28.01.1999

CPGB agrees perspectives

The Communist Party aggregate at the weekend discussed Perspectives ’99: that is, our plans for the coming year.

While, in the words of the agreed document, “we must remain alive to the possibilities ... and prepare to dramatically change our tempo and form of work”, unlike others on the left we are not expecting an immediate global crash, political crisis or a sudden upsurge in working class consciousness.

The world economy is certainly fragile and in Britain it is touch and go whether New Labour’s spending plans will be thrown into disarray by depression, but there is no automatic correlation between difficulties for the bourgeoisie and a working class fightback. Disillusionment with the mainstream could just as easily lead to a growth in influence of the far right as the phenomenon of workers flocking to the revolutionary left.

Thus “our world view will not go into crisis if at the end of the 12 months the situation of our movement is broadly the same or worse”. While bourgeois triumphalism after the fall of the Soviet Union has been wiped away by the world financial crisis, that does not mean that the period of reaction has come to an end as well. The collapse of ‘communism’ has left the idea of any kind of working class alternative discredited. Therefore, for the CPGB, “continuity and preservation are important watchwords”.

However, with the influential Weekly Worker at the centre of our work, we will continue to intervene actively on the left - in particular whenever there is a break from New Labour. As Blair continues to move right at a rate of knots, such breaks, by definition, will be to the left. A motion to that effect was overwhelmingly passed by the aggregate - there was only one vote against.

This comrade thought that we should be more selective in where we seek to intervene. The comrades cited the obvious negative characteristics of such splits and labelled some of their leaders “rightwing”. Clearly the majority felt that, while new broad organisations fall far short of what is required, they are all characterised, particularly at the time of their formation, by a certain fluidity. Many who join them are open to new ideas.

Perspectives ’99 outlined a more carefully planned and coordinated CPGB intervention in the trade unions. But, as the agreed document stressed, “We are in the unions to fight politically. The unions can be important points of application of our fight for a communist programme, against economism.” Other plans for expansion were also discussed.

Immediately following the CPGB meeting, an aggregate of the Revolutionary Democratic Communist Tendency - grouping together comrades from the Communist Party and the Revolutionary Democratic Group - took place. Unfortunately no comrades from the RDG were present. The CPGB comrades heard a report on the Socialist Alliances and agreed to continue our campaign for a broad, inclusive Network. The meeting confirmed its belief in the necessity of winning disaffected members of the Socialist Labour Party to cooperate with the SAs, while continuing to fight within the SLP.

Alan Fox