it about. The change from production based on profit to production solely for use will not happen on its own.

For most of this century workers looking for change have joined, supported or voted for. the Labour Party, entertaining the vague hope that it will be the vehicle for introducing a new kind of social order. Experience has taught most of them that they are wrong in expecting Labour to oppose the profit system. Those who vote Labour in the next general election will not be doing so in the expectation of bringing about socialism, but of giving the Tories a bloody nose.

At its coming special conference the Labour Party will throw out Clause Four, despite the cries of its left-wing, and with that hollow aim gone they can wipe even from the back of their minds any claim to stand for something other than the profit system.

Some went into the Communist Party. Many were genuine workers who wanted to see this rotten capitalist society destroyed. But Leninism and the belief in so-called socialist countries (which were in fact, state- capitalist) wasted their efforts. Now the Communist Party is dead.

There are the numerous Trotskyist sects, but what do they really stand for? They all tell workers to vote Labour at election time. They all stand for reforms of capitalism, never advocating the socialist demand of the abolition of the wages system. And they all have leaders and followers, with parties like the SWP appearing more like a cult than a movement, with internal opposition to the leadership banned and crazy policies handed down to the followers as party dogma.

There is one party in Britain which stands for socialism. Don’t judge us by our claims, but on the record of what we have said and done throughout our history. Never once have we swerved from the simple objective of organising politically and democratically to end capitalism and establish socialism.

Over the past year we have been heartened by a number of contacts in Britain and overseas, which, though all too few, have come from socialists who can see that we are the only party worthy of their principled support. Our intention for 1995 is to build on that and make clear to our fellow workers, be they young or old, black or white, blue-collar or white-collar, women or men. that there is one party for socialists to throw their energies into: the Socialist Party.