ABSTRACT
This book is in imminent danger of being out of date, in its description of structure, by reason of constant efforts to overcome problems by reforms and amendments of existing arrangements. Some of these changes are being actively discussed, others have been tried out in smaller countries of the Soviet bloc. In any case, it is of evident interest to see how far, within the basic pattern of Soviet-style economies, various reforms can overcome the difficulties which we have been analysing in earlier chapters. While there can be no sound basis for prophesying the course of future reforms, at least it should be possible to indicate likely trends; the observant student should have been able to identify some major causes of such reforms. When they come, their precise shape will doubtless be affected, as were the sovnarkhoz reforms of 1957, by political factors and personal ambition. But it would be misleading to regard these factors as determinants, just as it would be misleading to ignore them altogether. No doubt when, in 1932, VSNKh was abolished, it could have been viewed as a blow against the then head of VSNKh, Ordzhonikidze. Indeed, perhaps it was. However, on a long-term view we would hardly regard this as the fundamental explanation, and would be right to emphasize the less personal elements in the chain of causation.
