Add one spoonful of compassion
Charles Moore
CHOOSE FREEDOM: THE FUTURE FOR DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM by Roy Hattersley
Michael Joseph, £12.95
The first half of Mr Hattersley's book attacks the 'New Right'. Above all, this means Hayek, but it also means Friedman, Isaiah Berlin and a fellow called `Nozek' whom I suspect that a researcher mistyped. This attack assumes throughout that the only reason that these men spin their free market theories is to defend 'entrenched privilege'. It is interesting that Mr Hatters- ley thinks it worthwhile to give 120 pages to this. By doing so, he grudgingly acknow- ledges that his opponents hold the intellec- tual advantage.
The other purpose of the first half is to advance the Hattersley theory of socialism — that its task is to promote freedom and equality and that you cannot have the former without the latter. This is asserted, not argued. Whenever he makes a particu- larly contentious point, Mr Hattersley blusters (my italics follow).
What is beyond doubt is that Britain is no more equal a society today than it was a hundred years ago.
. . . the extension of equality . . . is so closely related to the ultimate goal of free- dom that . . . it needs no justification.
Ian Gilmour . . . argues that a universal public health 'monopoly' would reduce the quality of medical care for a majority of the population. That view, of course, is manifest nonsense.
The socialist view of society is based on the belief in the equal value of all human beings and the consequent obligation to provide them with as equal a share of society's benefits as it is possible to distribute. That is an assertion which socialists must insist is self-evident.
This is neither much fun nor much help.
The second half of the book discloses the political purpose which the first half fore- shadows. This — apart from Mr Hatters- ley's natural desire to discredit the Tories — is to get Labour to win the election by copying much of what the Tories have been doing and adding 'compassion'. Mr Hat- tersley is against trade union power and nationalisation and in favour of markets. He gets away with this by being against private education and private health care.
This is what this book amounts to very little indeed.
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