ABSTRACT
In 1944 Professor Hayek published his “Road to Serfdom” in which he set forth the extreme liberal case against economic planning and advanced his main contention that it was bound to lead to political dictatorship. The following year I published the following reply in the “Economic Journal”. In it I attempt to show that his argument rests upon a false conception of the term “planning” and that the historical development of this country does not support his views. I also raise the larger problem of the relation between reason and social policy.
I imagine that Professor Hayek would hold that some of the policies pursued by the Labour Government and particularly the restoration of in 1947, some power to direct labour, justify his fears. I, on the other hand, would point to the maintenance and extension of political democracy over the same period. The reader must judge the merits of the argument for himself.
