ment ever -Socialist Challenge readers will appreciate that in the bresent government appears something of a liberal' all those visits to Toxteth to see the urban poor and make mem promises. And by Tory standards he's regarded as in touch with the young. Who better inen to lead Thatcher's campaign to persuade people that the Tories are serious nuclear disarmers?
That will be the key to the Tories' campaign SCUOUS 01988 is multi-lateral nuc ear disarmament. he other side of the coin will be the claim that who propose unilateral nuclear either dupes playing. into the hands of the Russians, if not conscious agents of the Russians.
Friday CND BEAST chairperson Joan Ruddock. together with Bruce Kent and EP Thompson visited the Defence Ministry to hand challenge to Heseltine to debate them on television.
The fact that the Tories are running scared of the nuclear disarmament campaign shows just how right the Labour left two thirds majority of the Labour conference who voted for unilateral were when they thought that nuclear disarmament would make Labour popular with the voters.
The huge turn out of 30,000 women to surround the Greenham VILIOL air base made all the major parties think. The Liberals ana une our are making a big play for the nuclear VOTE last year's Liberal conference voted in favour of unilateralism (against the advice of leader David Steel) the main thrust the SDP-Liberals will be multilateral disarmament.
The argument they are currently using is to attack Thatcher for not respon ding to the proposals by Soviet leader Andropov -about multilateral ersarabout multilateral AS the SDP's David Owen pointed out, Thatcher rejected the last set of proposals on missiles reduction WILHOU even having read them The SDP-Liberal the appointment of Michael Secretary. Heseltine's more or less éxplicit brief will be to 'defuse' CND. More and more all the political parties are recognising that nuclear disarmament will alliance like the Labour right is against Trident on grounds of cost, but would be in favour of installing Cruise MISSIO the Soviet Union keeps its SS-20 missiles.
These manoeuverings by the SDP-Liberal Alliance are unlikely to upstage the Labour Party seriously confuse the nuclear LoVen while raising the slogan of a Poland to Portugal' CND nas remained constant in campaigning slogans against all LUCISCE and for withdrawal from NATO. The real question being raised by the present debate among the party leaders 1s wil a sanow government get rid of nuclear bases and missiles and will unilateral nuclear manifesto?
Michael Foot, interviewed on Channel 4 news last week fudged the issue again. He said that Labour would send back Cruise. cancel Trident and take unilateral steps towards nuclear disarmament, but re-affirmed that 'unilateral disarmament is counter-posed multilateral disarmament' In other words, he left open whether a Labour government would automatically get rid of the British Polaris deterrent" the Frest ocean bases und BESI nuclear paraphenalia There is no doubt that if Michael feral did telear unilateral into manifesto, then would face a serious challenge from the right majority the whelming two-thirds majority Cone CaCE behind him, together with the million trade unionists affiliated CND.
Labour's right wing, of course, know full well the consequences of a Labour government coming COSTICO nuclear DucE a vover men world be thrown headlong, irrespective 01 1ts intentions, into full-scale show-down the military and political establishment and Pershing missile in West Germany forest. with the United States governmen which threw out all the US bases and refused any nuclear weapons on its soil would have effectively withdrawn from participation in NATO ACLIVO which is one reason why slogan of unilateral nuclear disarmament goes ПаПе the slogan of 'Out of NATO such a move would change the politico-military map of Europe.
an addict political thrillers to see the conse quences of such a move Heseltine aims to combat CND, while Foot avoids a clear commitment to unilateralism. The United States would do everything in its power de-stablise such as would the political representatives of the British ruling class, the intelligence services and the military. Onmost massive mobilisations of the working class and the peace movement could defend a Labour government which seriously went for nuclear disarmament against such a sustained attack.
Those like Tony Benn and Michael Foot, who regrettably think that it would be possible toget rid of nuclear weapon and stay within a NATO tramework are kidding people including hemselves. Only a deter. 'mined socialist government could carry through unilateral nuclear disarmament, with all the consetain's foreign policy, and the necessary • adjustments in the armed forces and the defence industry.
It is precisely because they want no such challenge to the Atlantic alliance that the Labour right will try to avoid unilateralism being in the manifesto.
As the date for the arrival of Cruise missiles gets nearer, the debate nuclear weapons campaign against them will come more and more to the centre the political stage. While will absolutely necessary to fight the LOC and the SDP. Liberal alliance this issue, the Labour left must lose по opportunity hold Foot to conference policy no nuclear no US bases of any kind!
war is, it is exceedingly dangerous for capitalism in the present world situa tion. The working class is still too strong to stand for the sacrifices of war; the colonial revolution has by no means been reversed. and the Soviet Union and other workers states art too strong. Any inter imperialist war in the present situation therefore would threaten the very survival of capitalism And of course the ex istence of nuclear weapons makes inter-imperialist The imperialist powers will only engage in it as an absolutely last resort.
The current conflict with Denmark show that inter-imperialist conflicts are a hall-mark of the BEC itself. The aggressiveness of Britain's response meant to serve as a pointer to her future intentions in front of her Common Market partners, Tied The fortunes of Britain • as a capitalist economy are tirmly tied the EEC. Some 43 per cent of British exports now go to SUIC Market countries compared with only 21 per cent 10 vears Nonetheless throughout the whole period of its membership, Britain has been in defici with the rest of the EEC in manufactured goods the life blood of British industry. It has even been in deficit in iron and steel and Thatcher's whole pur pose in deepening the recession dIll creating mass unemployment is in orael cur this situation around. This skirmish with Denmark is, in more wavs than *shot across the bows' of other EEC partners.
Out The Common Market has proved no benefit to working people.
We should get out. But the "little Englander alternative of the Tony Benns of this world are even less than ten years ago The only alternative to the EEC which would actually benefit working people is a full blooded socialist course based on breaking the stranglehold of capitalism the economy and instituting instead economy under workers control. This is what needs to be fought for in the debates leading up to the election, and beyond
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Heseltine as Defence be a crucial issue in the up-coming general
Socialist Challenge 14 January 1983 page 2 CND LAST WEEK received its biggest compli-