I often have what I call doorstep discussions on what socialism. It is not easy to deal with it, but this is how I do it.
Imagine labour nationalised the water boards. I would explain that I want to see a system where workers elect the directors of a water board, as well as consumers and the government, with the right of immediate recall if a director fails workers in the running the business, and also that the workers have the right to fix directors’ wages I would suggest the same as the workers.
I would also see it as a right to have cameras in board meetings, so workers can witness board discussions and decisions, to ensures that policies reflect the needs of workers and consumers’ interests. But this approach is a model good enough for pharmaceuticals, transport, house-building and indeed all major industries that a socialist government has to bring into public ownership, so that a plan of production can be put into operation.
We would also make sure that workers in their respective industries have full trade union rights, to defend wages, benefits and health and safety in the working environment. In short, workers will have a management representing the whole labour movement and enjoy day to day control on the shop floor.
I would also call for a level playing field for small businesses, farms and fishermen. Today we have so many self-employed that again we must ensure such people can make a living.
I would also advocate election, recall and the fixing of wages of Labour Members of Parliament to the same as the average skilled worker, so that we truly achieve a workers’ leadership instead of having those who use politics merely as a career mechanism.
We could have a Labour government with a glittering array of reforms, like an improved National Health Service, free education, a mass house-building programme, with a host of green policies aimed at saving the planet. But we could have all the democratic features outlined, but we still will not have socialism, without the mass of the working people being active in political life, in elections, managing and controlling the economy. That is one reason why a shorter working week is an essential component of a socialist programme.
