THE article 'How Labour councils could pay' (15 February) provides far too facile a solution for the very real problems of finance which face Labour councils in a capitalist state. As it stands, 'Refuse to pay interest charges' is simply 'instant-leftist' sloganising.
Local government authorities have only three sources of income: rates, grants from central government, and raising loans in the money market. Capitalist financial institutions are hardly renowned for their altruism, and any local authority which withheld interest payments would soon find itself cut off from this source of funding.
As for rates, this is one of the most unfair systems of taxation. It does not discriminate between rich and poor. Our transitional demands should include the abolition of the rating system (with a special super-tax on empty privately-owned buildings such as Centre Point), and the introduction of a progressive local income tax which will place the burden where it belongs — on those who can best afford to pay.
This is a demand which is immediately realisable if the Labour movement brings its full strength to bear on a Labour government.
Furthermore, our transitional programme should also include the demand for nationalisation without compensation of all financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies, etc. This would enable central government to make interest-free loans to local authorities, provide capital for expanding the health and social services, education, the arts, etc.
While we must press for the inclusion of this in Labour's programme, we must be under no illusion that such a policy is feasible under capitalism. Only a democratically controlled workers government, determined on a planned transition to socialism, can realise this.
In a planned socialist economy, with profits no longer being siphoned off into the pockets of the capitalists, or utilised to finance imperialist suppression in Ireland and war preparations against the Soviet Union and other non-capitalist states, industrial output itself would generate the capital required both to assure the workers a civilised living standard and to improve our environment and community services.
CHARLIE VAN GELDEREN [London NW10]