The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-05-04
By R. PAINE DUTT 1ondon)

On May 30th takes place the first
general election in Britain since that
of 1924, which led to the fall of the
Macdonald labor government and
its replacement by the Baldwin con-
sentative government. In the five
years interval between those two
dates there have taken place the
General Strike and the Anglo-Soviet
break, the war on the Chinese Revo-
luton, the growth of Anglo-Amer-
lean antagonism, Locarno and the
return to the Gold Standard, the
continued economic depression, the
Trade Union Act and the Mond Con-
ferences, the completed social demo-
cratic Transformation of the Labor
Party, and the new line of the Com
munist Party. 1t is a whole period
of history that is closing, and a
new period that is opening, at the
time of this election.
Crisis Big Issue.
In general, the dominant issue Of
the election is the problem of the
British economic crisis, the mass I'M
employment and depression of the
basic industries, and consequent
weakening of the international posi-
ton of British capitalism, which has
continued unbroken now for nearly
nine years. This issue, raising in
turn ever more sharply the class
issue of capitalism and the working
class, has governed in successive
forms the past three general cleo
tions, of 1922, of 1928 and 1924.
In 1922, it led to the collapse of
the Lloyd George Liberal Party and
the return of the conservatives I'M
der Bonar Law on a program of
tranquility"
In 1928, it led to the attempt Of
Baldwin, the successor of Bonar Law
as the leader of the conservative
party, to carry through a program
of protection as the solution of the
crisis; and the defeat of this, and
the growth of the labor vote, led to
the temporary formation of the la
Dor" government with capitalist sup
port. In 1924, the failure and fall
of the Labor government led to the
return of the Baldwin Conservative
government.
Today, this issue enters onto a
new phase. The special character
of the new phase is the question of
capitalist naturalization, which is
now at last beginning to advance
seriously in Britain. The demand for
active industrial reconstruction has
now become urgent. All three of the
governing parties, Conservative,
Liberal and Labor, are ardent advo-
Gates of capitalist naturalization,
and basically at one; but they diff
fer as to the methods of its appli-
cation, and particularly, with regard
to the role of the state, and on fl
nancial and credit policy. Thus the
immediate issue of the election turns
on the forms and methods of CAPT
talist naturalization. The working
class opposition to capitalist ration
alization is voiced solely by the
Communist Party, which for the
first time enters the election as a
fully independent factor. In this
way, the General Election of 1929
brings forward more sharply than
ever before the whole issue of CAPT
talist reconstruction on the one side,
with it's consequences of intensified
exploitation of the workers and
rapid advance to war, and on the
other side, the working class fight
against capitalism, expressed for the
first time on clear and independ-
ent program of revolutionary class
struggle against all the capitalist
parties.
New Stage of British Crisis.
On the surface view, the British
economic situation shows little
change from five years ago. The in
dustrial depression continues I'M
broken, and, indeed, slightly de-
creased. Production and trade in
1928 were below the levels Of 1924.