Philharmonic Hall last Saturday to discuss how to ake forward the campaign to defend the city council. They were disappointed. A major opportunity was frittered away.
aking Liverpool's fight to that of the striking miners and calling for support for all councils in heir common fight against the Tory attacks, conference failed to discuss how Liverpool can link up with other councils prepared to fight.
No strategy emerged or a common tight to de. and local democracy, jobs Instead. CUllErence took on the air of et another Militant rally, with carefully prepared predictable conbutions from the platarm and the audience.
The big name speakers miled to materialise. enn, Livingstone, Scargill ackerstaffe were all abthough Peter Beathfield did turn up for • NUM and Alastair Mcocciclal y esignate of NUPE, stood • for Bickerstaffe.
Discussion was even pore limited by the ancellation of workshops fter a false bomb scare srupted the proceedings. nd, at the end of the day, merpool's fightback reained as a glorious examle. with no plans to link with orner sections of working class prepared take on the government.
The conference ent called EC the to eciare their full support • Liverpool and back an ad industrial action to deabour Party activists County Hall on aturday Despite a statement adopted by the conference, fend Liverpool. demanded such campaign be linked to the objective early general election to ditch the Tories and (wait for it return government committed to implementing a socialist programme. Kinnock With Neil Kinnock's history of condemning illegal' action Murray's full-blooded sell out of every dispute that comes way. such demands are hollow unless backed by a real campaign throughout the movement of all those prepared to fight Yet again Militant sup porters have failed to try and build such a genuinely broad-based campaign. Like the Labour Steering Committee Against the Witch Hunt, the Broad Left Organising Committee which gone before, the Liverpool ightback Conference has not understood that 1l 15 necessary. to unite all sections of the labour movement around the goal of sto Phat meros axe.
means opening up the campaign commitopening up the conference to those who don't necessarily support the dots and commas of the 'bold socialist D1Ugramme' advocated by the Militant newspaper. But fears this would lose it political control.
The Merseyside Trade Union and Labour Move. ment Campaign Commitwhich ICC and is dinating the campaign on Merseyside is too narrowly based. Maior trade union bodies in Liverpool, like the docks shop stewares the Ford-Halewood shop Stewards not represented.
Liverpool city council is approaching a decisive stage in its fight. The Liverpool councillors triumphantly greet the Democracy missed to build the broadest possible support in the labour movement.
Budget meeting on 11 July forward in the defence of JODS services But that date proaches the pressure on councillors to make a compromising ory demands will be immense. ine stronger movement cammore intely dee are the more likely they withstand such pressure. given the maximum possi Liverpool must ble support for its stand. Particularly important, Day demonstration as it arrives at the town hall. Since then opportunities have been
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larget sovernment aunched MEETING of eighty