Nursery Keeps officials on hook

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A Socia list Press feature The refusal of the Oxford City Nursery campaign to bleed to death has become a considerable embarrassment to sections of the local trade union bureaucracies, anxious to avoid being exposed over their refusal to fight the cuts.

In particular the promise by leaders of the Oxford county branch of the National Union of Public Employees to call a district committee to discuss industrial action is high on the list of things that they wish they had never said.

Eric Millar, secretary of the county branch, left for the annual NUPE conference saying that the closure of the nursery was not strictly a union matter, and he would have considerable difficulty in convening . the meeting.

Originally he had proposed that the matter go to the district committee, when he was confronted by a militant section meeting determined to vote on strike action then and there.

'No opposition

Millar is now claiming that the county council has assured him there will be no more cuts involving NUPE members-and that this removes the necessity for action against the cuts.

The axe happy Tory Council know that they have encountered no opposition to cuts from NUPE leaders, so long as they don't involve compulsory redundancies. They learned also, during last year's teachers' strike, that trade union officials are ready to dissipate their members' militancy. The council is therefore just waiting for the nursery campaign to go away.

The trouble for them is that it shows no signs of doing so. Since the class was evicted from the council building at the end of last month it has continued in a nearby building.

Ironed out

Some of the practical problems have now been ironed out and the campaign is continuing its intervention directly into the trade union movement.

The trades council is committed to sending a delegation to see the local council and to campaign for the reinstatement of the class, and jobs.

But the trades council also asked its officers to hold an early meeting with the nursery committee-even if the Tory council continued to refuse such a meeting.

This move, which would find out exactly what the trades council officers intend doing to carry out their mandate, is naturally being stalled off.

The officers argue instead that the pace of events should be dictated by the Tory chairman of he county education committee, Brigadier Roger Streatfield.

Enraged At the same time, the right wing stranglehold over the local Mational Union of Teachers took mother knock when the Oxford Cry Association voted to send its mom detigation to the council to demand more nursery places.

The annual: maeting of Oxfordshire 'County Council, normally a friendly gathering of Tory and Labour cpouncillors to have lunch together and look back over. the past year with mutual satisfaction; was sharply affected by a lobby of nursery campaigners outside county hall.

Tory councillors were enraged to see banners from two TGWU branches outside the building, those of the TGWU 5/293 and the 5/60 and demanded to know what was the connection between trade unions and nursery places!

'Moderation'

They could have addressed their question to the Rev. Tony Williamson, one of the few Labour counciliors left on Oxfordshire County Council, who is chairman of the 5/60 branch as well as being one of the Labour voices of 'moderation' which have done nothing about the Tory cuts.

The campaign has reached a stage where determined, patient and unyielding pressure has to be brought to bear on all those in nominal support of the campaign to force them to call action or stand down.

But the frustrations some supporters have felt in the lack of quick results and the surface let down in the campaign following the breaking up of the occupation have left both the IMG and SWP in disarray.

At a supporters meeting last week. they. proposed taking different routes to oblivion.

'Broad based'

The IMG asked supporters to recognise that the county council "probably isn't going to change its mind" and urged that the forthcoming conference, Action Against the Cuts, should belie its name by liquidating itself into one of those broad based' committees which can fight the cuts in general while playing down the particular.

The proposal was so badly received, with even IMG members squirming in their seats, that the proposer spent the rest of the meeting saying that they were not suggesting ending the nursery class, although to everyone listening that seemed exactly what they had said.

The SWP said the moves being made through the unions were doomed to failure because there Now that the occupation is over the fight must continue for the lost jobs and places.

was no sign that the membership was willing to fight or that the leadership would lead.

Their cynicism and pessimism about the working class and their refusal to fight the trade union leadership did not however lead them to propose ending the campaign.

'Direct action'

So they pushed for a policy of what they call "direct action" which boiled down to a proposal to storm the next council meeting and occupy it.

Both these route; were thrown out by 'the supporters' meeting and plans are now being laid for the Action Against the Cuts Conference. OXEOR The Nursery Campaign has organised a one day conference, Action Against the Cuts Rally, for Saturday May 27 in Oxford from 11am to 5pm.

. Besides speakers from the campaign there will also be speakers from the London hospital occupations, including Hounslow, and speakers involved in fighting local social services cutbacks.

Films will be shown from nursery occupation itself and fight. several exhibitions of occupations will be on show. coming in from trade union branches as well as the unemployed and single parents.

Anne-Marie Sweeney said:

"We don't just want a conference where everyone talks about their occupations and we all pat each other on the back.

We want to attract people who have not yet taken action against the cuts, and show them the kind of action It is up to local areas to launch the local fights on this To that end action is being taken to alert local health workers to the possibilities of massive cuts in the health service.

It is vital that everyone in the area-and from other areas-who wants to take action against the attacks on social services and all cuts attends this conference at the East Oxford * Community Credentials-for delegates or individuals-can be: obtained from Ted Eames, 7, East Street, . Osney,

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SOL PHOTO: Laurence Sparham, IFL

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