Deng ciass over the last cecTHE RIGHT wing leadership of the Labour Party ism, looking to European inas the favoured option Blair's programme is to large sections of the this as a sign of Labour's tion into the whole project bourgeoisie is prepared to large sections of the welfare question is posed of what police are given massive new powers, and the estabThe ease at which Blair throughout Europe. bour Party is a reflection of for the ruling class.
These defeats for the left The Labour Party still has its year but a reflection of sig- port of large sections of the Labour movement bureaucracy to implement his proCretle The real test will come ment his programme in office, the real defeat would be if Blair can smash Labour's link with the working class.
Reflection
It is true that the Labour Party left is weak. However. there has not yet been a historic defeat. The Clause Four nificant setback, does not mark a qualatative change in the party. Any upturn in workers' struggle is still likely to have a reflection inside the party.
When struggles reemerged in the mid-1980s -likle the miners' strike -they attempted to find political expression in the Labour Party. Much of the far-left tailed to challenge either the Bennice or manant isader ship of these struggles.
What both Bennism and Miltant shared was a misconception that socialism could be achieved through bourgeois-democratic means, and on a municipal level.
Even when the Labour left did attempt to mobilise workers, it was as a stage army to support change through local government. rather than to rally workers we must not make te same mistake this time. The struggles of youth and the specially oppressed will find a political expression.
That is to say they will have to find a way to implement their demands. Whilst wards parliament to bring about change they will continue to test the limits of bourgeois democracy.
That means taking up the struggles of workers and the oppressed within the LaSOCIALIST OUTLOOK No. 93, November 11, 1995, Page 10