Around of government cuts next year's government spending.
ly cut.
Half of the proposed cuts will be in housing, education, and transport; the rest will be clawed back from working people in the form of increases tax and national insurance. So much for the Tories' pledge to restore the real incentive to earn' They claim that these cuts are necessary. They claim that workers are pricing memselves out of a job, and that 'we are living beyond our means. They claim that Britain can no longer afford high wages and good social services.
But the real question whether Britain, or rather the British working class, can afford Thatcher and the capitalist SVSUCHI that she ruthlessly defends.
The priorities of the madhouse In 1979 government spending totalled £114bn. Of that, nine and a half per cent, f11bn, went on arms. This proportion inlanned to ise rapidly. Tabls shows spending is planned to rise in relation other areas government spending.
Among Tory commitments on arms spending is £7bn on the Trident missile. For the price or one Indent submarine and there are to be six or seven it would be possible to hund 100 hospitals, 200 new schools 50,000 - nomes. projects are desperately needed and would guarantee long-term employmentook thousands.
proposed government spending, the picLUIC that emerges Tories' commitment to war against the working class.
They want to halve expen liture on employment and in dustry and housing and to completely abolish any subsidy to maonalised inalisities By 1984, while defence Socialist Challenge 27 November 1980 This week, the papers have been full of the latest another £3,500m off But this has created an immense problem for Thatcher because Minister of Defence Francis Pym refuses to allow the defence budget to be substantialspending will jump over 13 per cent, the growing number the dole will have to share with the poor and the sick an increase of just 3.8 percent. It is worth remembering that social security benefits increased by 33 percent over the last four years, and even then failed to keep pace with inflation The lories plan to cut spen ding on housing by nearly 50 Spending on education, which at the present time is Annual expenditure £ million Defence budget 1980-81 of which Pay & pensions for armed forces Defence research & development Upkeep of Polaris submarines Fighting vehicles Cost of individual items Em One nuclear hunterof killer submarine One guided missile destroyer One Tornado aircraft One Milan antitank missile One 155mm illuminating ammunition shell is substantially higher than on defence, will be cut by over ten and will class siderably behind defence.
The conclusion analysis of Tory just that they are planning cuts, but that they are sciously cutting those areas spending-which deal with the life and welfare of people. Anything on the capitalist system will be protected.
Sacrifices at the Tory alter ment spending than proposed working class welfare services While Thatcher plans to defend the capitalist system, individual Spending on arms compared with social services 10,785 Hospital and community health services 3,017 Child benefits 1,479 Medical research Services for disabled Welfare foods 56 advanced passenger trains 3 hospitals each with 1,000 beds 833 houses One kidney 7,000 machine Schoolbooks for 100 children for one year capitalists are going to have to pay a price as well. fall conAs mell anger conference revealed, cantee between tee there e Trom any plans is no the recession, policy, quite con- their workforce, of OCCLULS against wage cuts and job loss working *AND concerned tional protection of the ECSOUTCOS tition which may The projections for govern- destroyed reveal more attack on quidated or £ million by 8,389 competition. 2,970 it the Cfm defeated as a whole 6,000 at the CBI they the and the demands of who in man fighting The effects of the interna duct WEEK recession the of British industry are dramatic. Increased compeforces industry to attempt to cut costs. Areas of production be essential from the point of human need are because their profitability has gone. , Thousands are thrown on the dole two effects on firms attempting to stay afloat. machinery, and so on - - are li closed in an aLtempt to get cash in hand. Second, they attempt to buy time vast borrowing from the banks. These loans are used to prop up sagging profits, and re equip in the face of mounting At the same time each firm has to minimise its wages DIl and the number of its workers workers fight back there is more financial trouble Borrowing from the banks and the liquidation of fixed assets is a 'live now, pay later' strategy. It is based on the belief that working class demands can be and capitalism streamlined and stabilised.
But borrowing has immense repercussions both for the individual firm and the economy The mountain of credit increases the money in ply and fuels inflation, and th paid mine to he bab cost prevent individual firms from making a real recovery in pro fits. It is a vicious circle from which only the banks gain 1978, private HOUSELY owed the banks f2,531m. By first half of 1980 it was £5,154m. At this rate of expansion (which is unlikely given the recession), the figure would b over 12bn by 1982 - or 6½ pe cent of the gross national proBecause of huge interest payments, the profits of the banks are soaring, while those of industry are stagnating. In , Lloyds, the Midland, and the National Westminster totalled £1,093m.
By 1979 this had increased to £1,563m. In the same period, profits In the private sector went down from £17,290m to £17,040m.
By and large, despite redundancies, the indebtedness of industry to the banks is not being unloaded on to the workers -wonder has harsh words to say about Thatcher The domination OI ine banks is also graphically shown by the disastrous financial posi tion of local authorities. Witl Heseltine slashing government subsidies, local councils are bements. total autoril expenditure £20.5bn last year, 17 per cent -£3.5bn wen repayments. Heseltine will no CULLICI Finally, it is worth looking at the wealth being destroyed loyment. According to Harrison and Andrew Glynn their book The conomic were toa of idle machinery and Jobless workers in Britam I £42½ bn per yea - a staggering 25 per cent of the gross national product.
Unemployment is the greatest indictment of capitalism ir Britain today. The resources that it destrovs are essential to build a free and prosperous socialist society.
Public expendit Defence Law and order, and protec Social security National Health Service Industry, energy, trade, en Education Personal social services b Housing Government lending to nat a mainly fire brigades b welf Source: Cmnd 7841. No allowa On the basis of the fi quoted here it is eas) calculate SENE extent resources wasted by capita A vast potental exists ro building of socialism. A saponry another 280n1 £42½bn per been estimated that the co keeping and servicing wealth of the top 5 perce our society comes to a fu £8bn.
Even if we leave asid soles coe and the num crazy costs built-in
ment completely. mentation of this proposal into already declining will of the one sim two fronts.
ветел government;
ting the capitalist more jobs and end unemploy- vances, The impleconfronting which was passed at this year's block would smash straight prof require the mooulsa The figh for this e demand will lead to conflict We demand the re-call of the worker's movement - - import
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DEMAND 35 HR
1978, the profits of the big fou banks — Barclays
TO PAUL SM