OHN McDONNELL is the GLC hair of the Finance and General arposes Committee. an in the forefront of the fight to hop the abolition of the GLČ. He plained his strategy to Socialist action, and gave his views on how • win the campaign.
The campaign to save the GLC is three ronged. First we concentrated isseminating information to the 'opiion formers' - MPs and the media. Je put across our arguments against bolition by explaining Londoner's loss their voting rights and what cuts in ervices will result from the transfer of functions to non-elected quangos.
've largely won the argument in the edia - a media that's been solidly ainst us since 1981.
Now, the second stage limulate a grass roots campaign which acuses Londoners' on esponsible for the decision. We've set borough-based ampaigns. And we expect them to be * their height when the Paving Bill is ablished in March or April. This is the • aslamon wnich stops next year's elecons and abolishes the GLC, transferrits powers to the London boroughs the vualleUs (unelected bards').
Activities are planned throughout We'll launch a round-London ur by Ken Livingstone, with public cetings, and a travelling exhibition.
imaginative events will r: street theatres, sit-ins, high-jacking ransport buses. The climax of all this ctivity is a march from Hyde Park, on March, against the abolition of the GLC and the metropolitan countries, ! against rate capping. This will brthe campaigns together nationally:
The third prong of our campaign is aking the recipients of services with e providers of services • ging together local people and their ganisations with the orement. This is what we did during •Fares Fair' campaign.
We've lobbied national trade union aders. also iks with the South East Region TUC ad the Greater London Association of rades Councils. The GLC unions have unched their own 'Defend London' ampaign, which is seeking to link up with other trade unions outside local oriernment.
the GLC' groups dependent on the GLC *joint dustrial action.
Local
take sing-aLondon between the — Inal is, DILed whatever they've demanded.
established powers goes through.
Socialist Action : 17 February 1984 The 24 January demonstration was law. a remarkable success. The unions came out, and so did a number of community (Over 3000 voluntarv organisations will go to the wall if the GLC is abolished.) At the don end of the day we'll win the campaign by a combination of lobbying and inThrough their annual conferences, local government unions are now committed to a policy of non-cooperation. Culs. We're hoping to see a series of disputes government and workers the in the GLC, London Transport and the boroughs. They'll be saying they won't accept the transfer of powers because it means an increased workload for them and cuts in services. It's not up to the GLC's elected members to dictate industrial action. But we've liaised closely. with our own GLC unions and providsupport assistance The critical stage for industrial acwhen the abolition and transfer of We're almost certain now that it will contain a legal demand that members and staff colaporate m mas. mie anons have lakel a firm stand. And the Labour adcooperate, which will put us outside the But don't envisage a single Labour member will collaborate The legislation means bringing the GLC to an end in April 1985. A body of nominated councillors from the Lonboroughs would then administer GLC's services for 2 month period, transferring GLC powers to the boroughs and quangos. I should think that the great majority of abou boroughs will refuse to participate. It would mean adminstering cuts of bet* 9-4ii million. borough could carry out that level of With the exception of Liverpool, Tories' rate capping proposals won't hit most councils till next April, when they'll be forced into direct confrontation with the government. There will be no option but a united front. At the same time the GLC will be facing abolition and refusing to cooperate.
The Labour Party must take a firm stand at this year's annual conference. It must give a lead to the National Executive Committee and the Parliamentary Labour Party. The role played so far by Neil Kinnock and John Cunningham, shadow spokesperson on the environment, has been supportive in terms of parliamentary performance. But they have failed to effectively stimulate grass root activity. Now we need firm regional and national conference decisions to commit the Labour Party to direct confrontation in April 1985 This government will be brought down by a coalition of factors coming together at the right time. aims to provide one part of that coalition. labour movement strategy and working towards it.
We've used the mobilise support policies and to build the confidence of working people, who look to their trade unions to protect jobs, and in certain past for heet the co minist e cils to protect the community. combined strength of the trade unions and community action will bring this government down.
The 1982 even John McDonnell against Labour The GLC That means identifying a clear do this, local state to for alternative big rates Tories Tories al THE FIGHT AGAINST plans to abolish local services and local democracy could unleash the biggest political battle yet against the Thatcher government. It certainly deserves to be. The government proposals add up to political and economic assault on the gains of working people as severe as anything done so far.
The stakes are high. Thousands of services and jobs are at risk, along with the very fabric of city life. If Labour Headers at Westminster and in the towi halls give in without a fight, people will Thatcherism Will get Tories are attacking on two fronts. The first is rate capping. This gives the government power to fix a minimum level of spending for each council in the country, starting with the dozen or so at the top of their 'hit list Anv rate levied above the amount need ed to pay for permitted spending would be illegal. This would lead to massive cuts in jobs and services.
The idea is that fixing spending 'hit list' councils will intimidate others into cutting their spen ding down to government limits. If this failed, the government would use the reserve powers of the bill to cap the rates' for everv council in the countr — a prospect that frightens even Tory government is doing this because its previous policy failed. original idea - made law in 1980 and - was that councils would be made to toe the Tory line by the threat of government grant cuts to match or exceed 'excess' spending. Over spending fell entirely on the rates, to the point where each pound of excess spending added £2 or f3 to the sum to be raised from rates The Tories hoped voters would turn councils refusing to carry out cuts, or that fear of this happening would force Labour councils to do the Tories' dirty work.
Some argued that Labour councils should say not to cuts and rate rises. They should refuse to implement the Tory laws, and challenge the state. But even the more left councils refused to claiming they would be isolated. Nobody would give a lead.
Some councils did cut, others raised But neither pleased the The so-called big spending councils — those in the inner cities with the worst problems - put up the rates
cy Day-29 March ither than make Cuts.
abour voters seemed to accent that trategy for the Labour administrations o keep control.
This annoyed the Tories. First, it meant services and jobs were not cut as nuch as they wanted. And the idea of n alternative to Thatcher was preservvere resented by working class ratepayers, they were resented more by pusinesses, which provides about 60 per sent of the money raised in rates. True, rates are only a small proportion (some wo or three per cent) of all business costs. But they are the only tax that businesses can't get out of paying.
The Tories claim their rate-capping bill will relieve the rate burden resulting from 'over-spending' councils. lie. It is the government that has been responsible for raising rates bv cutting council's Rate Support Grant, from 60 per cent of council spending when it was first introduced in 1979 down to 50 Over the country, locai government spending has not gone up. It is central government spending which has arisen. The Tories are cutting grants to local government to pay for tax cuts for the rich, nuclear weapons, and the cost of keeping millions on the dole. Since 1978-9 central government has increased its spending by 10 percent in cash terms (without allowing for inflation). un ine same pena, local governmeal spending has increased only cent. But central government has increased its taxes by only while rates have gone up 125 per cent.
Given the would rather see their money go on caring services, than bombs, mnemplovment and tax curs for ine rich. The government is shifting the burden of its policies onto the rates, to fool people into thinking that local government services are costing more.
aven bigger cuts than rate capping me on the way, with the abolition of the GLC and metropolitan (big city) councils. But abolishing the metropolitan councils isn't just about The reasons that lie behind this CUS. move is to make sure privatisation is rammed through, by means of the new quangos, and even possibly more important, is the fear of the political alternative represented by left Labour councils. You don't have to see Ken Livingstone as Labour's answer to Leon Trotsky to recognise his ability to get eft ideas across to a mass audience. This obviously miloteraoe government whose appeal rests on the "dea that there is 'no alternative'.
When Neil Kinnock argues that Labour councils should stay within the law, he walks into Thatcher's trap. Intead of placing themselves alongside Thatcher as targets for the anger these attacks on local generate, Labour councils should be at the head of the fight against Tory cuts. tack on two fronts Sufficient City of London Greenwich Islington Southwark Tower Hamlets Wandsworth This is a Westminster Barnet Bexley Bromley Ealing Haringey Harrow Merton Newham Richmond the GLC and councils pose 80 per ment with Stacks on people Wing any forced assault democracy and jobs.
£20 billion GLC local government struggle are so high.
By P McDermott the GLC against.
jobs and services.
But the fight will IMPACT OF ABOLITION ON THE BOROUGH RATES A Labour Party report circulated at the recent local government conference in Nottingham shows that abolishing the GLC will have big ramifications for the rates levied by the London boroughs. Assuming that spending on GLC services transferred to the boroughs continue at the 1983-4 level, the figures show that London rate-pavers will be tar some of these councils are likely to be caught in the Tories' rate capping trap, which make 'over spending' illegal.
These figures include the effect of the block grant distribution and the proposed extended London rate equalisation scheme.
THE TORY proposals to get rid of the Metropolitan moveone of its biggest challenges for years. The attack on the GLC goes hand in hand with atother levels of local government and is aimed at breakresistance to the local services, For the Tories and the ruling class financial self-interest and political expediency fit nearly together on this which local government the spends each year, while undermining strongholds of the Labour Party. That is why stakes in this The Tories are on very weak ground in pursuing this attack. Recent opinion polls have shown only 18 per cent of Londoners in favour of the abolition of with a gigantic 60 per cent The labour movement is on strong ground in opposing the lories - it is defending local democracy and against the Tories' abolition proposals can only be carried through if there is a willingness to defy the law. The Tories have made it crystal clear that they intend to make comLed.
worse off. In addition, Effect on borough Change in rate for rate in the f GLC services - I +38 - 17.6 +39 +36 - 36 + 3.7 - 0.8 + 6.7 + 15 + 1.6 + + 11.1 +4.4 + 6.8 + 8.2 + 19 +8.9 + 20 pliance with transfer of services to local Non-cooperation will, by definition, be illegal.
Labour councils will Only De i a position to defy the law if they build joint campaigns with the unions on a non-compliance basis from the start.
There is no alternative.
Blunkett put it: 'Labour councils can not wait, crouching behind dustbins, hoping that someone will bail us out after a general election'.
In the end only massive industrial action will stop the Tories. This action Will have to base itself on wide political support within the community, and in broader Organised workers outside government must be involved from the start.
The responsibility for that fight lies with the unions and the GLC. In London, the fight is divided up between a host separate campaigns. union or sector is fighting its own corner. Thus teachers fight to save ILEA, transport workers to save LT and local government workers try to GLC.
These separate campaigns must be brought together. The leaders are hoping to avoid a head on with the Tories confrontation dividing the campaign fits this policy. A conference of the labour movement in London, which will draw in the unions and the LP to build united action to defend the GLC is therefore sorely need- MARCH As David movement.
local Each not stop the Tories.
save the groups chola The body which has the widest support in the community, and the greatest support in the unions, is the Labour GLC. The Labour Group should com mit itself to unifying the struggle. Lobbying the Commons and the Lords, linking with Tory wets and the SDP will The Labour Group must base itself on mass industrial action and the active support of the wider community bringing together the political and industrial sides of the fight is crucial to success.
The GLC and the unions should demand that the Tories go to the voters of London with their proposals. If they do and of course they won't - the GLC, the unions and the community organise own referendum in May '85, when the GLC elections will be abolished.
Such a referendum woud be ar ideal preparation for mass action and defiance of the law, with the labour movement seen to be representing the majority of Londoners and armed with a referendum majority to take action.
Socialist Action 17 February 1984
Socialist Action 17 February 1984
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100% Incr Westmir Defy the law!