SPECTAT THE OR
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LEFT WAITING
Because Mrs Thatcher is the strongest political leader in the Western world, and Mr Kinnock is the weakest leader of the Opposition since Michael Foot, it is all too easy to assume that final victory over socialism, or more accurately state corpor- atism, has been won. Contrary to the impression created by the latest opinion polls, this is not so.
Mr Kinnock is a man whose convictions are as strong as the wind, and as variable in direction. Coming as he does from south Wales, with its tradition of working-class solidarity against oppressive mine owners, his instincts are for class war, with an easily identifiable enemy, and old-style nationa- lisation. Unfortunately for him, however, a very large proportion of the population is now more concerned with mortgages or computer games than with equality. It is true that there are still a large number of unemployed: but they and the worst off people in employment are not sufficient to win him an election.
Whether he likes it or not, therefore, he has to appeal to the rest of the population. This he can only do by calling for mod- ernisation and by attacking the Govern- ment's economic record. Here the Govern- ment is not totally invulnerable: a huge trade deficit, rising inflation and high Interest rates cannot be thought desirable. That the Labour Party has no answer to these problems except higher taxes will not necessarily preclude electoral victory, should an economic crisis become grave enough.
If Mr Kinnock were elected, the bad old days, thought to have gone for ever, would return. The Labour Party is still beholden to the trade unions and is committed to restoring at least some of their power. The metaphor commonly used for the trade unions, that they are dinosaurs, is a most unfortunate one: for the dominance of dinosaurs lasted at least 60 million years, and they were easily the most successful land animals, judged by their length of survival. The Labour Party wishes to res- tore to the trade unions the overarching privilege which for so many years helped fossilise the British economy, namely the unions' comprehensive legal immunity. This meant, and will mean again, that no union has anything to lose by being as bloody-minded as possible. And, as nearly every union leader knows, bloody- mindedness is fun.
It should not be forgotten, either, that if Mr Kinnock is not exactly wedded to his left wing, it is only by a divorce of convenience. He knows that his lunatic fringe loses him votes: therefore he must control it, at least until a successful elec- tion. But he cannot exclude the Left from all political power if he wins. Free now to spend ad libitum money soaked from the `rich' (i.e. 60 per cent of the population), more councils will fail to clear the litter off their streets but provide free bus rides for lesbians to go shopping; more educational authorities will teach six-year-olds much about Nelson Mandela, but not to read. Under the guise of caring — a word that has acquired Orwellian connotations bureaucratic marxisant social workers will gain ever greater rights of interference in the lives of the working class.
It is also worth remembering that the argument about minimising the role of the state in large areas of national life has most definitely not been won. While everyone is happy (in private if not in public) when his taxes are reduced, everyone complains at cuts in spending. The idea that people should take over responsibility for their own lives wherever possible is still consi- dered reprehensible.
The blight of a dimwitted egalitarianism is still with us, manifested by teaching methods in schools that insist on bringing children down to the lowest common de- nominator, and by general envy of those who distinguish themselves economically or in some other way. It is the doctrine of a nascent apparatchik class, whose ostensi- ble aim of equality conceals a lust for power. This class is patient. It can wait till Mrs Thatcher retires or is overwhelmed by circumstances beyond her control.
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