The recent by-elections saw further proof of the disillusionment among large sectons of workers with the anti-working class policies of the Labour Government The only way in which Labour candidcoula nave maintained suDDon among the mass of Labour voters would have been by organising their campaign Beaust une recoro or une Labour Govern But in Newcastle ine Labou candidate, Harry Cowans, tried to avoid any political discussion at all. The whole SECTE ODE intended to make as few people as actuaily laning place Pernaps the most titting comment or Latter My for Nancaste Fast. campaign came from Wike nomas. herernoto harry cowans at a meeting organised for Tony Benn, he aid and when Bob joins us at Westminser next luescav.. • If Labour MPs do not even know the name of their candidonly wonder contusion wich most workers must have In contrast to the low level campaign of the Labour Party, the Socialist Worker campaion in sudoor or Dave naves was STOP unashamedly technical level there was little wrong with tne campaign. Ine problems come trom the politics.
The International Socialists saw the election simov as a wav to recruit To ne IS. As Paul Foot put it at their eve-of-poll *The measure of our success is the 15 or 20 people who join Is.
•urine сітега от гестипі по тпе number of papers sold has its own logic As I have explained in articles for Red week. manv orine vocies in Newcaste fighting policies of the Labour Government are led by Labour members. most or tne oeovie invoivec.!!! the cuts campaign are Labour North Tyneside CanDalen was acludily such Working Women's Charter Groups and me ivnesice socialist centre people of many different political positions who are all committed to a fight ignore those forces. Instead they saw the main question as building the IS twas Tor tis reason practical nelp trom the ima and castle. It means that you ignore serious munanis in omer orcanisations IncIu ding the Labour Party). It means ultimately that you embark sectarianism. not tnar ortine to buna d revolutionary party.
This sectarianism flows from the IS's totally ultra-left position on the mass orcanisations. such a position leaos ine IS to a 'third period' approach to the united fronts typical of the method which ea mne -Gerian Communist Party reject united action with the Democrats against the rise of Hitter -ine unitee tronttom below This method leads the IS to continually exaggerate its own strength. Dave Hayes could tell Red Weekly we re nooine to win a lot or Labour rary activists on the basis that we're the only organisation fighting: And Jimmy meballum s assurances mar une IS is not the only organisation on the left, he still tells us: create arenate datest sol purely ility of building a revolutionary party thee week. c october Finally, this ultra-leftism is continued in relation to militants in other organisations. McCallum states: Those elements inside oiner organisations who are ser ous about building such a party coud readily join in, by becoming members of IS..' but ine oroniem those militants are not convinced either necessity for the revolutionary rode or, liney are convinceo or idl. ludi IS offers the way forward.
Party OBEY comrades or une o re-reao tanesunder Party stand) Trotsky's writings on Germany -Housing especially those on the united front and ald nowto win over mne mass or workers wat still follow the lead of social democracy. If they then remember that Trotsky was whitine about a communist rary Involve orted by millions of workers whilst IS (and the rest oreanisations, mey mant been to bredr billies. offers of SIne were refused in Newbuilding the SWP -on the road SocIa