A Socialist Programme Sir Stafford Cripps is one of the
ablest representatives of political Labour in this country to-day, and a possible future leader of the Labour Party. Importance conse- quently attaches to his programme for the next Socialist Government, as outlined in the course of a Socialist League lecture last Sunday. The essence of everything is to be an Emergency Powers Bill, designed to confer extensive powers in every direction on the Government of the day (ex hypotheri a Socialist Government). Herr Hitler wants rather the same thing. The Bill would presumably be held up' by the House of Lords. That would lead to a demand for the creation of peers. If the demand were refused, the alternative would be resignation or one-Chamber legislation, which the Judiciary would, of course, refuse to recognize. At that point Sir Stafford seems to visualize a capitalist revolu- tion against the Executive. An ominous prospect is opened up by the prediction that " Public Bills will lay down general principles and the details will be dealt with administratively "—in other words, government by Whitehall, for which Sir Stafford Cripps claims the practice of the National Government as precedent. This is an instructive programme, making the path between evolution and revolution increasingly narrow.
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