CPSA delegates must throw out Whitleyism

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PRESS struggle against As the CPSA Conference meets this week, the NEC's recent sellout on the pay claim will be to the forefront of delegates' minds.

There are several motions on the agenda censuring the NEC for their lack of leadership over the pay campaign.

In the light of the betrayals of the pay claim there will be increased support for motions calling for CPSA withdrawal from the Whitley Council setup, the Pay Research Unit and the 1974 pay agreement.

There is also a series of motions censuring CPSA General Secretary Ken Thomas for supporting the document "A Better Way"-which advocates a permanent incomes policy-and for signing the TUC 'Concordat' in contravention of CPSA policy.

There are very few motions on public expenditure cuts. The only motion proposing more than token protest is an important emergency motion from the Oxford DHSS branch calling for the union to adopt a policy of strike action against the cuts and to fight for a sliding scale of iET SOCIALIST public spending.

At a period when the Tory government is launching a vicious attack on the right to strike and picket it is important that conference supports those motions which call for defence of "secondary" picketing and defence of the right to strikers' families to supplementary benefit.

On women's rights there are motions censuring the NEC for their failure to fight for workplace nurseries and their participation in the reactionary "Family Day Care Scheme"

The NEC will be censured yet again for not providing a creche at this year's conference instead they have issued delegates with a list of childminders!)

The motions on abortion are all inadequate as they merely call for affiliation to NAC and for support for demonstrations against restrictive legislation.

They ignore the fact that attacks on abortion rights are part of the cuts in the NHS.

On Ireland, there is a motion calling for the abolition of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

There is also a completely CAPITAL lead in the inadequate motion calling for troops out "at some time in the future-and this could mean decades"

It is extremely unlikely however that these motions will be heard, since the CPSA bureaucracy is determined that there be no discussion on Ireland.

The right wing dominated NEC have on the agenda several motions and documents which they want conference t endorse.

Their proposals are all extremely dangerous and if passed would strengthen the hold of the bureaucracy in CPSA.

Their document "A Review of CPSA Strike Policy" would severely restrict CPSA members' right to strike and would clearly sabotage any future campaign on the cuts or on pay.

The document totally rejects the tactic of ail out strike action and sees selective action as the only way.

It also seeks to restrict what issues the union can strike over.

"Industrial action designed change the political course of the government is normally unlikely to be successful."

If accepted this would ensure that there would be insufficient union funds to sustain a strike of any length, since it proposes that the amount of subscription credited to the Strike Fund be restricted to 10% and that strike levies should be abolished.

There is also a proposed new rule on discipline which if passed would enable militants to be removed from office and expelled from the union without the present right of appeal to annual conference.

These moves taken with the proposed change of method of election procedures to the NEC, reflect the new influence of the right wing leadership.

The task in the coming period is to mobilise the newly radicalised sections of the CPSA that have come to the fore in the recent pay struggles in order to ensure that these right wingers are removed from the leadership and a principled alternative built within the ranks of the union.