VEXT Monday a continuous blockade of the Greenham Common USAF base will begin ending on Friday 8 July. Labour movement delegations THE LABOUR Party NEC is reconvening its enquiry into the Manchester City Labour Party this Friday.
The City has consistently fought for council resistance to cuts defended the will be at the base during the week to support the councillors the Labour group for defending party policy.
The enquiry is expected to be a kangaroo cost cary closing down.
Greenham Office, 5 Leonard Street, London EC2 (01-251 3133). Michael Meacher the leadership is a good "The membership The massively the result.
radio during the in the absence media time the he rallies to reach the This WIll views. He thinks that Michael • The Meacher THE NATIONAL defeat of the Labour Party on 9 June was the product of a Party leadership more interested in purging the movement of socialists, protecting their own positions, than in campaigning for socialism. (MP Islington North)
Our election policies were the product of years of hard campaigning activity in the Party and union branches unilateral nuclear disarmament, quitting the EEC repealing the racist laws, reversing the social spending cuts - but the NEC and the Shadow Cabine were the product of the very worst kind machine politics.
Given this basis, the schism in the party, so ably opened and Healey, much damage to our cause dur the campaign.
The Tories have preached the exploitation, private protie injustice and greed;
SDP/Liberal Allance nave I real sense preached the same capitalist message to some effect.
seem trite to say it, but Labour must go out and fight with all struggles of the working class, and preach a class message of socialist change. Capitalism cannot provide work, an end to discrimination against women, an end to racism - neither can it provide the welfare services needed. We have to hammer out this socialist message loud and clear; we have national media help us.
battles which face us will be the makof the party. Thatcher has declared war on the working class in the Queen's Speech, which proposes the privatising of a whole range of services, bringing missiles to Britain, a further colonial policy over the Falklands the destruction of much of local government and the Health Servic There will also be an attack the unions which will make the 1971 Industrial Relations Act and the earlier Tebbit laws look like a of benign iberalism.
The only course for PHOTO: GM Cookson Labour to adopt is one of determined to take electing leadership the action outside parlia ment and to defend the basic policies against rightward ideological Sill The first meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party election showed just how far we have to go. The discussion on the leather bound benches, surrounded by oil paintings and oak panelling, La million miles seemed away the mass unemployment poverty of the inner city, the victims of which had just elected these MIPs.
The discussion was Just as irrelevant lov, who should be the Speaker of the House -which we should , this 'nonpolitical' office. by Howevel the parliamentary party is to the left of the last The Campaign Group • about / members determined to link up with the left of the party and trade unions, and to take the battle against the Tories outside parliament.
the leadership campaign to get the absence of Tony Benn, support candidates the most to the left, and prepared to support extra-parliamentary A number of us wished support Jo Richardson as candidate. It is our loss that sne cannot Stanu, so unli only viable alternatives are Eric Heffer for leader "and Michael Meacher for deputy leader The battle is on - to develop the with to more members and a real campaigning approach But we also have to fight to prevent a leadership creeping in which seek:
the cemetery of the mid dle ground of politics.
THE QUEEN'S SPEECH at the opening of parliament last week held few surprises. Not really short, sharp shocks, but plenty of long-term and deadly policies aimed at swinging the balance once and for all firmly in favour of the The Tories are hoping to push through their plans to cripple the unions and the Labour Party, sell off nationalised industry and build up Britain as a nuclear zone before any mass opposition can be built up to stop them.
Below we look at the real meaning of the Queen's speech, and some of the initial reactions to it.
The economy based ироп sound money and lower public borrowing.
NOW doesn't that sound nice and fair? The Tories are aiming to give us all much more: more of us on une cole. nOTe spending cuts, more opportunities change jobs, 1101C leisure time. And for the lucky few, more profits.
There is not surprisingly, no change in the Tories economic policies. In their My Government will pursuit of the goal of low persue policies designed inflation, they'li increase nothing get in their way. prosperity and to reduce No doubt they'll make unemplymet. They an attempt to explain away will seek a further reduc. the Building Societies in.
inflation. They crease in mortgage rates -will continue to maintain inaellrs.. just firm control of public ex- Queen's speech ben inancial sporese by blaming it on the financial strategy unions.
Trade unions A Bill will be introduced reduced to putting crosses give on pieces of paper, as it is A Bill will be introduced to replace the existing law on the prevention of terrorism. Legislation will be brought forward to modernise the law on police powers amend the of criminal evidence. A Bill We be tooter to t prove family law and its THEN Tories have THE Tories been thinking ahead. They realise that their policies to be cepted meekly by workers, and are taking out an insurance policy in the form of the Police and Crimina Evidence Bill.
This will ensure they the hand strikes, riots other disorders unacceptable to the ruling class.
Another increase in Police powers comes with the introduction of a new prevention terrorism act. This repressive and draconian legislation is to extended to glve. the police rights to arrest and detain any suspected terrorists, and not just Irish people To relieve the current and expected prison overcrowding the Tories will b opening two new prisons each year and recruiting I,260 more prison ficers.
te covernment dal to provide nearly 5,000 more places I01 new prisons by the end of the '80s Another change legislation will be in the divorce laws. A proposed Bill will abolish the present divorce within the first Not marriage, which is to be welcomed.
But it will prevent any chances of divorce in the first year, when often the most extreme cases violence against women occur. ending the 'meal ticket for nie or alvorcea womel, a fallacy constructed out of a tew excentional cases most divorced women don't reality receive financial support Maintenance will still be awarded for the support of children, but the aim will be financial seltsufficiency.
It sounds like a good sentiment — many women object to being dependent on men anyway. But until women ave solic did real equality, especially economcaly then it is a nonsense for the courts to treat men ana women l divorce and maintenance judgements as equal part ners. 'It's early to comment on the Police Bill in detail, but if the press specula. tion is correct then it's madness to suppose that having independent prosecutors and tape recordings are going to be an sort of safeguard. Ce we're concerned. If this Bill is there'll be a fight!
"The divorce law
reforms are based on the myth of women being alimony drones, . wher most women don't receive any. Basically, this Bill is just tinkering
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Manchester faces 'Kangaroo court'
Socialist Action 1 July 1983 'Law and order'