Evening star., 1952-03-13
Labor and Britoin's Budget

As just presented by Prime Minister Church.
HIS Conservative government, the new British
budget may help little to shore up the make
shift compromise that has been agreed upon
by the moderate and left-wing factions of the
opposition Labor Party. In the United King
dom, as In our own country, budget Is always
something that the "outs"-even when divided
on other issues-can seize upon as a point Of
unity for attacking the 'ins," and in this par
ticular instance the Lab1rites seem to be acting
accordingly in an anxious effort to avert an
internal split that could be politically disastrous
for them.
The possibility of such a split revolves
around the ambitious Aneurin Bevan and his
numerically small left-wing minority within the
Labor Party. In his opinion, although he favors
measure of defense, Britain should make a
sharp cutback in its projected rearmament pro-
gram in order to prevent any kind of retrench-
ment in social services. But the program which
is being pushed forward by, the Conservative
governments in fact the same program that
the Laborite majority brought into being while
Mr.. Attlee was Prime Minister. In attacking It,
therefore, and in voting against it In an effort
to scuttle it, the Bevanites have actually been
striking at that majority and challenging Mr..
Attlee's leadership.
In the British political system, such maverick
cardinal sin against party discipline That is
why MIR. Attlee has sought to have the Laborite
members of Parliament adopt motion censuring
the Bevanites and requiring them to file written
promises to adhere faithfully henceforth to deci-
sions reached by the majority But the party's
middle-of- the e-roaders-mindful of Mr.. Bevan's
threat that any action of that kind would lead
him to organize splinter group of independent
SocialiSts-have turned down the Attlee proposal
and forced through compromise. The compro-
mise-designed to head OH split that would
strengthen the Conservatives, as in the case of
Ramsay MacDonald's detection in l931-has
avoided an explosive cenSure vote and contented
itself with deploring Righteousness and restoring
the disciplinary standing orders that were sus-
pended in 1945 when Labor was elected to replace
Mr.. Churchill's wartime coalition government.
Like lot Of compromises. this one is less
than satisfactory to either side. In a sense it
constitutes defeat for MIR. Attlee because it
has ruled out his motion for immediate censure.
At the same time, however, it serves notice on
Mr.. Bevan and his followers that the standing
orders"-except in cases of conscientious objec-
ton founded on moral or religious beliefs
oblige them from now on to abide by the
decisions Of the Laborite majority, or face the
penalty Of being expelled from the party. Quite
obviously there is no real settlement here.
Unless the Bevanites are prepared to toe the
line, or unless the Attlee wing gives in to them,
decisive showdown, followed by split can
come whenever the rearmament issue is up for
q vote again.
Fortunately, from the standpoint Of the
Laborites,s that issue is out of the way for the
present, and they can display an appearance
Of unity by acting as one in an attack on the
Conservative budget-sa budget foreshadowing
more austerity III the form OF import slashes,
higher taxes for all but the lowest incomes. and
subsidy cuts boosting food prices. But the Attlee
and the Bevan factions. though they can join
in such an attack. are still as far apart as ever
on the defense program that makes these meas
ures imperative. Accordingly, lacking better
compromise than the one now in effect, 1t Is hard
to see how the party can avoid final internal
clash likely to weaken it for years to come.