caused grave embarrassment in certain ruling class circles. The British ruling class has always prided irself on keeping all instances of bribery and corruption well away from the public eye. Of late, however, things have not been going too well.
Paul Foot's brilliant exposure of Maudling's relations with the Real Estate Fund of America crooks led to the former's resignation from the Tory government, and the Poulson affair has discredited a number of leading Labour Party politicians and supporters. Antony Crosland may well return the silver coffee pot and try and laugh the whole matter off, but for workers in Britain, who were attacked by the last Labour Government and who are feeling the whip hand of the present Tory government, the matter is beyond a joke. Whatever politicians like Crosland may say now, whenever they're in power they accept bribes (or "gifts" in polite language) and free holidays from rich businessmen in return for services rendered just like the Tories. Further revelations in the Poulson affair could embarrass a number of other M.P.'s. That is why the World in Action programme scheduled by Granada Television for Monday. 29 January was not screened. This is the second blatant example of censorship in recent weeks (the Warhol film was the first) and shows the concern of the ruling class, in this period of social crisis, to prevent a further erosion of its credibility in the eyes of large numbers of workers.
FOREIGN SUBS: Asia/Africa/Australia/N. & S. America: £6 per year (airmail): E4 per year (ordinary). Western Europe: £4 per year. The following letter has been sent by the IMG to the leadership of the Workers' Fight group:
25 January 1972 Dear Comrades, Following the decisions of our National Committee meeting of 20-21 January, I am writing to inform you that we consider that the political basis for continued negotiations with a view to unity does not exist at the present time. Since the expulsion of Workers' Fight from the I.S. group there has been the prospect of strengthening the forces of the Fourth International in Britain through the adherence of Workers® Fight to the world movement. The IMG has consequently attempted for more than a year to work towards such an objective. However the precondition for meaningful negotiations is that all secondary points of difference between the two organisations should be subordinated to the task of attempting to reach agreement on the crucial, primary issue: the relation of Workers' Fight to the political programme and activity of the Fourth International. However, the negotiations have been obscured by a rising tide of attacks by the Workers' Fight leadership, many of which do not go beyond the level of slander and rumourmongering, and others which at best represent attacks on tactical questions facing revolutionINTERNATIONAL MARXIST GROUP (British Section of the Fourth International) 182 Pentonville Road, London N.1. / would like more information about the IMG and its activities.
NAME..........
ADDRESS .. aries in Britain. We do not for one moment deny the existence of differences on these questions. What we do insist on is the need to concentrate upon the main fact which brought the two organisations together in negotiations: the fact that Workers' Fight has declared itself in solidarity with the United Secretariat of the Fourth International. However we have had a completely negative response from Workers' Fight even on the question of your organisation's preparedness to have a speaker from the International leadership to address a meeting of your membership on the Fourth International. In these circumstances, we see no further purpose being served in continuing negotiations with a view to unity. The likely outcome would simply be to exacerbate relations between the two organisations, given the approach exhibited by the Workers Fight leadership.
At the same time we wish to establish the closest possible unity in action of the two organisations in the fields where there is scope for joint work and we hope to maintain close contact locally and nationally for that purpose. On the basis of such common work, the factional atmosphere surrounding the recent negotiations can hopefully be reduced.
Yours fraternally, Tariq Ali RED BOOKS: SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT Due to building alterations, Red Books is closing its bookshop at 182, Pentonville Road, London N.1. as from Friday, 2 February. We regret this inconvenience to our customers and hope to have new premises in the near future. In the meantime we will be operating a mail-order book service from the above address.
WRITE FOR OUR FREE CATALOGUE CEYLON SOLIDARITY CAMPAIGN PICKET: Saturday 3rd February, from 12 noon till 2 p.m. outside Ceylon Tea Centre, Lower Regent St.—near Piccadilly. To express solidarity with the struggle against the regime of Mrs Bandaranaike on the 25th anniversary of Ceylon's "Independence"